I think we're This is the Franklin Public Library Board of Trustees meeting. It's Wednesday, February 25th, 2026. I'd like to call the meeting to order and we'll start with a pledge of
allegiance to the flag. >> I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
>> Call the role. >> Aisha, you're here. >> Here. Deborah >> here. >> Yes. Mayor Kramer >> here. >> Yes. Kevin, >> I'm here.
>> January is here. >> Nick, I'm here. Amy Arala not here at the moment. Okay. Agnes Kabana. No. Okay.
This meeting is being held in accordance with the Open Public Meetings Act, also known as the Sunshine Law. The schedule and notification of this meeting have been provided to the Courier News, the Home News Tribune, and the Franklin Township Clerk. Copies have been posted
in the library's vestibule and are available right there at the reference desk. Is there any member of the public who would like to speak at this time? No,
I would then close the first part of the public session and uh discussion. Is there discussion um and or acceptance of the minutes of the December meeting? Uh I'm sorry, the January meeting.
>> January. Yeah. Is any motion? I was here, but I I don't mind making the motion. I'll motion that the minutes >> from the December meeting uh are accepted. >> Is there a second?
>> Aisha has seconded. Kevin made the motion. Is there any discussion of the minutes at this point? Seeing none, those in favor of accepting the minutes, please indicate by saying I or raising your hand or vote.
>> I this uh motion has passed unanimously. January, would you like to uh point out any uh highlights from your first the financial reports and then the um and your operations report? >> Well, as far as the financial reports
go, you may notice that on the um Apple Green page or green uh revenue page, that there's nothing uh for line 832, which is the statutory allocation. That's because the uh monthly allocation
from the township um is always delayed this time of year until they get the budget done. But so next month you'll see January and February in there and forest. the operations report. I'll tell you that
we had a program on curling which was appropriate. I think it's going on I guess with the the controversy about the cheating. I don't know what happened with that. >> Is that right? They were cheating. >> Yeah, they were cheating. >> Oh, so they said allegedly cheating.
>> Allegedly wasn't cheating in hockey. I know that. Um, and the adult services department had 52 adult programs with 701 attendees. The youth services department held 41 programs that 1,19
people participated in. And it's kind of a quiet month. So, I think that's basically all I have to highlight. >> Okay. I do have a president's report. I think I've been passing it around. under
there. Any more copies there? >> I think there's a couple in that. >> Can you think? >> There's one here. >> I got one. Did you >> Did you get one? >> I'm good. >> You can get one.
>> Okay. In the president's report, I'm talking about uh an ongoing discussion we've had a couple of times with a a member of the uh Franklin Astronomy Club and talking
about a program. It's a nationwide program actually started in New Hampshire. It's li the library telescope program. So, um, Mr. Roast talked to us last year and,
um, it didn't seem at that time that we were real enthused about the prospect of, uh, handling an instrument like a telescope and giving them out to people. Uh both January and I have thought about it a little bit since and have been in
contact with uh Ron who's president of the astronomy club and uh it's looking a little different to at least January and myself. Um there's three things that we that I
talked about and that is that the club would p purchase a telescope and donate it to our library. So we would have one to start with. um the library, we would provide a safe place to lock up the
telescope and and it would be available um to the club when we're open. And we our person our our employees, our
staff would not have to worry about uh checking out the telescope and making sure it was in good order. That would all be done by the club. So the telescope is a specially designed telescope for very easy use and
portability. I have not seen one yet, but it was designed for this library program and none has been delivered to Northern Scientific, the uh North New Jersey company that will be selling
them. So when we do get to see one, I think we can uh then u reconsider this possibility and I think it's a pretty good thing to do especially if it didn't involve a lot of
effort on the part of our staff and a lot of training on to many members of our staff. they would uh now I don't know if I misunderstood you said it would be available to the
members of the >> Okay. No, I think what I meant to say is that when a patron when a a card hold a member of our library wanted to check it out, they would contact the library and be told to make an appointment with
a member of the of the astronomy club. >> Okay. that at that appointment the astronomy club member would give them the telescope, >> instruct them and u and same thing when they returned it. They would return it
not to our library personnel but to a member of the astronomy club who would look it over and see whether all the parts were there. So it would be uh >> so we would the library would have pretty much no liability, right?
Well, if somebody dropped the micros the telescope on their toe, I'm not sure who would be liable. >> Right. I'm saying but once it leaves >> once it leaves it's like a book >> January. What do you think? >> It would all be on the astronomy club,
>> right? Because if somebody if somebody destroys a book, right, the library, >> we build them. >> You build them. But if they don't, >> but if they damage the telescope, that's between them >> and the club. >> So we Right. >> Yeah. We're just really housing it.
>> You're just like a storage. >> That's a good way to put it. >> That's what I was thinking. >> Yeah, >> we haven't discussed that specific thing about there's very little that goes goes can go. >> I remember when he was talking when he was here. I mean, I I thought it was a
good idea then. >> Yeah. >> And I think it even better now. And uh the the instructions that come with the telescope give all kinds of very easy targets to look at. >> Um so yeah supposed to be one unit. Uh
is there going to be more or >> well one will be donated to the library by the astronomy club. >> Right. >> What happens after that is has not been determined. >> We may find that one is enough. Now, I've spoken to um well, for instance,
the Scotch Plains Library has a telescope. It's not it's it's more cumbersome than this. It's more difficult to use and um but they do lend it out lend it out. And I asked, "Well,
do you get much call for it?" And they said, "Yeah, there's a reasonable amount of demand for it." So, if we had lots of demand for this, we may at that point decide to buy a second one. That's undetermined here.
>> Yeah, it's so expensive. >> Pardon? >> I was just thinking I thought it would be more. I I don't know. I I I didn't know how much a telescope was, but $350 doesn't seem >> Yeah, >> like more expensive.
>> Yeah, I'm sure. >> I was thinking the same thing. I was >> Yeah, when he said 350, I was like, "Oh, >> okay. The other problem here is though that Northern Scientific, which is up in Sussex County, has ordered these and
they were supposed to be in for February. They're not in yet. >> Okay. >> There's this company that's making them. Um, and apparently they haven't delivered any yet. >> So, so it's something we have to wait and see for see.
>> Okay. >> Okay. Uh moving on to uh correspondence and communication. Um January, thank you for keeping us informed on what's going on in every
library in the country. Are there any comments on any of these uh publications? I >> have to admit I didn't get to read any. I was uh I didn't get my mail >> until it might have been in there yesterday.
>> Well, you didn't go out in all the snow. I I I mean I was shoveling. I I >> Anyway, I was I was I was I was busy, but I'm going to I'm definitely going to read them. I usually appreciate >> Yeah. >> two of them are very short.
>> Yeah. And I love I always comment on it, but I have to >> I cannot tell a lie. >> Well, um January, don't be discouraged. Keep sending in. >> No, keep sending. I will.
>> And thank you for that. Is there any old business? Seeing none. Is there any new business? Any comments of any sort? How about public comments? The second part of the
second opportunity for the public to speak. Anybody? No. Okay. Our next meeting is scheduled for March 25th. And um
would anyone care to make a motion to adjourn this meeting? >> I'll make a motion to >> Okay. The motion was made and seconded twice, but I don't know who
>> made it and who seconded it. >> No, Kevin. No, I was just >> Kevin was the third man on >> No, I was just uh in favor. >> Oh, okay. >> Okay. >> Those in favor. >> Okay. >> Yes. >> This meeting is adjourned.
>> It is very >> adjourned. >> More snow tomorrow. >> No. >> Really? >> Yeah. That's what they said. That's what my wife said. Not much. >> Oh, we had some last night. >> We had some this morning. I was up. I
was up at 6:00. It was coming down pretty hard. 5:30 it was coming down.