Jasper Library Board volunteer group formed; meetings will be open to public
The Jasper Public Library Board chose five community members to take part in a volunteer committee to explore options for the future of the Jasper library.
Citing that all nine applicants were very desirable and qualified individuals, the board voted to nominate John Bell, Brad Ward, Karen Grewe, Tina Mair and Joe Huddleston to take part in the nine person committee. They will join two Jasper Library Board members — Mark Kunkel and Pamela Catt — and two staff members — Library Director Rita Douthitt and Branch Manager Christine Golden— in exploring ideas to be presented to the board for consideration.
Monday night, prior to choosing the five members, the board interviewed the remaining four applicants: Sherry Hilgeman, a professor at Indiana University Southeast; Diann Horney, of Krapf-Bartley Insurance; Tina Mair, temporary librarian at Ireland Elementary School; and Janice Kemker, a nurse who works seasonally for Green Thumb.
The first five interviewees were Brad Ward, CEO of the Dubois County Community Foundation; Karen Grewe, a city employee at the Jasper Community Arts Center; Joe Huddleston, a Kimball Office employee and market master for the Jasper Farmers Market; Bob Dilger, a retiree from Crane Naval Support Activity; and John Bell, the COO at TrueScripts Management Services, he also serves as the president of the Jasper Redevelopment Commission.
The first meeting of the volunteer group was tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, May 6 at 6 p.m. at the Library Annex. Attorney Bill Shaneyfelt advised the library board the volunteer group’s meetings should be held publicly.
“If this board creates an official committee, which they have, that official committee becomes an adjunct or a part of this board and that committee becomes an official group for open door meeting purposes,” Shaneyfelt told the board. “That means that that group has to comply with the same open door requirements that this group has to comply with.”
“My job is to give you advice to avoid litigation and to have decisions questioned after the fact,” Shaneyfelt said. “To not have open door violations interfere with bond issues if you want to proceed.”
The board also established guidelines for the volunteer group to follow while exploring options for the library’s expansion or potential construction.
Those included:
- Identifying the needs and wants of the community
- Identifying any obstacles and solutions
- Consider the cost of any undertaking
- Provide three to five solutions/ideas to expand, improve or build the library.
The group will meet publicly two to three times a month and report to the Jasper Library Board. The committee is expected to finalize the options within three to six months to meet the deadline for a 2015 referendum.
I’m glad it was open door meeting. We, the tax payers, should be allowed in. The current issues fall on our shoulders and bank accounts. I hope there isn’t a foolish and dull-witted move to pay $$$$ to a land owner for land that was for sale for the last @ 15 yrs. Just to hold it and let the money sway away in the flood zone it is in. My Grandma Emma would call those persons involved ” kneecumpoops ” and walk away whispering “In Gott im Himmel” !
I am grateful that this committee will be open to the public in stark and complete contrast to the meetings about Jasper Clean Energy. Thank you Mr. Shaneyfelt, for interpreting the law in favor of the public knowing its business, as the Open Door law was intended and written..
What a breath of fresh air concerning local government and local legal counsel. Contrast this approach to the divisive, costly biomass venture and material evidence of what was discussed in closed session and not in public: the public health concerns of 44 local doctors, 20 other local healthcare professionals, and hundreds of local concerned citizens; new EPA guidelines; Jay Catasein’s timelines; questions about Catasein’s history with Mirant; University of Illinois official’s comments about health effects and farming concerns; switchgrass vs.miscanthus as a fuel source; a local clean air ordinance presented by concerned citizens addressing our high cancer and asthma rates; the mayoral candidates’ public opposition to the biomass project; and citizens’ concerns about the government process, transparency, and public perception. This list addresses only the executive sessions, not the 12-15 unnoticed and private “volunteer group” meetings. The Open Door Law was written as a fundamental right akin to “informed consent”–to protect the media and citizens from harm, to have a more open and participatory society. Maybe brighter days lie ahead for the fiscal, physical, and spiritual well-being of our community.