Half Hollow Hills library names temporary director while seeking dismissal of library head

The Half Hollow Hills Community Library board of trustees voted to name a temporary library director as it continues to seek the termination of its executive director, Helen Crosson.

At their meeting on Monday, the trustees voted to name assistant library director Charlene Muhr as temporary director, with an effective date of May 11.

At the same meeting the board approved a $6,000 stipend for Muhr because she has been taking on increased responsibilities since March 27,  according to the resolution.

Trustee Maxine Cohen asked why the resolution was needed to name Muhr as temporary director and Muhr responded that it was per the instructions of the state Department of Civil Service, which oversees the position.

“Or else they would tell me I was working out of title,” Muhr said. “It’s not our rule, it’s civil service.”

The board did not take questions following the meeting.

The board is seeking to remove Crosson after hearing complaints from some staff about her management style.

Library employees Betty Ann Tomforde and Lisa Garland sent an email to the board on March 8 asking if they were looking into the reason why staff members were leaving.

At the March 27 meeting, the two read statements from past and current employees describing a hostile workplace under Crosson.  Most of the statements were anonymous. 

At that meeting the trustees approved a resolution to suspend Crosson “indefinitely with pay" or until she resigned. A second resolution asked her to submit her voluntary resignation by April 3, minutes showed.

At the April 3 meeting, trustee board president Jacob Goldman said because Crosson has not resigned, the board would hire special counsel to handle “whatever the process might be from this point forward” to get to an amicable settlement. 

Crosson has been at the library since 2015 and reopened it last year after a $24.7 million renovation. According to the SeeThroughNY database compiled by the Empire Center for Public Policy, a conservative think tank in Albany, she was paid $154,684 in 2022.

Crosson could not be reached for comment.