Thursday, December 28, 2006
Sullivan County mounts court battle vs. Thompson grocery store deal
Sullivan County attacked in court yesterday a $20,000 per-year side agreement the Town of Thompson cut with a bungalow colony over a tax-exempt grocery store, citing "misrepresentation and fraud."
The Ichud Foundation, a Satmar Hasidic group that owns the former Ideal Bungalow Colony on Route 42, "withheld crucial information from the county and the Monticello school district" when it negotiated that side deal with the town, the county claims in court papers filed yesterday.
Before that deal, the town, the county and the school district had already settled out of court with Ichud, granting the bungalow colony tax-exempt status and approval for the grocery store in exchange for a $20,000-per-year payment in lieu of taxes, split among the three entities.
After the settlement, Thompson Supervisor Tony Cellini convinced Ichud to give only the town an extra $20,000 per year if the colony ever built the 6,000-square-foot grocery store.
The county and school district did not know about that deal. They learned about it through a Dec. 1 Times Herald-Record article, court papers say.
"No one should have received a preferred or different settlement that was not also offered to the other taxing entities," said county Legislature Chairman Chris Cunningham in a prepared statement yesterday.
He declined further comment.
Cellini and Ichud's lawyer, Moshe Katlowitz, also declined comment.
The county wants the court to vacate the settlement with Ichud, and the school district is expected to join with the county once the school board authorizes it.
If the settlement and side agreement stand, the town's annual revenue from Ichud would jump from $9,000 to $25,000, a gain of $16,000.
However, the school district's annual revenue would plummet from $44,000 to $10,000, a loss of $34,000. The county's take, too, would drop from $15,000 to $5,000.
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=COMM
Sullivan County attacked in court yesterday a $20,000 per-year side agreement the Town of Thompson cut with a bungalow colony over a tax-exempt grocery store, citing "misrepresentation and fraud."
The Ichud Foundation, a Satmar Hasidic group that owns the former Ideal Bungalow Colony on Route 42, "withheld crucial information from the county and the Monticello school district" when it negotiated that side deal with the town, the county claims in court papers filed yesterday.
Before that deal, the town, the county and the school district had already settled out of court with Ichud, granting the bungalow colony tax-exempt status and approval for the grocery store in exchange for a $20,000-per-year payment in lieu of taxes, split among the three entities.
After the settlement, Thompson Supervisor Tony Cellini convinced Ichud to give only the town an extra $20,000 per year if the colony ever built the 6,000-square-foot grocery store.
The county and school district did not know about that deal. They learned about it through a Dec. 1 Times Herald-Record article, court papers say.
"No one should have received a preferred or different settlement that was not also offered to the other taxing entities," said county Legislature Chairman Chris Cunningham in a prepared statement yesterday.
He declined further comment.
Cellini and Ichud's lawyer, Moshe Katlowitz, also declined comment.
The county wants the court to vacate the settlement with Ichud, and the school district is expected to join with the county once the school board authorizes it.
If the settlement and side agreement stand, the town's annual revenue from Ichud would jump from $9,000 to $25,000, a gain of $16,000.
However, the school district's annual revenue would plummet from $44,000 to $10,000, a loss of $34,000. The county's take, too, would drop from $15,000 to $5,000.
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=COMM
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