Stony Point golf course Patriot Hills’ sale heads to referendum
Patriot Hills, an 18-hole golf course that offers winning views and challenges for golfers, has proved costly for the town of Stony Point to maintain. Its 200-plus acres of fairways, greens and paths are in need of remediation, the clubhouse needs upgrading and its catering facility, The Grille Room, was never fully completed and has been closed for nearly three years.
Stony Point Supervisor Jim Monaghan said its upkeep is costing taxpayers $1.4 million a year ”” and that”™s just to maintain the property in its current condition.
To lower property taxes, the town has unsuccessfully marketed property abutting the golf course that was bought from New York state after Letchworth Village was shut down.
Developers who have visited the land were loath to do the remediation work it needed. Great Wolf Lodge, Toll Brothers and others have come and gone, put off by an obstacle too costly to ignore: Letchworth”™s century-old buildings, along with its labyrinth of underground tunnels leading from one structure to another, are laden with asbestos and lead paint. The entire 26-acre parcel has a negative value.
In 2019, the town proposed an “overlay district” for the Letchworth property, a zoning change that would allow a potential developer to build a hotel/conference center and other buildings on it. Most residents who attended the public hearings favored the change, and the creation of the overlay district paved the way for Patriot Hills Park LLC to make a formal offer for the 26 acres, as well as the golf course.
Composed of Raja Amar, CEO of T-Mobile wholesaler Portables Unlimited Inc. in Nanuet; Brion Hayman, president of Gateway Building Services in Stony Point; and Lawrence Melchionda, COO of Portables Unlimited, Patriot Hills Park LLC entered into a contract of sale with Stony Point earlier this year.
Amar and Hayman, who both call the town their home, see it as an investment in their community. Self-made millionaire Amir plans to spend an additional $14 million to bring the golf course up to par with national standards and to remediate two of the Letchworth buildings still in use, while taking down the remainder. Patriot Hills Park LLC has also agreed to build a community center for seniors and to lease Kirkbride Hall back to Stony Point for $1 a year to use for sports and community events.
Under new ownership, the golf course would remain open and available to Stony Point residents, and the town”™s first responders would be allowed to play for free. Amar, who also is a member of the Rockland County Industrial Development Agency, has recused himself from Patriot Hills LLC”™s application for a $7.5 million PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) for the project. That application is still pending.
Residents opposed to letting the golf course be transferred into private hands rallied to collect over 500 names on a petition calling for a referendum on the proposal. Attorney Michael Diederich, who is running for town supervisor against incumbent Monaghan in November, is among the petition”™s most vocal advocates. Although rejected on a technicality when first submitted, it was eventually approved by Supreme Court Justice Steven Berliner.
Diederich said he”™s not worried about the property being developed for upscale housing””it”™s the specter of high-density housing that he and his cohort fear may happen if the property is sold to private interests. “If Patriot Hills doesn”™t get the $7.5 million, they are requesting from the IDA, what then?” asked Diederich, who also wondered if more zoning changes would be in store for the property if it passes into private hands.
Monaghan understands residents”™ concerns about the future of its golf course, but said the town is steadfast in the resolve to keep the golf course as is. From his perspective as a longtime resident and as town supervisor, Monaghan said the removal and remediation of the former Letchworth buildings will help bring much-needed ratables to the town of 15,000.
“In its current condition, the Letchworth property has a negative value ”¦ and to sell the golf course for any other purpose other than to keep it a golf course is out of the question,” Monaghan said.
“Mr. Amir and his partners are committed to this project and in the process of applying for a PILOT, which has strict terms. If approved, that money cannot be used for any other purpose other than what has been proposed. Now it”™s up to the voters to make up their minds about what they want to see happen with the property. It”™s their decision and I”™ll stand by it.”
A referendum to retain or sell the golf course will appear on the town”™s Nov. 2nd ballot.