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Record of Proceedings

Fitchburg Library Board Meeting – January 21, 2026

Common Council & City Boards — Wednesday, January 21, 2026
BodyFitchburg, Wisconsin
SessionCommon Council & City Boards
DateWednesday, January 21, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 53:52

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:00

Hi, I'm Jeremy Progby.

0:01

And I'm Nick Boucher.

0:02

We're your host for the program that's all about your city, Talking Pittsburgh.

Speaker 2

0:06

Every weekday, we pull together the news, events, and information you need to stay on top of what's happening in the city of Pittsburgh.

Speaker 1

0:12

Find Talking Fitchburg on Cable TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple TV, and our live stream on the web.

0:18

Plus, you can find all our headlines and stories on Facebook, YouTube, and our video on demand service.

Speaker 2

0:23

This is your city.

0:24

Keep up with Talking

Speaker 1

0:25

Fitzburg and the issues affecting you and your neighbors.

Speaker 3

0:30

Want to know what's happening in your city?

0:32

Get notify me messages from the city of Fitchburg.

0:35

Visit Fitchburg WI.gov on your computer or mobile device and select the big notify me button on the left.

0:41

Enter your email and or phone number, whichever is best for you to get notifications.

0:46

Scroll down the list and select all the topics you're interested in to receive email or text messages about.

0:51

You'll be notified every time one of your topics is updated.

0:54

Sign up for Notify Me.

0:56

One more way to keep up with your Fitchburg government.

Unassigned speaker

1:21

Okay,

Speaker 4

1:21

we'll call the order.

1:22

Welcome everyone to the January 2026 library board meeting.

1:26

Um called it at uh 5 30.

1:29

Um public appearances.

1:31

I'm not aware of any.

1:32

Nope.

1:32

So

Unassigned speaker

1:33

uh

Speaker 4

1:33

approval of minutes.

1:35

Uh may I have a motion to approve the November meeting minutes.

1:38

We did not have a meeting in December, so November was our last meeting.

Unassigned speaker

1:41

Oh

Speaker 5

1:42

my deck motion.

Speaker 4

1:43

John, thank you.

1:44

Um any discussion questions, comments about the minutes.

1:53

Don't see anything from Mariah or Logan.

1:57

So all in favor uh of approving the minutes say aye.

2:03

Aye.

Speaker 5

2:06

Aye.

Speaker 4

2:07

And uh approved financial reports.

2:10

So we'll look at uh uh the September and October Financial Register together.

2:17

And then uh but we'll I'll ask for a motion to approve the September and October financial registers and the overview, and then we'll have uh when you go through all of

Unassigned speaker

2:28

that.

Speaker 4

2:29

We have a motion.

Speaker 6

2:31

I'll motion.

Speaker 4

2:32

Brett, thank

Unassigned speaker

2:33

you.

Speaker 7

2:34

All right, I'll go through a couple of things here.

2:37

Um September.

2:39

You'll see an account 245.

2:42

We have a charge there for the Solus template.

2:44

That's uh for our mobile app.

2:47

Um, and I'm happy to report that we are moving to a new ILS this spring, and I believe it comes with its own app, so this is something we won't have to pay again next year, which is always good to see.

2:58

Um account 350.

Unassigned speaker

3:02

It

Speaker 7

3:02

looks like we got a fabulous deal on a power washer for 51 dollars.

3:06

Um, but this is one of Kevin's um pieces of equipment, so he buys it and splits it across multiple buildings at the city.

3:13

Oh, Logan's got a visitor.

Speaker 4

3:16

Ah

Speaker 7

3:20

you get bonus points for that.

3:23

Um so yeah, so the power washer is being split between multiple buildings.

3:28

Um also would point out in account 360, Ant Flow.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Library Standards█████████████████████████████████████████████74%
Procedural██████10%
Public Works███5%
Public Transportation██4%
Facilities Management██4%
Technology and Innovation██3%
Summary of Proceedings

Fitchburg Library Board Meeting – January 21, 2026

The Fitchburg Library Board met on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, at 5:30 PM. The board approved routine financial items, an ILS purchase order, authorization for the annual report, and a $95,000 contract for a children's library interactive feature. The director also reported on a major ILS migration planned for April 2026.

Consent Calendar

  • November 2024 Meeting Minutes – Approved unanimously (no meeting in December).
  • September and October Financial Registers and Overview – Approved after staff explanations of charges (e.g., Solus template for mobile app, power washer shared with city, free period product restocking, newspaper RFP advertisement, annual computer replacements). The utility account appeared overspent but was corrected by a prior budget amendment.
  • ILS Purchase Order (over $25,000) – Approved for the South Central Library System contract covering LinkCat ILS, network PCs, delivery, Wi-Fi, acquisition software, self-check authentication, and interior design support. The board expressed satisfaction with the service.
  • Authorization for Board President to Sign DPI Annual Report – Approved to allow the director to sign the state-required statistical report by the February 23, 2026 deadline, in case a February board meeting is canceled due to weather.

Discussion Items

  • Financial Reports Detail – Director Wendy provided explanations for September and October transactions, including a new mobile app template (to be replaced by the new ILS), a power washer split among city buildings, first restocking of free period products in five years, and an RFP advertisement for the children's library redesign. The board discussed the utility budget, interest income (higher than budgeted), and year-end adjustments.
  • ILS Purchase Order – The director described the broad scope of services from South Central Library System, including the integrated library system (ILS), patron database, PC support, delivery, Wi-Fi access points, acquisition software, self-check connections, and interior design assistance. The board confirmed satisfaction and noted that state statute requires membership in a library system.
  • Children's Library Interactive Feature (Resolution R-06-26) – The board approved a $95,000 proposal from Bachman Design Group (local) over a $100,000 bid from Kramer Design & Production for an interactive feature in the children's area. The project is part of a $200,000 CIP. Staff selected Bachman after interviews, citing personalized service, local presence, lower maintenance design, and ease of future additions. The director noted that the feature aims to attract families who currently visit Verona Library, citing statistics: approximately 3,000 items checked out to Verona residents at Fitchburg versus 30,000 items checked out to Fitchburg residents at Verona. The project still requires approvals from the Board of Public Works, Finance Committee, and City Council. Fundraising from the Friends of the Library (possibly $10,000–$20,000) may offset the cost.
  • Library Director Report – ILS Migration – The library will migrate from LinkCat (LibLime Koha) to Symphony (SirsiDynix) in April 2026. The system will be offline for three days (April 13–15), with the library closed on April 14 for staff training. Patrons will need a library card or ID for offline checkout; self-checks and the drive-up book drop will not work. All patron PINs will be reset. The director noted that the new system will have better search functionality and a more user-friendly app. Staff training will include train-the-trainer sessions and a full in-service day. The board discussed additional staffing during the transition, communication with patrons, and coordination with other South Central libraries.
  • Committee Reports
    • Statistics – Year-end 2025 circulation down 0.7%, adult programs at all-time high, youth and teen programs up. Wireless session counts for the last four months were omitted due to a software algorithm change. E-book usage slightly down, eAudiobooks up.
    • Facilities – A pump on the new HVAC system was rebuilt and reinstalled; a cracked compressor window is being assessed. The solar array is now functioning after a $4,600 repair (replacement of inverter and arc fault repair). The director stated that no further solar work will be authorized in 2026 due to budget constraints.
    • Personnel – Fully staffed; all new hires performing well.
    • Strategic Planning – The draft strategic plan (including environmental scan and survey results) will be presented to the board in February for input.
  • President's Report – Lois Corwin resigned as President of the Friends of the Library board due to her husband’s health issues. The Friends board will appoint a successor. The president noted that fundraising momentum may slow.

Key Outcomes

  • Votes – All items were approved by voice vote with no opposition:
    • November minutes
    • September and October financial registers and overview
    • ILS purchase order
    • Authorization for board president to sign DPI annual report
    • Resolution R-06-26 approving the Bachman Design Group proposal
  • Next Meeting – Wednesday, February 18, 2026, at 5:30 PM in the same location.
  • Adjournment – Motion and approval.

Meeting Transcript

Hi, I'm Jeremy Progby. And I'm Nick Boucher. We're your host for the program that's all about your city, Talking Pittsburgh. Every weekday, we pull together the news, events, and information you need to stay on top of what's happening in the city of Pittsburgh. Find Talking Fitchburg on Cable TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple TV, and our live stream on the web. Plus, you can find all our headlines and stories on Facebook, YouTube, and our video on demand service. This is your city. Keep up with Talking Fitzburg and the issues affecting you and your neighbors. Want to know what's happening in your city? Get notify me messages from the city of Fitchburg. Visit Fitchburg WI.gov on your computer or mobile device and select the big notify me button on the left. Enter your email and or phone number, whichever is best for you to get notifications. Scroll down the list and select all the topics you're interested in to receive email or text messages about. You'll be notified every time one of your topics is updated. Sign up for Notify Me. One more way to keep up with your Fitchburg government. Okay, we'll call the order. Welcome everyone to the January 2026 library board meeting. Um called it at uh 5 30. Um public appearances. I'm not aware of any. Nope. So uh approval of minutes. Uh may I have a motion to approve the November meeting minutes. We did not have a meeting in December, so November was our last meeting. Oh my deck motion. John, thank you. Um any discussion questions, comments about the minutes. Don't see anything from Mariah or Logan. So all in favor uh of approving the minutes say aye. Aye. Aye. And uh approved financial reports. So we'll look at uh uh the September and October Financial Register together. And then uh but we'll I'll ask for a motion to approve the September and October financial registers and the overview, and then we'll have uh when you go through all of that. We have a motion. I'll motion. Brett, thank you. All right, I'll go through a couple of things here. Um September. You'll see an account 245. We have a charge there for the Solus template. That's uh for our mobile app.

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