Great Barrington Library Trustees Approve Minutes, Flag Elevator and Building Hazards

GREAT BARRINGTON -- December 8, 2022, Great Barrington Library Trustees approved two months of back-to-back minutes and heard an operational report showing strong November numbers while pressing facilities concerns dominated the meeting. Library Director Samara Kronick reported 7,022 total checkouts and 5,916 in-person visitors at Mason Library for November, with Ramsdell logging 1,018 checkouts and 351 visitors. The board voted unanimously to approve both October and November 2022 minutes, the latter with a name-spelling correction. A broken elevator at Mason, out of service for more than two weeks after failing inspection, has forced staff to carry heavy interlibrary loan bins up and down stairs by hand; Trustee Carol reported that a staff member named Maria injured her back doing so, raising workmen's compensation concerns. Board Chair Pat also flagged that Ramsdell's historic exterior windows, a deferred maintenance issue he said has gone unaddressed for roughly five years despite a town commitment to act, now have paint and molding visibly separating from the frames, with lead paint implications for any future restoration.