Library staff outline plan after Baker & Taylor announces closure; tech upgrades and new program cart incoming
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Summary
Library managers told trustees Baker & Taylor will close in January 2026; Glendora staff are working with other vendors, expect mixed vendor solutions, will install two new self-checkout machines Nov. 3, and will receive a kitchen demonstration cart funded by the Friends Foundation for monthly programming.
Library Services Managers Donna Dukes and Cindy Romero reported several operational updates to the Board of Trustees, including an announced closure of Baker & Taylor, plans to onboard alternative vendors, upcoming technology upgrades and a Friends Foundation-funded kitchen demonstration cart for library programming.
Dukes told the board, "Our vendor, Baker and Taylor, which is our primary distributor for library materials ... has announced that it will be closing its doors as of January 2026." She said the closure affects selection, purchasing and preprocessing work the vendor provided and that the library will not move forward with planned preprocessing in the near term.
Dukes said other vendors have contacted the library and that early solutions appear to be a "composition of a variety of vendors," naming Ingram and Barnes & Noble as parties the library met with. She said Ingram can offer preprocessing but that onboarding timelines mean preprocessing likely would not be available until about March 2026; in the interim the library will continue purchasing materials and rely more on in-house staff processing.
On technology, Dukes said the library purchased two new self-checkout machines to replace units that reached "end of life" and will be installed Monday, Nov. 3, with IT assistance. Dukes also said the library mobile app now supports alert notifications and a feature to pay fines.
Staff described a small, recurring roof-leak issue: when asked if recent heavy rain caused new leaks, the library reported "no new leaks" but acknowledged recurring leaks the library has managed for years and that Public Works checked on the building during the storm.
Dukes and Romero said one of this year’s Friends Foundation grants funded a new kitchen demonstration cart. Romero said staff plan at least monthly culinary programs — a mix of demonstrations and hands-on sessions — starting with horchata and sourdough demonstrations, aimed at adults and children. Romero said the cart arrives with a serial number needed to unlock curriculum content and that programming schedules will be shared once the cart is in service.
Trustees asked program and scheduling questions; staff said they will aim for a mix of weekday and weekend offerings to broaden access.
No formal board action was required during this report. Trustees thanked staff for outreach to alternative vendors and for planning new programming.
