JPL Intranet

Although many institutions are announcing 4-6 week closures, we should be planning for the possibility that many places, including the library, will be closed to the public for a much longer period of time–maybe even into summer. Department heads will be meeting tomorrow to discuss ways of continuing to serve the community during this time. We’d love to hear your ideas, no matter how crazy. Please add them to the list linked below:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10GTc0rAapUdZKkig0H_aFGkV65IgeOmzJyew6rIwfQs/edit?usp=sharing

CITY OFFICES CLOSE IN EFFORT TO PREVENT SPREAD OF COVID-19

In an effort to implement social distancing practices recommended to slow the spread of COVID-19, the City of Johnston offices, including Public Works, City Hall, and Crown Point Community Center, will be closed to the public effective Wednesday, March 18 thru Sunday, April 12. The Johnston Public Library remains open for hold pick-up from 9:00 a.m. thru 8:00 p.m. through Wednesday, March 18. The library will officially close on Thursday, March 19 thru Sunday, April 12. While these facilities are closed to walk in traffic, City services will continue to be provided by City departments with customer service needs being either handled online, via email or by phone.

Returns

Our outdoor book return and the Beaver Creek book return are currently closed. Patrons have been notified. Due dates for all checked out items have been extended to April 16th.

Holds

From now until we close, the pickup date for all available holds will be extended to 4/16.

Due to the overwhelming number of hold requests we’ve received in the past couple of days, we will be suspending hold requests at 5pm today. Patrons can still pick up their holds until 8pm today and 9am to 8pm tomorrow.

Update: The staff printer is back in service.

The staff printer in the workroom has a “Fuser System Error.” Scanning is available; printing and copying are not. I put in a service call.

In the meantime, you can print to the YS printer or to the TS printer.

Thanks to all the staff who hustled today to pull holds. Over 1,600 holds were placed in the last 24 hours!

Items checked out over the next few days will have their due dates updated to 4/16 each night.

If you’d like to take time off while we’re closed–either unpaid or by using your PTO–please talk to your supervisor. I understand that this may be a challenging time to find childcare, that some may feel safer staying home, and that this would just be a good time to take a breather.

Feel free to wear jeans to work starting today.

Some may be wondering what we as staff will do if the library closes. If we close, staff will continue to work their regular hours (when you work your hours will be negotiable). We will spend time doing our regular work, cleaning up, doing projects, straightening shelves, etc.

I attended a meeting with city departments heads this morning regarding the coronavirus. The Police Chief has been in communication with county officials and recommends following their guidelines–not the actions take by schools, other libraries, or other public institutions–when it comes to implementing “social distancing”, like cancelling programs and meetings, and other measures to curb the spread of the virus. At this point, the cases in Iowa can be traced to cruise ship in a foreign country. The point at which health officials are likely to begin recommending that institutions and individuals take more extreme action will be when cases appear where the origin is either local or unknown. According to the chief, Iowa health officials predict that the course of the virus in Iowa will become much more clear before the end of the month. Health department recommendations and our own response will develop accordingly.

https://www.polkcountyiowa.gov/health/programs/covid-19/

https://idph.iowa.gov/Emerging-Health-Issues/Novel-Coronavirus

I’ve created a Facebook post asking for donations of used J and YA books to give away at outreach events this summer. Until further notice, please put donations of books for kids and teens in the box marked for them next to the food donation bin.

The following was posted on the library’s Facebook page this morning. Donations can be placed in the red plastic bin under the ledge behind the circ. desk. Procedures on lending forthcoming.

We are looking for donations of gently used basketballs, soccer balls, kick balls, and wiffle balls and bats for us to lend for use in the green space around the library. Donations can be dropped off at the checkout desk.

Hi All,

As we open, please wipe down the Circ Desk and Self-Check area with either disinfectant wipes or Lysol. This includes the entire counter (staff and patron sides) and the keyboards, touchscreens, mice, keyboards and phones.

There will be hand sanitizer throughout the department.

If you are unwell,  please call or text me at 515-210-4441 to let me know you will not be at your scheduled shift as soon as possible. Emailing alone is not an acceptable method of sharing last-minute absences because I check it less frequently and the notifications are less obvious on my phone.

Below is a list of immediate actions and future plans related to the Coronavirus. Your supervisor will be in touch if she would like you to be responsible for anything in the list. 

Immediate Actions

• Begin wiping public desks, the Exploration Station (including touch screens), the Imagination Station, and the self-check and print release screens with disinfecting wipes once each day.
• Make a final delivery to home-bound patrons before suspending home delivery services temporarily.

Actions If the Virus Comes to Polk County

• Bag and store all puppets
• Put away puzzles, Imagination Station toys, YS tablets, and the Lego and train tables

Actions Based Upon Health Department Suggestions

• Initiate “social distancing” measures including:
  • Cancelling all library programs
  • Cancelling public meetings scheduled in the East, West, and Archive Rooms
  • Encouraging the use of the self check 

Today, the notice below was sent to patrons who have checked something out within the past 3 months:

We wanted you to know that the library’s restrooms are currently closed for renovations through April 6^th. We hope to have the children’s restroom reopened sooner. Portable toilets are available outside and a changing table is available in our Youth Service Area. Let me know if you have any questions.

Hi All,

Megan has requested that you stop putting books on top of each other in Youth Services.

As you were trained, if a section is too tight to fit the books where they belong, please return the books to the pre-shelving area and leave me a note or send me an email.

If you have any questions, please let me know. Thanks for your help!

Recently, we have had more people requesting that staff microwave food and drink. I’m going to let you use your best judgment on this. If you feel that you have time to quickly visit the breakroom and microwave a cup of soup or coffee, and you feel comfortable doing so, I’m okay with that choice. It would be wise to warn the patrons that most of the time library staff will not be able to microwave for them and they should plan to bring food that does not require warming in the future. Also make sure that the desk is covered when you pop back to the break room and please do not bring the patrons back to the break room with you J

If you don’t have time, you don’t know how long to microwave it, it involves complicated preparation or you simply feel uncomfortable handling other people’s food, please let them know that you are working on a library-related task and are unable to microwave for them and in the future, they should plan on bringing food to the library that doesn’t require heating.

The common message for patrons here is that, in general, library patrons should not plan on having a microwave available at the library and they should plan accordingly with their meal/snack planning. We should be educating them, very politely, in either case.

The common message for library staff is to feel empowered to say no to microwaving for library users.

• removing unnecessary items in children’s areas such as toys, puzzles and other playthings that are difficult to clean and sanitize.
• cancelling programs
• cancelling meeting room reservations
• regularly cleaning and disinfecting surfaces and equipment

Note that they are not wiping down books.