For the Elderly, a Welcome Place to Meet "The Food May Be Fast, but These Customers Won't Be Rushed" (front page, Jan. 28) tells of McDonald's management becoming angry and frustrated with its "most loyal customers" because "such regulars hurt business." The problem is that McDonald's is trying to market itself as a lower cost alternative to Starbucks with McCafé lattes and is becoming, as you say, "a cafe for a less affluent crowd." In Europe, cafes would never think of pushing their loyal clients out the door. But the fast-food philosophy at McDonald's prevents it from ever becoming a stay-all-day refuge for those who cannot or do not want to spend $5 on a cup of coffee. Re "Old McDonald's" (Op-Ed, Jan. 22): Stacy Torres correctly points out the importance of "third places" in our society, especially for seniors, but does not mention one of the most critical examples - public libraries. Every day thousands of seniors across the five boroughs visit their neighborhood libraries, often the only free public space available in a community. Roman Muradov According to a recent report from the Center for an Urban Future, "Branches of Opportunity," in addition to being places where seniors can be around people of all ages, libraries provide seniors with assistance in everything from electronic tax filing and basic computer skills to exercise classes and defensive driving. In a city that is rapidly aging (the older adult population is expected to grow 45 percent, to 1.35 million, by 2030), there will be an even greater need for public intergenerational spaces. As residents of a community, we may not be able to control McDonald's policies or prevent every beloved neighborhood institution from going out of business, but we can insist that our public libraries receive the resources they need to welcome everyone. JULIE SANDORF President Charles H. Revson Foundation New York, Jan. 22, 2014 New York once had the answer to the quest for a public place where people could sit among other people, and feel safe and alive. It was better than McDonald's, more hospitable than Starbucks, easier to find than the homey little bakery that Stacy Torres mentioned. It was Horn & Hardart's Automat, where you could sit in clean, spacious surroundings among matinee ladies, actors preparing for auditions and out-of-town businessmen waiting between appointments. Everyone shared tables, so you had your choice of whom to sit with, and whether to indulge in coffee, apple pie or a super-thin sandwich on white bread. Or you could have nothing at all, and still enjoy a ringside seat for the Automat's entertainment, which featured a woman in a booth who, with a flick of the wrist, exchanged your dollars and quarters for exactly the right amount of nickels you had coming to you - nickels you would need for the food dispensers. It was a neat sleight-of-hand trick à la Houdini.