Category: All-Library News

From city hall:

The City of Johnston’s phone lines are down. This includes City Hall, Public Works, Parks & Recreation, Library, and the non-emergency Police and Fire numbers. We are working with our provider to get the issue resolved as quickly as possible.

In the event of Police or Fire related non-emergency, please call the Polk County Sheriff’s Office directly at 515-286-3333. 911 service is not affected.

In the event of a low pressure sewer system alarm (solid red light located on the control panel and audible alarm), please call 515-208-5373.

From city hall:

Phone lines continue to be down. The latest update is that the tech couldn’t access the utility hole. I’m not sure what that means. They claim that they’ll be out tomorrow. Of course I asked how tomorrow would be different. They didn’t have an answer. I have escalated the ticket with the district manager, but I don’t expect much movement. I have also reached out to a local contact but haven’t heard back.
Updates as warranted.

Cyndee

The library’s phone system is currently down. We cannot receive or make phone calls. The problem is with the CenturyLink network–they’re looking into it.

There have been some connectivity issues with the Polaris client since Monday’s switch to a new staff server. Polaris Tech Support thinks they have resolved the problem. Please log out of Polaris client and log back in.

If you continue to have issues like the error message “RPC Server Unavailable” or Polaris boots you out unexpectedly, please report the problem to your supervisor or send me an e-mail.

Thank you for your patience and problem reporting skills!

A symphony re-mix will take place on Friday February 7 starting at 5:30 at the Civic Center downtown.  There will be free Fong’s pizza and beverages for purchase beginning at the time mentioned followed by an open rehearsal at 7.  If you pass the word around, please let them know that this is only for people 21 and over, but no reservations are required.  It’s free too!  We are playing Brahms Second Symphony, Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with Grace Park as soloist, and Rainbow Body by Christopher Theofanidis.  Concerts are Saturday the 8 at 7:30, and Sunday the 9 at 2:30.

Harry Potter tickets are being sold fast, and only three seats available for Saturday afternoon as of yesterday!  https://desmoinesperformingarts.org/events/harry-potter-and-the-prisoner-of-azkaban/.

Two charging cables are now available for patron use. Each has three ends to accommodate different types of phones. One is located at the Information Desk below the “Tech Help” sign and one is near the bench below the farm painting.

The library is not responsible for charging phones. If a patron asks you to watch their phone while it is charging, please do not accept. Patrons should stay with their phone while it is plugged in to the charging station to ensure that it is still there when charging is done.

Installation of our new security cameras will begin today.

The DMARC Mobile Food Pantry visit scheduled for this afternoon has been cancelled due to inclement weather.

I will be doing a training session on the “Website” portion of our all-desk services trainings tomorrow after the staff meeting for any staff who want to stick around. It should take 30-45 minutes. No registration required.

Our new, down-sized food donation bin will be kept below the self-check.

We installed a new staff server today. It’s called StaffServer2020. The network printers have new names — Workroom (B&W, Color), YS (B&W, Color), and TS.

The new server also affects access to network files on drives like Public and Youth Services.

If you have problems printing or accessing your files, please let me, Lori F., or Eric know.

Lois Carpenter, the food editor that taught the Instant Pot class on Saturday, left an ice cream scoop. I left it on the “Holds to Be Shelved” white cart behind the Circulation Desk. She hopes to stop by tomorrow (Sunday) to pick it up.

The library is closing at 2pm today.

Molly, Beth, Megan, and I will soon begin sending out sign-ups for the all-desk services trainings discussed at the most recent staff meeting (see the complete list below).  There will be multiple opportunities to complete each training and we will work with staff to schedule trainings at times that work best for you. If you’d like to attend a training that’s scheduled during your regular shift, please consult your supervisor first to ensure coverage.

Next week, a shredding company will be bringing two bins similar to the one shown below. The documents inside will be picked up and shredded once each month. These will take the place of our shredder which will be put in storage.

From Polk County Emergency Management:

Snowfall returns Friday morning as a winter storm takes aim on the region. The snow may be heavy at times during the morning and afternoon hours before eventually transitioning into a period of light wintry mix or freezing rain. Strong northwest winds develop Saturday which could lead to areas of blowing snow, in addition to lingering light snowfall Saturday morning. Highest snowfall accumulations nearing 6 inches will reside in north central Iowa with lesser amounts of 3 to 4 inches further south.

2019 W2 forms have been placed in your mailboxes.

Hello All,

Tax season is upon us so I wanted to submit a friendly reminder about info and services we offer during this time, as well as info and services we do not offer.

Eric has made our tax link live on our website. It is under our Services tab. This is the most expedient way to link people to printable forms for Iowa and Federal tax forms. The link also has info about what government offices people need to go to if they want to pick up their tax forms in person.

JPL will be receiving basic printed federal tax forms, mainly the 1040 form, but we have no way of knowing the exact date they will arrive. It will most likely be around the end of January or early February. The tax link on our website also has information about free tax preparation people can take advantage of if they are interested. AARP offers free tax prep, as well as United Way. Links to those sites with location and date and time info is posted there.

During this time, it’s important to remember that we do not provide tax advice or information to people, in the same way we do not provide medical or legal information to people. Just a friendly reminder that we can connect people to services and organizations that do provide this information, but we are not the information ourselves.