Last week's poll on St. Paul's clearly shows that residents overwhelmingly opposed AvalonBay. It's time for the trustees to reject a giveaway of our property in favor of finding a solution for the benefit of the entire community. Now is also the time for the village to stop the bleeding of our taxpayer dollars to consultants who have done nothing but cause us to spend time and money in a futile search for a cost-free private development option.

The results of the poll confirm that residents believe this property was purchased for the community and that they are willing to support alternatives to this private development scheme. Be reminded that the costly choices posed in the poll - demolition and mothballing - are not the only remaining choices.

We do have an option that is far less expensive than mothballing-that is letting the air clear and continuing to maintain the Historic Building, as is, at a cost that is a small fraction of the mothballing estimate. And since demolition is both costly and irreversible, we owe it to ourselves to look long and hard before contemplating any moves in this direction.

The Committee to Save St. Paul's calls on trustees to begin a dialogue with the community. The only way to come to a fair solution is to involve the stakeholders. Let's see some vision and leadership. During the last few weeks, a vibrant, committed and very energetic group of young residents has emerged. Their talents and passion should be harnessed to find a real, permanent solution that the entire community can embrace.

As our CSSP slogan says...Honoring and preserving our community's heritage,

Peter Negri, Ed Keating, Michael Ciaffa, Frank McDonough

The Executive Committee Of The Committee to Save St. Paul's