District Library Board appoints Tanya Stoudemire to fill seat

At its July 14 virtual RingCentral teleconference meeting, the Belleville Area District Library Board welcomed a new member – Tanya Stoudemire – to fill the vacancy created when Barbara Gates resigned after moving out of the district to tend to her son’s health.
Stoudemire was appointed by board president Sharon Peters and the appointment was approved by the board to fill the vacancy until the general election in November. Stoudemire also will be running for the final two years of Gates’ term.
Stoudemire of Van Buren Township is an attorney and Deputy CFO/Budget Director for the City of Detroit. She previously served as treasurer on the library board but was not reelected in the 2016 election.
“I accept the nomination and am grateful for the nomination,” Stoudemire said at the meeting.
“I wish I could see you tonight,” said board vice president Mary Jane Dawson, who was attending by cell phone because of technical difficulties. “I’m so glad you accepted.”
“I’m glad to be coming back,” Stoudemire said.
Board president Sharon Peters said when she talked to Stoudemire, she had to promise she would do cartwheels in her backyard if she accepted the appointment and, “I’m practicing.”
“And, I’ve got 911 on speed dial,” Stoudemire joked.
“You had a short vacation,” Peters said after the roll-call vote that finalized Stoudemire’s placement on the board.
“The library is beautiful,” Stoudemier said. “I’m so proud of you.”
Joy Cichewicz gave a report from the new library building committee, noting the irrigation system has been installed and the landscaping on Roys Street installed. The green roof was put in and the old library demolished.
There are some issues with getting the heating correct, she said. The boilers were not set correctly because of an error made by the mechanical engineer. She said they are looking at three different solutions, which includes pulling the boilers out and replacing them with two boilers of the right size.
“Any of the solutions would work,” Cichewicz said, adding they are looking at the insurance company to hold the library harmless for changes that need to be made.”
She said architect Dan Whisler and the mechanical engineer admitted it was their mistake and they are using their best efforts at what can happen.
“It’s a topic for continued discussion on the building committee,” chairwoman Peters said.
Board member John Juriga said they would like to get it settled by August, which includes changing the pipes from ½-inch to 2-inch pipe.
“If we wait until October, it could get chilly,” Juriga said. “It will take a week to replace.”
Cichewicz said one drawing had it correct and when the building was downsized it wasn’t right any more.
Juriga said they also are working at getting the retention ponds away from the utility poles that are still in place.
Peters said the first phase of the pole relocation took a long, long time, and once she contacted her friend at DTE it went faster.
“We’re hopeful this same approach will work with these poles,” Peters said.
In other business at the one-hour-and-19-minute meeting, the board:
• Discussed the proposed design of the donor wall that is to be installed in the inner windows at the entrance to the new building, with the donor panels backed up to the entry. The panels will be on cords running from floor to ceiling. Peters said this design is the most flexible and lets in the most light;
• Heard Cichewicz say there won’t be a grand-opening any time soon and Peters agreed they can’t do a grand opening the way they planned. The library will open according to stages, Peters said. Library Director Mary Jo Suchy said now they can have no more than 25% occupancy, which is 171 in the entire building in different areas, including staff. “We’re discouraging groups,” Suchy said. “I’m sure there will come a day we can have a grand opening we envisioned, but not until 2021,” Peters said. Dawson said a donor celebration could be held sooner than the grand opening. “I have a problem with having a grand opening if everyone is not welcome,” Dawson said;
• Heard Dawson say they should make sure they have a liquor policy since the Belleville City Council has passed DORA [Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area] and the library is tucked in the middle of the DORA district. “I think we need a policy that says you can’t bring liquor in or sit on our benches and drink,” Dawson said. “Once you have a cup, you can refill it from your purse,” Cichewicz noted. Dawson said they are looking at a Beverage Walk for Winter Fest. She thinks they need to post something on the library. “What if an obviously inebriated person comes in?” Juriga asked, noting he saw Cichewicz run off an inebriated person from her library in Ypsilanti and the man didn’t scare her. Peters said they should look to see if any other libraries have policies on this;
• Heard Stoudemire ask if the library is paying for hand sanitizer and paper face masks and Suchy said it was and that the CARES Act could reimburse them;
• Heard Suchy report that curbside service for checking out books and materials has been steadily building and they are currently making between 30 and 40 appointments per day for book pickup. In addition, patrons can use the library’s mobile print service and make an appointment to pick up their print-outs curbside. The youth department has made up bags with summer reading program prizes that are available for curbside pick up, as well. Beginning July 8, the library started a soft reopening for limited lobby service by appointment for faxing, scanning, and using the copy machine;
• Heard Suchy also announce that they haven’t reopened the Sumpter Township branch yet and the WiFi does not have the best signal outside that building; and
• Heard Peters say these are challenging times and doing meetings over the internet is strained. “We’re more a group that likes to hug after the meetings,” she said. She said many memories went down with the wrecking ball the day before the meeting, when the old library next door was demolished.