Vacancies continue to plague Penn Hills Library Board

Less than a year after filling four vacancies on the Penn Hills Library Board, council has to fill four more.

Between March and May, Mary Mannella, Julia Madera, Danielle Ciniello and Brittany Fettis left their new roles for reasons unknown to Larry Choby, interim president of the board.

Choby is one of the board’s three members, along with Lori Theofilis and Karen Murray.

“They may not have been prepared to take on the responsibility,” Choby said.

There is no shortage of other people who would like to take a crack at it.

The library received interest from about 30 prospective board members after the exodus and submitted a list of about 10 candidates to council in late May, according to Choby. Since then, council, which took July off, has not acted.

At the August meeting, Councilman Shawn Kerestus said it’s time for that to change.

“We need to get that done for these folks,” Kerestus said. “Let’s shoot to get that on the agenda at our next meeting in September.”

Councilman Alan Waldron spoke up at the meeting, too, to say that “it’s not a tall ask to find four off that list and put them up for consideration” at the next meeting.

Operating with vacancies and devoting time to finding replacements have somewhat drained the board’s capacity, Choby said.

“One thing, you’re going to lose diversity of opinion if you have three people instead of seven, and you start getting into quorum issues,” Choby said.

Yet, in most other respects, things are looking up for the library.

Choby cited figures at the meeting that show an uptick in library use during the first six months of the year. Despite the municipality’s stagnant population size, about 1,000 library cards were issued during this period. That’s 50% higher than the first half of last year.

“Penn Hills’ population is not growing. It may very well be that some of this attention … created a positive effect,” Choby said.

Tina Zins, executive director of the library, said library usage is up 64% across Allegheny County since 2019. Penn Hills, in particular, has seen more demand for e-books and children’s programs — though Zins feels the library could be doing even more for kids.

That’s why the library is applying for a competitive state grant that would help fund renovations to the children’s wing with stroller parking, better restrooms and more spaces for interactive play.

It also is looking at bolstering services for teens and people who speak languages other than English. As other libraries in walkable areas, like parts of Pittsburgh, have found some success courting teens, Penn Hills faces an uphill battle to get them in the door.

“It’s really hard to get to the library sometimes because there are no sidewalks. A lot of teens and people really rely on rides to get to the library, and that can be difficult to come by,” Zins said. “We would love to build a path from the library to Linton Middle School.”

Zins noted that hands-on activities, such as working with 3D pens, and fandom-based programs tend to do well with teens.

Choby warned that inaction could jeopardize all of these plans, and he urged council to act.

“Why did it take so long?” Choby said. “You’d have to ask council.”