The Report of the Mayor's Committee on St. Paul's was released this week, and is available in the Garden City Public Library and online on the Village's web site. For those who are interested, it and a whole collection of village publications regarding St. Paul's can be found at:

www.gardencityny.net/gcvillage.htm

We hope all residents take the time to view the proposal, which outlines the scope of the proposed AvalonBay development as well as the costs and benefits for the village. Unfortunately, since there is only one remaining bidder in the process, the only comparisons which are made in the report are between the AvalonBay proposal, mothballing the building and demolishing it. Frankly, none of the scenarios are particularly enticing, as many residents have noted in letters and during meetings.

But, as with some elections, a vote of "none of the above" is tempting, but not possible. The question of what to do with the building has been on the table for fifteen years now. There are children in the Village who will be heading off to college soon who were infants when the building was purchased, ostensibly for the benefit of the public. While those children were playing soccer in its shadow, the graceful old building has been gradually deteriorating. It's time to finally settle the matter.

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We noted with interest that the report calls for a vote of the residents in its "conclusion" section. Mayor Bee commented at the Board meeting last week that the property owners associations will be holding a non-binding referendum in the fall. However, the final vote is reserved by state law to the Board of Trustees. We think a referendum, as long as the question is written very clearly, is a terrific idea, and urge the Board members to abide by whatever the people will.

Meg Morgan Norris

Publisher