GCPL Board Votes to End Sunday Library Openings Through 2026
Geauga County Public Library (GCPL) - November 18, 2025
Meeting: The GCPL Board met on Tuesday, November 18, 2025 at 4:00 pm at the GCPL Administration Building following a brief Records Commission meeting. This Board Meeting was in-person with a virtual attendance option. To access the virtual option see information here. The meeting was not recorded. Minutes of this meeting will be posted on the GCPL website after they are approved at the December 16, 2025 meeting.
Observer Note: Each member of the GCPL Board and Staff receives a copy of the meeting packet, as does this Observer. It is available upon request in accordance with Ohio public records law (ORC 149.43). The board discusses and votes on the information in the packet. This Observer Report is made up of discussions held at the board meeting and information taken from the board packet.
Public Comment: Permitted and included in the regular order of business per GCPL bylaws. Further clarified in Policy 215 - Public Participation at Board Meetings.
Board Attendance: President Karen Delano, Vice President Kristen Brickman and Board Trustees Joshua Hutchinson, Kate Pitrone, Paul Newman and Jake Yanchar. Board Secretary Crist Miller was absent.
Library Staff Attendance:
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Kris Carroll - Director
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Katy Farrell - Assistant Director, Recording Secretary
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Lisa Havlin - Fiscal Officer
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Nicole Burnside - Human Resources
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Deborah Schrock - Development Coordinator
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Erika Noark - Geauga West Branch Manager
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Mary Balog - Thompson Branch Manager
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Rachael Hartman - Middlefield Branch Manager
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Mike Pope - IT Manager
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John Johnston - Facilities Manager
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Judy Lasco - Chardon Branch Manager
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Danielle Hollar - Bainbridge Branch Manager (attended online)
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Marlene Pelyhes - Tech Services Manager
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Denise Javins - Marketing Manager
Guests: none
Records Commission Meeting: President Karen Delano called the Records Commission meeting to order at 4:00 pm and roll call was taken.
The Board voted to approve Changes to the Records Retention Schedule (RC2), Records Disposal (RC3) and Records disposal with no RC3 required. Observer note: The schedules were available at the meeting and are part of the Ohio Historical Society’s State Archives of Ohio Local Government Records Program.
The Records Commission Meeting adjourned at 4:01pm.
President Karen Delano called the Regular Board Meeting to order at 4:01 pm and roll call was taken.
Minutes: Minutes of the October 21, 2025 Board Meeting were approved as presented. Board minutes are available online. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to access minutes. The minutes are posted as soon as they are approved at the following month’s Board meeting. Prior to March 2023, videos of meetings were available to the public here. GCPL is no longer posting videos of their meetings.
Communications: Two thank you emails were reviewed. One was from someone who had done research in the Anderson Allen Genealogy Room. The other was from the Red Cross for a recent Blood Drive.
Agenda: The agenda presented in the Board packet was approved with no changes.
Fiscal Officer’s Report - Ms. Havlin
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The Board packet contained the monthly Chardon Total Project Summary.
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The Board voted on and approved Disbursements and Gifts
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The Board voted on and approved Updates to Personnel Policy 285- Miscellaneous and Mileage Reimbursement. The policy was updated to reflect directives from the Auditor of State and the Ohio Ethics Commission.
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2025 Revenue Update - At the end of October 2025, Public Library Fund (PLF) revenue was $42,821 less than the YTD estimate released in December 2024. Year-to-date tax revenue was $154,197 more than certified and interest revenue is $218,045 higher than estimated.
Director’s Report - Ms. Carroll
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Capital Campaign. Work continued on the feasibility study for a capital campaign.
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Property tax education series. The director is collaborating with the League of Women Voters and local elected officials to develop a property tax education series. The series aims to provide clear, accessible information to residents about property tax structures and their impact on public services, including libraries. The first event will be at the Bainbridge branch in February.
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The County inspected the Admin Center on November 5th in preparation for the sale.
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The Garage Sale made over $3,600.00
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Thousands of libraries across the country are currently seeking new book vendors following the abrupt and unexpected closure of Baker & Taylor, one of the nation’s largest book distributors. GCPL’s Tech Services Manager, Marlene Pelyhes, anticipated these challenges and shifted the majority of GCPL’s orders away from Baker & Taylor earlier in the year and began using a different system to track orders.
Chardon Branch Project
Assistant Director’s Report - Ms. Farrell
October 2025 Statistics:
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42,161 patrons were served at the branches
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20,736 computer and wi-fi uses
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235 programs presented for 5,463 patrons
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11,740 reference and circulation interactions
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Total circulation of items: 263,318
Observer Note: The board packet contains a report of activities from all branches and departments. This is under the heading of the Assistant Director’s Report. The report includes Patron feedback reported at the branches. The host/local branch manager gives an oral report at the board meeting.
This month’s meeting was held at the Administration Building and Marketing Manager, Denise Javins,
reported on library sign-up month and new videos on what to do with a library card.
Bainbridge
Teen Movie Making Workshop was held at the Bainbridge Makerspace. Thirteen attendees learned how to use a green screen and how to edit sound and video clips.
Chardon
A craft supply swap was held in Chardon. Patrons who brought supplies to the branch before the event gained early entrance, but everyone was invited to attend. Leftover items were donated to the Chardon Discovery Shop.
Geauga West
Geauga West held the first Murder Mystery fundraiser for the GCPL Foundation. There were around 100 attendees.
Middlefield
The branch held an Edgar Allan Poe Escape Room for 30 patrons and received many positive comments.
Thompson
The branch held a new monthly homeschool program called Explorers’ Lab, where students engaged in hands-on experiments with magnets.
Mobile Services
A mother reported that her children were not interested in reading until the Bookmobile started to stop across from their house. Since then, they can’t wait to come on the bus and check out items
Human Resources - Ms. Burnside
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Board approval was obtained on 5 new hires, 2 promotions, 1 retirement, 1 employee leaving and 3 promotions to full time.
Committee Reports -Facilities Committee Meeting, held October 13
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No further details on water usage or other information has been received from Geauga West school district concerning their request for financial help with the new well which is on property shared by Geauga West Library and West Geauga School District. Reviewer Note: See LWVG Observer report for October 21, 2025.
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Sale of Administration Building. Since Community Block Grant funds are being used for the purchase, language concerning its use had to be added to the original purchase agreement. The documents are now back with the County Prosecutor for review. The next step is for the County to schedule an appraisal and inspection of the property.
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Chardon Project. Still working on site costs and building location on site.
Unfinished Business - None
New Business – Sunday hours
The board packet contained a report on the financial impact of closing the library on Sunday, which has been done since June 2025. Reviewer Note: See the July 15, 2025 LWVG Observer Report when Sunday closings were first discussed and the June 17 LWVG Observer report for a discussion of the sources of funding and reductions in funding from the state of Ohio. There has been a significant reduction in the need to schedule substitutes and staff requested some reduction in hours. Feedback forms from patrons, though small in number, were considered.
After discussion, the board vote was 4 to 2 in favor of keeping the library closed on Sundays through 2026. Board members Paul Newman and Jake Yanchar voted to stay open on Sundays.
Foundation Report - Ms. Schrock
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The Foundation’s Winter Wonderland of Trees is on view with trees available for sale through December 5th.
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The Foundation’s Finance Committee will meet on November 10th to begin discussions on the 2026 budget.
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The 2026 Booksale bookmarks are being distributed at the library branches.
Public Comment - none
Executive Session -
The Board went into Executive Session at 4:22 pm to consider compensation of public employees. After the Executive Session, the Board reconvened and made a motion to approve the updates to
Personnel Policy 270 and all related policies, including the grades and corresponding pay rates and further to grandfather the current Administrative Assistant and Marketing Assistant at their current vacation accrual rate. Future employees in those positions will accrue at the updated rate. The motion passed.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:52 pm.
Upcoming and Ongoing Events:
Next Meeting: The next Regular Board meeting is December 16th at 4:00 pm at the Administration Building. See website for information on meeting dates and locations.
Observer: Cris Takacs
Editor: Gail Roussey
Reviewer: Carol Benton
Date Submitted: 12/10/2025
The League of Women Voters of Geauga is a 501(c)(3) nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. They do not support or oppose individual candidates or parties. Learn more about the LWVG at www.lwvgeauga.org.