In response to the letter to the editor entitled "Library Board Wants Sabena," I am offended by Mr. Theodorsen's comment that the Board of Trustees of the Manhasset Library are deceptive and possibly deceitful. I attended many of the forums that the board of trustees have invited the community to attend in the past year regarding different locations for a new library. At the most recent forums, I felt that the board was trying to provide the most accurate information possible. They appeared to be very knowledgeable about all of the sites, construction plans for each site, tax increases, etc. I believe there was only one question they could not answer, and they guaranteed that they would have the answer to the question within days. I personally favored the Sabena location and my opinion was that the board expressed deep concerns about the traffic, safety, and neighboring commercial buildings regarding the Sabena site. I left the meeting disappointed that the board did not seem to agree with my zest for the Sabena option.

Mr. Theodorsen wrote at great length about the problem of parking at the Onderdonk location. He wrote that the trustees have warned the public that there may be a temporary loss of some existing parking during Onderdonk construction. He says "so what" since off campus parking is already a fact of life. Can you imagine the outcry if the trustees did not warn the community about the possibility that we may lose some of the precious parking? Perhaps people would then be screaming that they would not have voted for an Onderdonk library if they felt that was a possibility. The trustees have also warned us that the library may also have to close during construction of a new library on the Onderdonk property. Mr. Theodorsen somehow has construed their warnings as a conspiracy theory to "sell the Sabena property." The trustees have warned us about many possible contingencies so that we can all be forewarned when we inform them of our preferences for a new site. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

This letter also referred to a comment made at the meeting on Saturday, April 21 stating that the Empire State Building was built in 18 months which is shorter than the proposed 22 months for our library. Building standards are infinitely more complicated now than they were when the Empire State Building was constructed. There are enough people in Manhasset who have survived recent construction to their homes to understand. Perhaps their contractors or they would like to comment on the timetables for their homes.

The board of trustees does not get paid for all of the work that they provide to our community. Yet, they devote many late evenings and long weekends toward improving our library. Repeatedly, they have asked for our opinions because they want to present an option that will pass a referendum. Nobody wants to dedicate themselves to another library referendum just to see it fail for the third time. I would like to thank them for listening to my concerns and opinions. Their hard work and dedication needs to be applauded.

Maureen Lavin