The Yorktown, N.Y. Town Board granted a five-year concession agreement to Yorktown Golf Group, Inc. with a firm reopening date of June 16 for the restaurant on the site and Aug. 18 for the golf course. If Yorktown Golf Group fails to meet the opening dates, the agreement will be considered breached. Yorktown Golf Group, Inc. will pay Yorktown $78,000 a year, effective immediately.
The Yorktown, N.Y. Town Board has appointed a new management team to reopen a new Par 3 golf course in Jefferson Valley this summer, The Examiner News reported.
Last week, the board voted to grant a five-year concession agreement to Yorktown Golf Group, Inc. with a firm reopening date of June 16 for the restaurant on the site and Aug. 18 for the golf course, The Examiner News reported.
If Yorktown Golf Group fails to meet the opening dates, the agreement will be considered breached.
“We are determined to see our town’s golf course open this summer,” said Supervisor Tom Diana. “The contract we approved has definitive opening dates and mandatory payments to the town that begin this month. Under a canceled contract with a previous developer, there were no specified opening dates or payments being made.”
Yorktown Golf Group, Inc. will pay Yorktown $78,000 a year, effective immediately, The Examiner News reported. The town has the right to renew the contract for two five-year periods. The contract calls for discounts for residents, seniors and veterans, and donated course time for high school golf teams.
Carmine DeMeglio and Anthony Stallone are the principals behind Yorktown Golf Group, Inc., The Examiner News reported. The two have more than 60 years of experience in the food service industry, including ownership of Gianna’s restaurant in Yonkers.
The golf pro will be Paul Giordano, a 25-year member of the PGA and a nationally recognized coach for First Tee, The Examiner News reported.
Last November, the Town Board officially severed ties with the former developer, RC Recreation Development, LLC, for failing to correct numerous building code violations and not opening the facility as promised, The Examiner News reported.
The board voted two months earlier to terminate a concession agreement with RC Recreation if it was unable to clear up outstanding violations and expired mechanical, plumbing and renovation permits, and open the town-owned park by Nov. 15, The Examiner News reported.
On Nov. 15, town inspectors visited the golf course and found electrical hazards and many unresolved violations cited in July, including people illegally living in trailers, unsafe bridges, and plumbing issues, The Examiner News reported.
The property has not been used since 2007 when Shallow Greek Golf Course shut down, The Examiner News reported. In 2014, town officials entered into a 10-year agreement with RC Recreation to restore the site as Valley Fields Golf Course, but progress stalled when RC President Rocco Cambareri died in 2017.
In 2018, the lease with RC was extended to 2028 when one of Cambareri’s partners assumed control, The Examiner News reported. In 2020, Valley Fields was fined by the state for doing work without a required permit, The Examiner News reported. A 2021 spring or summer possible opening never materialized. In December 2021, the town’s Planning Board approved the site plan for Valley Fields.
RC filed an Article 78 proceeding in state Supreme Court in July accusing town officials of using a “Keystone Cops approach to local zoning enforcement” and engaging in a “politically motivated campaign,” The Examiner News reported. RC specifically named former Supervisor Matt Slater, Councilman Sergio Esposito and Building Inspector John Landi in the filing.
In the lawsuit, RC maintains the redevelopment of the course has “from time to time been delayed by external and unanticipated factors, be they insect infestations, COVID-19-related shutdowns, and supply chain disruptions,” The Examiner News reported.
That legal action is still pending. Last week, RC Recreation President Larry Nussbaum forwarded a copy of an Order to Show Cause that requires Yorktown officials to appear in a White Plains courtroom on March 10, The Examiner News reported.
Yorktown Town Attorney Adam Rodriguez released a statement Feb. 27 expressing confidence in the town’s position.
“The town is confident that RC’s application for a receiver and injunction will be denied because the facts and law are on the town’s side,” Rodriguez stated. “The town is thrilled to have a new operator for the golf course in place, and is looking forward to finally seeing Yorktown residents enjoy the course this summer.”
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