Three running for vacant library seatBaldwin mom wants to make a difference

      Tsenes said she was not alone, as a number of other Meadow Elementary School parents felt that they were not adequately informed about the change and that teachers had trouble adjusting to the new system.
      But while parents came to an agreement with the district and the situation was settled, Tsenes, a mother of two, was compelled to get involved in her community. Interested in the expansion of the Baldwin Public Library, where she brings her kids for the programs and resources, she decided that she would run for a seat on the Library Board of Trustees.
      "I always wanted to become involved, " said Tsenes, "but because my kids were little, I didn't have the time."
      Now she does have the time, and Tsenes is looking to make the library the best it can be for the community by becoming a trustee. "As a parent, I am interested in what's available to kids," she said.
      Tsenes, who graduated magna cum laude from SUNY Albany in 1983 and worked as a corporate/securities legal assistant before taking time off to raise her children, began attending library board meetings shortly after the report card conflict in November. There, she began learning about the inner workings of the board, as well as the budget process and issues concerning the expansion. "I sort of educated myself," she said. "I'm not the type to go in and wing it."
      After attending the board meetings, Tsenes felt that she would fit in with the board, and she wants to be part of what she said is a new phase at the library. "The main thing that I can bring to the table is that I care about the community and library," she said.
      Tsenes said that the recently approved $3.09 million budget includes costs that were out of the board's control, such as retirement and health costs, and that the $5.5 million expansion led to increased operating costs.
      She also said that the board efficiently handled recent legal problems with the project's contractor, which held up the expansion for several months, and from what she could gather, the situation has been straightened out.
      Tsenes said that there are a number of issues that she would like to address, such as seeing the expansion to completion and working on the upcoming labor union contracts which have to be negotiated.
       Among other things that she said she would support is making sure that students in the district have everything they need. "I think it's really important to stay connected to the library and schools," said Tsenes. "It's important that the library has adequate information and resources when kids go in for an assignment."
      She said that one of her main reasons for running is to support the library in its efforts to be state of the art while using tax dollars responsibly. "I think I'm a fair-minded person," Tsenes said. "Being on the board, I would be so open to suggestions from the community."


Carroll looking to serve in dual capacity
Carroll
      Joseph Carroll is also throwing his hat into the race for library trustee, saying that as a member of the Citizens Advisory Committee for the library expansion, he was instrumental in helping to solve problems such as crowded conditions, inadequate space for collections and building deficiencies. Carroll said he even suggested certain design changes for more security at the library.
      As a library trustee, Carroll said, he wants to continue to participate in the expansion project. He said that the current board is doing a fantastic job, so much so that he chose not to run against Board President Kevin Kamen last year.
      "I saw how the people on the board cared for the community," Carroll said.
      He said the board worked aggressively to complete the project, and that legal troubles that arose during the project were the indirect result of the New York State Wicks Law, which requires that multiple contractors be hired on a public building project.
      Carroll said the law is in need of reform because of the high costs, conflicts and drawn-out construction schedule, just some of the impacts that the law can have. "I think the legislature really has to take a look at that," he said.
      Once the project is completed, which officials said would be sometime this year, the library will be a boon to the community. Carroll said he would like to expand the library's services and make it a village center. "I think I can continue that tradition to service the community," he said.


Volunteer fireman wants to give more
      
      Longtime Baldwin resident and volunteer fireman John Candido is running for the library board to help the citizens of Baldwin gain a better understanding of the library and the services it provides the public. He also said he wants to be an advocate for the taxpayers of Baldwin.
      Candido, a facilities manager at an engineering company and a former chief of the Baldwin Fire Department, said he can assist the library board in the analysis and preparation of the budget.
       Candido, who has a B.A. in education from Fairfield University and was a secondary school teacher in Freeport many years ago, said that with his numerous years of experience in the management and direct supervision of maintenance staffs, serving on the library board is a job he is well suited for.
      Because of his work on daily and long-term preventive building programs, as well as having managed and supervised construction and renovations to new and existing buildings, Candido said he can be vital to the library as it brings its building expansion to completion.
      If elected, he said, his first priority would be to work with the other trustees to see that the new building addition is completed as quickly as possible and within budget.
      In addition, his pledge to the community is to be fair, objective and open to all suggestions for improvement to the running of the library in a cost-efficient manner.