Lake Mills Public Library Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes
Tuesday, July 7, 2026
3:30 p.m.
Meeting was Called to Order at 3:31 PM
· Attendance
o Members Present: Julie Aamodt, Larry Rice, Shannon Bruhns, Luke Peters
o Members Absent: Jan Belica
o Staff Present: Kim Brackey, Library Director
o Public Present:
· Agenda
o Motion to approve the agenda by Shannon Bruhns and 2nd by Larry Rice
o Approved Unanimously
· Previous Minutes
o Motion to approve previous minutes was made by Larry Rice and 2nd by Shannon Bruhns
o Approved Unanimously
· Monthly Finances
o Motion to approve Monthly Finances made by Larry Rice and 2nd by Luke Peters
o Approved Unanimously
· Library Updates
o The circulation report was discussed. Kim pointed out the significant increase in numbers in several areas due to the onset of the Summer Reading Program. Juvenile Fiction circulation doubled from May to June as did Picture Books. Total circulation went from 1214 in May to 2191 in June. Patron count went from 903 in May to 1896 in June. Program Attendance went from 268 in May to 456 in June.
o Director’s Report: Kim shared a document highlighting the month. The focus has been on the Summer Reading Program. Kim has also worked to complete all invoice submissions for grant reimbursements for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. A bike rack was purchased before the end of the fiscal year as well as four new Playaway Launchpad tablets. All IT issues have been taken care of, and patrons can now print from the patron computers as well as directly from their phones again. Kim has been securing presenters for fall Lunch & Learn dates. She sat in on a Teams presentation regarding “Combat Cancer: Telehealth Tablet Placement” designed to promote the placement of iPads in libraries and pharmacies in Iowa to promote telehealth for the rural population of Iowa and address the increasing number of cancer diagnoses in Iowa.
· Youth Services Director Report
o No Report Given
· Old Business
o Summer Reading Program Updates: Donation totals to date, over 206 kids registered, event attendance provided for each event
o IT Update
· New Business
o City Council Meeting Report Shared with Board. Peters suggested that, next time, Brackey provide a comparison of current fiscal year data compared to fiscal year data from four or five years ago to show the positive direction the Library has taken
o Brackey updated the Board about the latest meeting of the Community Wellness Center Committee and shared the latest floor plan. Kris Singelstad planned to attend today’s meeting but was called out of town for an emergency. The committee will meet again next week. Kris is willing to meet with the Library Board again later to answer questions and discuss further.
o There was some discussion as to whether it would be beneficial to leave the front lights on when closed. It was decided to leave them off for now as we have had no issues of concern.
o Brackey asked the Board if we could look at our current mission statement for the August meeting with the hope of updating it.
o Brackey informed the Board of vacation days she will be using the end of July/beginning of August and wondered if we could possibly switch our next meeting date. It was decided that we would meet Tuesday, August 11th at 3:30 p.m.
· There were no public comments
· Trustee Training: Combat Cancer/Telehealth Tablet Placement – Cerro Gordo County Public Health & Mario County Public Health: Kim shared information from the Teams meeting she sat in on. She shared an overview of the project, some of the requirements/goals of the project, some of the challenges she felt we would face at LMPL and asked the Board for their thoughts. Our number one challenge is the lack of a private meeting space. The fact that people would be meeting with a provider in an open space, with no privacy, is a deal-breaker in our minds. The presenters said they could provide a privacy curtain and headphones, but there is simply no area in the library that would be remotely private enough, even with those accommodations, to make this feasible. This initiative is definitely an important one, and one that is needed in rural Iowa. We just don’t see LMPL as the right setting. Luke mentioned possibly bringing this up at the City Council meeting on Monday.
· Motion to Adjourn: Bruhns. Seconded by Rice. Approved unanimously.
· Meeting Adjourned at 4:25 pm