On November 10, 2009, Capelli Enterprises told the New Rochelle City Council that Kohl’s Department store would sign an agreement to take space at New Roc City in “a week to ten days away” or no later than November 20th.
According to the Duration between two dates Calculator at timeanddate.com it has now been 33 days since Capelli said the Kohl’s deal would be signed with no announcement of a deal.
To put this in context, we provide a look back at the May 2009 discussion on the 12th MOU Extension. See how many things you can find that do not jibe with the recent vote of the City Council to approve a 13th MOU Extension.
Council Rolls Over Once Again for Capelli
Please take a few minutes to view the referenced video clip of the May 2009 Council meetings before reading further.
The concerns raised for the 12th extension in May for the LeCount Square project were unanimous from the six council members present (St. Paul absent). The words used to describe the then current conditions were;
Lack of maintenance, loss of 6 stores & 40 residences (5 Anderson St.), negative impact on existing businesses, lack of vitality, unacceptable condition, desolate and blight to quote a few. City Manager Chuck Strome said that Cappelli agreed to give the vacant windows on the North Ave. side of 5 Anderson St. the “Avalon Look”. While Councilman Tarantino voiced a concern that the existing blighted condition could spread and be used as a means to blight the entire neighborhood so they (Cappelli) could buy buildings for a reduced price. Councilman Stowe reluctantly voted aye stating that the bewitching hour would be number 13 (the 13th amendment).
Nothing changed in the six months that followed the 12th amendment, the questions and concerns didn’t change the blight, desolation, lack of vitality and general overall unacceptable conditions didn’t change, there was no “Avalon Look” as promised, yet Cappelli, Apicella and the LeCount Square project staved off Councilman Stowe’s Bewitching Hour by receiving an early Christmas present of the 13th amendment which passed with a super majority 5-2 vote of council. Not one positive morsel was achieved in the six months following the 12th amendment and the 13th amendment for a wealthy, tax-abated developer was approved in deference to a proposed budget with a 5.88% tax increase while termination notices went out to 10 city employees.
When is enough enough? At what point do we decide that this project cannot move forward as planned if for no other reason then the Post Office flatly refused Capelli’s assessment/offer and the two sides are not even in the ball park? How much blight must the citizens and businesses in the surrounding neighborhoods endure before some stability is restored?
If Cappelli can’t raise the cash or doesn’t have enough collateral to purchase property when the market is at its lowest then he is not solvent and should be cut loose. It’s time for the City Manager to enforce the law and to hold Cappelli to his word and for City Council to read the writing on the wall and move on.
Anthony Galletta
It was the responsibility of
It was the responsibility of the 4 Councilmembers and the Mayor who voted to extend the MOU yet one more time,to verify the acuracy of Apicella’s statement that Target and Kohls would sign on at New Roc.
Even though these properties are seperate its the body of work or body of lies that need to be held to the light.
A bit of due dilligence would have helped make a decision based upon fact not Apicella’s word.
Mr. Stowe in light of your witching hour quotation this was your duty. St. Paul could have googled Targets # for you, maybe.
When you consider what was said by Apicella on 5 Andersen St. in November and then the pending taking back of this property one week later by the owners who have not been paid you can see it is irrisponsible to vote AYE without having picked up the phone. I am amazed at the level the City Manager, Council Members Fertel and Sussman will go to continue to deal with the devil. I hope they never are implicated in wrong doing. With all the red flags in their faces they owed their constituants better they owed Target and Kohls a phone call.
However we all know how difficult it would be to pick up a phone and place calls to corporate offices and verify that these “Deals” are deals.
I think the City powers have shown themselves as being void of idea’s for this project going forward. They are willing to go along with the ride no matter how much they are being mislead. The merchants and tenants and building owners should be protesting in the streets to take back the area as LeCount is dead and it is taking the adjacent area with it. Vinyl Sheeting is not enough they need tenants, retailers and vibrancy, life of any kind.
New Roc has been reduced having lost many tenants. What would have been bad of having the skating rink open till things were firmed up. Did they need to close it to get the IDA to fork over 25 more years of PILOTs. Don’t hockey moms shop, spend money and help create a vibrancy. How Stupid can this get.
Its a sad state of affairs and after Stop and Shop vacates the place will be models, movies and moronics. You can point the finger at Bramson,Stowe, St. Paul Fertel and Sussman for this blight as they have supported this no matter how wrong with every sign pointing to no ability to trust this developer.
This is not only wrong it may be dishonest.