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General News: Fmr. NYMA Trustees Were Poised to Sell
August 09, 2010
By Brendan G. Coyne
When people in Cornwall discuss the future of the New York Military Academy two issues often come up: Was a Hasidic group interested in buying NYMA? And is it possible that NYMA could still be flipped to another group, as happened with ACE Farm near Kiryas Joel in Monroe in 2004?
At Monday's town board work session, councilman Randy Clark said that a cash offer had been made to purchase the New York Military Academy. Clark didn't mention a buyer but seemed to indicate the sale was supposed to go through on or about June 30.
“If the NYMA 2.0 group didn't jump in and squash that, we'd be sitting here going, 'Gee, we should've done something,'" Clark said.
Trustees Had an Offer to Buy the School
In a phone interview Tuesdayy, former NYMA trustee Harry M. Judge, Jr., confirmed that the trustees had an offer to purchase the school.
Judge said "an Orthodox Jewish group from New York City" offered $8 million in cash to buy NYMA this spring. The 1973 NYMA alumnus said the group had a 30-day exclusivity agreement. He said the group intended to create a Jewish military academy. When asked for the name of the group, he said it was not important.
Judge said that if NYMA 2.0 hadn't come up with an alternative plan, NYMA would have been almost forced to take the offer because of its debt. NYMA had announced in April that it would suspend operations at the end of the school year.
Judge also mentioned another offer to purchase NYMA. He said that several years ago an Hasidic group wanted to exclusively rent NYMA for summer camps. NYMA, however, already had made commitments for other camps to take place. The group then offered to buy NYMA but was told that NYMA wasn't for sale.
Efforts to reach other former NYMA trustees were unsuccessful; Paul J. Curtin, Jr., and John H. Smith, Sr., who also sits on the new board, did not return calls.
In a phone interview Thursday, Wayne Corts, one of the investors who put up $5.8 million as part of the NYMA 2.0 effort to save NYMA, said it was a "Hasidic group from Brooklyn" that made the offer this spring. He said that Judge had "tried everything in his power to stop us," a reference to the NYMA 2.0 group that worked with Corts on the loan package.
When told of Corts' remarks, Judge said the following in an email: "Mr. Corts can think what he wants to think but he knows nothing of the deal with the folks from Brooklyn. I did not vote in favor of NYMA 2.0."
And mentioning Corts leads to the other question.
Corts Denies Any Link to ACE Farm Sale
According to a Feb. 1, 2004 report in the Times Herald-Record, Ralph Petruzzo purchased ACE Farm, on the outskirts of Kiryas Joel, and flipped it to a developer from the Hasidic community. Pinkus Jakobowitz, a member of Kiryas Joel group that failed in its attempt to buy the farm, said that his group had asked Corts, one of the investors in the NYMA property, to be its front man.
And that story has caused some Cornwallites to wonder if a similar transaction could happen with NYMA.
But in a phone interview Thursday, Corts, who acknowledged knowing Petruzzo in the Record article, said he "didn't have anything to do" with the sale of ACE Farm.
"My record speaks for itself," Corts said.
Corts did acknowledge that he has dealt with Hasidim. He has hired Hasidic trades people and sold a trailer park in the town of Woodbury to Kiryas Joel several years ago.
Corts went on to say that the NYMA 2.0 plan is a good plan that helps NYMA and the town of Cornwall, which has supported NYMA for 121 years. He said he hopes NYMA stays open forever. He added that he wouldn't be involved in the project but for Cornwall Town Supervisor Kevin Quigley, whom he called a smart businessman.
"If anyone should have the right to control the destiny of NYMA, it's the citizens of Cornwall," Corts said. "Cornwall is a charming town."
"I'm strictly there as a volunteer," said Corts whose brother is a 1980 NYMA graduate. "I'm not looking for another development. I'm not looking to make one penny on this project."
The town board will take up the topic again at its meeting this Monday; people who attended last Monday's work session are urging others to attend.
Comments:
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I love how so many people were in a frenzy when this NYMA issue first started. With 2.0, it seems the most think the issue is resolved and our town is saved forever. Little do they know this is the calm before the storm if we do not move forcefully forward and purchase the property. Interested outside parties would like nothing better than us to forget NYMA like we did the wells.
posted by J Klein on 08/09/10 at 12:58 PM
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800K in cash?! Sounds like some people are enjoying their tax-exempt status just a little too much.
Speaking of which, why are the Hasidim developers who built that empty, un-finished senior housing next to the Cornwall Plaza not getting fined everyday for that eyesore. Even in the dysfunctional city where I currently am there is SOME kind of price to pay for creating and perpetuating blight.
Fine 'em $3,000 a day for everyday the project sits unfinished. That would be a tidy little sum for the Town's coffers.
posted by Ted Warren on 08/09/10 at 3:03 PM
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J.Klein's and Ted Warren's comments are right on point! WAKE UP CORNWALL!
posted by Gerry Wagner on 08/09/10 at 5:09 PM
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Instead of scrambling for cash to buy what we clearly cannot afford, could the town board, and perhaps the village at this point, also, start addressing the issue of new construction, density, water supply, and public services. If anyone has seen the new construction over on Monroe it really is horrifying. There are several story buildings surrounded by pavement and it goes on forever
posted by Kate Benson on 08/09/10 at 11:14 PM
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Wayne Corts stated that the citizens should guide the destiny of NYMA. Supervisor look into talking with the Open Space Institute, Scenic Hudson, Orange County Land Trust and perhaps other groups to purchase development rights or purchase conservation easements on the property. This coupled with smart growth planning, perhaps selling off assets not needed for the purpose of keeping the school solvent should be considered.
This is urgent, NYMA should consider other options as leasing space to other educational institutions, colleges, health care, etc.
posted by j h on 08/10/10 at 9:12 AM
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Ditto on what Mr. Schneider has to say.
Someone from the Town should be communicating with some of the larger environmental groups in the Hudson Valley like Scenic Hudson or River Keeper to see if there is a way to preserve at least some of that open space. (If I'm not mistaken, at least some of NYMA's land is part of the Moodna watershed.)
With rampant sprawl continuing (despite the recession and hollow promises of increased tax revenue), it's important that a community like Cornwall be in front of the ball on this one.
I hope members of the Town board read this forum because people have voiced some very valid concerns and are also offering some good suggestions for next steps.
posted by Ted Warren on 08/10/10 at 12:46 PM
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