At the board of trustees' meeting held Feb. 7, the board voted to approve a "Memorandum of Understanding" with AvalonBay respecting the proposed redevelopment of St. Paul's. Although that document, as described, will not formally bind either party to any particular form of development, it lays the groundwork for a potential giveaway of the village's most valuable historic asset. The publicly disclosed outlines of the proposed 99-year lease of St. Paul's suggest that AvalonBay will be getting a fabulous deal, with residents and taxpayers getting little in return. We have nothing against AvalonBay itself. It is a reputable company with a fine track record for making money from upscale rental housing developments. But, what is good for AvalonBay may not be good for the village residents. It is crucial, therefore, that the village's negotiation team includes preservation advocates, public use proponents and land use experts. Most importantly, the team must be free of pro-development prejudice and free of potential conflicts, and even the appearance of conflict, which could doom its work to failure.

Just as other residents have done, the Committee to Save St. Paul's conducted simple searches on the Internet and discovered some disturbing facts that tie Mr. Mauk's employer, CB Richard Ellis, and one of its affiliates, to AvalonBay. We brought some of these facts to the attention of the board of trustees on Feb. 7 (see Page 1 article). We also brought to the board's attention a very recent public filing by AvalonBay claiming development rights in Garden City for 160 housing units - far more than have been disclosed in any plan for the redevelopment of St. Paul's.

In view of Mr. Mauk's pre-eminent role as chairman of the Mayor's Committee and the main proponent for a massive privately financed redevelopment at St. Paul's, and the zeal with which he has been attacking a dissenting Committee member (Trustee Lamberti), we have to wonder whether Mr. Mauk truly has our best interests at heart, or whether his pro-development mindset subconsciously favors a giveaway that coincidentally is consistent with the interests of his employer, its affiliate and the "build big" mentality of AvalonBay.

Over recent weeks and months, Mr. Mauk's open hostility toward Trustee Lamberti has also compromised the public's confidence in the work of the Mayor's Committee. At the recent board meeting, Mr. Lamberti disclosed how Mr. Mauk tried to force him off the Committee, how Mr. Mauk tried to hold a Committee meeting behind his back and Mr. Mauk's general penchant for secrecy and non-disclosure. Mr. Lamberti has also spoken against Mr. Mauk's suggestion that public sentiments be gauged through a "telephone poll." Trustee Lamberti points out that a poll is quite different from a vote. If Senator Hannon is insisting on community consensus, does Mr. Mauk really believe he can achieve it through a "telephone poll," which everyone knows can be easily manipulated?

Interestingly, at this very same board of trustees meeting, when discussion and action was requested in regard to a proposed Village of Mineola rental apartment project of 285 units on the Garden City border, Mayor Peter Bee recused himself because the landlord of the building where his offices are located is a participant in that project. If Mayor Bee has the good sense to avoid any appearance of conflict on a matter even far less significant than St. Paul's, shouldn't this be a standard for the entire board of trustees?

We hope that the board and its counsel will seriously consider the appearances of conflict and secret dealing and that Mr. Mauk should be excused from further involvement in the process of finding a solution that is truly in the village's long-term best interest. Perhaps Mayor Bee should consider reconstituting the Mayor's Committee on St. Paul's, even expanding the committee to include some residents with broader viewpoints. The fate of Garden City's historic building and the surrounding acreage in the center of our village is one of the most important issues in the history of our community. Residents deserve answers and full disclosure. Let's do it right!

The Executive Committee of the Committee to Save St. Paul's