Davenport Public Library Director Jeff Collins told the board Oct. 21 that circulation increased year‑over‑year through the quarter, with children’s materials showing the largest gains, and highlighted several service and facilities updates.

Collins said the Friends of the Library’s fundraising event “Fatal Fiction,” held Sept. 27, drew more than 135 attendees and raised close to $15,000 in net proceeds. The director described the event as both a monetary success and positive community outreach for the library.

Among operational updates, Collins reported that vinyl graphics with literacy components were installed in the children’s area of the main library in mid‑September; the installation includes four “bridges” that depict city connections and a fifth element pending final installation. He also said the Fairmont branch will receive a new roof, a job that will take about a month and covers three separate roof sections.

The library has installed its final free little library at Bechtel Park in downtown Davenport, Collins said, and staff reported over 430 new library cards issued during Library Card Sign‑Up Month.

Collins told the board the library is converting its “techno collection” into an expanded library of things. He said the pilot will launch at the Maine and Eastern branches next week, with a soft launch at Fairmount in November. The director also addressed patron concerns about the removal of the physical audiobook collection, saying the decision was driven primarily by costs associated with joining an external service and by a decline in publishers releasing that physical format.

The meeting packet included a statistical dashboard covering 2026 planning; Collins said circulation increased month‑to‑month and quarter‑to‑quarter, with children’s materials benefiting the most — trends he tied to summer reading participation.

Collins reviewed upcoming programs: a Body Problems book talk and signing at Eastern on Oct. 30; Dinovember activities; Warm‑Up Wednesdays (weekly at Maine, November–February); a presentation by the Sage Sisters of Solidarity at Fairmount on Nov. 6; a 3‑D printed lithophane program Nov. 10 at the Hayden Maker Space; a game and puzzle swap Nov. 15; and a screening of the documentary The Librarians on Oct. 23 with a preceding panel discussion.

On personnel matters, the personnel committee is finalizing staff surveys this week and will distribute board surveys in early November, Collins said; trustees were asked to complete the board survey within about a week so the committee can prepare Jeff Collins’s evaluation for the November meeting.

Mary Ann McGinnis, the council liaison, briefed the board on related city items: Third Street resurfacing remains on schedule with federal funding for the major resurfacing (Collins cited an estimated $9,000,000 project total), the city council is expected to expand the “Extreme DREAM” program with $100,000 available for vacant and abandoned residential properties, and the interim city manager Tim Gleason will begin around Nov. 1. McGinnis also reminded trustees that early voting is open through Nov. 3 at the Scott County Building and that Nov. 1 will be a Saturday early voting day.

Board members raised a patron concern about senior living communities and the removal of the physical audio collection; Collins said the removal was linked to costs associated with joining an external service and community feedback captured in the strategic planning process.