Librarian asks Daniels County to extend hours, pursue cameras after unsupervised‑child incidents

At the Sept. 16 meeting the librarian asked the Daniels County commissioners to change library weekday hours to 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. so children's programming will have sufficient time after local school schedule changes.

"We'd like to move our hours from 10: until 6," the librarian said, explaining that earlier school dismissal cut program time and that extended weekday hours would let more children and working parents attend. The librarian noted that the library typically has only one or two staff on duty and that the adjustment would be manageable for them.

The librarian also presented an estimate from Nemont for a five‑camera security system (two hallway cameras, one at the front entrance and two covering the alley). The estimate mentioned in conversation was about $3,000 for five cameras; commissioners and attendees discussed lower‑cost 'trail' camera alternatives and the tradeoffs between systems that record to an SD card vs. systems offering real‑time viewing. The librarian said the cameras would be sited to monitor hallways and exterior approaches, not bathrooms.

Commissioners and the librarian discussed other mitigations: temporarily disabling the outside Wi‑Fi if misuse continues, and whether the city would share the camera costs because footage might also aid the fire department. The board suggested consulting the city about signage to keep parking available for patrons.

What happens next: the librarian said she would consult the library board and obtain follow‑up information (detailed camera quotes and confirmation of any city cost‑sharing) for the commissioners to consider at a future meeting.