Goodnow trustees pledge public-comment policy after staff push back on Friends dispute

SUDBURY — February 7, 2023 — Goodnow Library staff publicly rebuke trustees over collective "staff" label in Friends dispute. Circulation employee Sue Stein, a 17-year staffer, told the Board of Library Trustees on Feb. 7 that the word "staff" was used 11 times at the board's Jan. 3 meeting and asked trustees to stop implying employees speak with "one body, one mind, one voice" about the Friends of the Goodnow Library. Colleague Frances Gillespie, who has worked there five and a half years, called the characterization "inaccurate" and said she found the Friends "friendly and pleasant to work with." Trustees agreed to draft a formal public-comment policy with a three-minute speaker limit. The board also approved higher fiscal 2024 spending caps of $20,000 for the meeting room revolving fund and $25,000 for library services, accepted the fiscal 2022 annual report subject to copy edits, and voted to close the library early on May 5 for the foundation gala.