EXCLUSIVE: Fidelco Last Left Standing in SFC Economic Development Project Partnership in Yonkers By HEZI ARIS

YONKERS, NY -- December 28, 2012 -- The twinkle in former Yonkers Mayors’ John Spencer and Phil Amicone’ eyes was the vision they collectively and respectively promoted and concocted from its very inception as the Master Development Plan that would resurrect a city with promise, purpose and fiscal viability. Instead, the mirage extolled as the vision for Yonkers’ future has eluded the City of Yonkers as Yonkersites have been deluded by Mssrs. Spencer and Amicone’s very ineptitude. The ineptitude was revealed by their “choosing” their “friends” for the Yonkers waterfront economic development project that came to be known as Struever Fidelco Cappelli, LLC, which consisted of Cappelli Enterprises of Valhalla, NY, Fidelco Realty Group of Millburn, NJ, and Struever Bros. Eccles & Rose of Baltimore, MD. The troika slowly shriveled from three into one. Struever Bros. Eccles & Rose was first to depart the scene. Last week, Cappelli Enterprises sold their interest in the project to the last of the three partners standing, that is, Fidelco Realty Group.

While Yonkers City Council President Chuck Lesnick presented his rationale for the need for Brownfields clean-up subsidies to energize the development in Yonkers and other New York State cities before the New York State Assembly, specifically extolling the moribund $1.5 billion SFC project as a success story that underscores the need for Brownfield subsidies, the Cappelli interests were sold to Fidelco. Coincidence, or simply timing?

Yonkers Tribune has learned that Fidelco is expected to present their plan for initiating the waterfront development during the first quarter of 2013.

Meanwhile, Yonkers Tribune has learned that Cappelli Enterprise’s gamble on the Concord Hotel development in the Catskills has been lost to rival developer Entertainment Properties Trust (EPT) of Kansas City who, upon paying a seemingly delinquent $157,000 note to the Sullivan County Industrial Development Agency, ended the former agreement Cappelli Enterprises held on the 1,600 acres in the Town of Thompson in the Catskills of New York.

Cappelli’s intent was to create a 250-room hotel that would have resurrected the Concord Hotel, a racino, consisting of a 2,150 video lottery terminal and a 200-acres harness racing track leased by Monticello Casino & Raceway’s owner Empire Resorts, a $150 million indoor water park, a redesign a golf course, and an additional 400-room hotel.

A call to Cappelli Enterprises went unanswered.

Comments

[Chuck Lesnick]

Hezi: My testimony in Albany was that economic development projects in older industrial cities like Yonkers need brownfield tax credits to make them viable. The SFC project will be viable when the economy rebounds and Fidelco with either bring in other parters or do it alone with help from subsidies. One never wants to give away too much to get additional tax revenue but one must recognize that without some subsidy sometimes the new development will not happen. The timing of my testimony was coincidental. -Chuck Lesnick
PS: Please note that I am not yet the "former City Council President" although I am starting the last year of my last term.

[Up Chuck]

Please Chuck, go away you fool! You give EVERYTHING away in order to further your pathetic existence at the expense of the "REAL" taxpayers in this city!

The sooner you are out of Yonkers politics, the sooner I will feel better. You make me ill........

[threesidesto truth]

Capelli just gave up the old concord property to a Kansas City firm. Capelli still owes yonkers a multi million dollar personal loan. The guys(collins bros.) who put up the waterfront apartment towers cleaned it up for half of what they got in brownfield monies and pocketed the rest, I think better of 5 million if I recall. They also petitioned to keep it tax free.
You know these facts so why are you still at it?
Incentives, no, just plain giveaways.

[Loves Nodine Hill]

Chuck,

Who in their right mind would trust you???

You have no credibility with development after you did squat with Ridge Hill and won't say boo to Ratner who contributed plenty $$$ to you campaign coffers. That is why the promised replacement for Fire Station #10 remains unbuilt along with your pie in the sky Sprain Parkway southbound exit. How much taxpayer money was wasted on that utter nonsense Chuck????

Then you say the retail economy needs to rebound for SFC to succeed in Chicken Island. Wrong. It can work now. Just look at these numerous ongoing retail projects just south in Da' Bronx and explain why another extension is needed for SFC:

A retail mall anchored with BJ's at the Stella D'oro property. Another one planned up the block on Broadway @ West 230th St, Tanger Outlet Mall on the Whitestone Cinema property( 19 acres sold for $30 million!!!) Another Target store and others across the street, and Macy's is building with a mini mall in the already retail-overloaded Bay Plaza, and the Kingsbridge Armory may go partial with retail momentarily.

Arch Stanon

YONKERS TRIBUNE RULES ( and called it right with SFC long ago)

[What money]

Ratner has not contributed any campaign money to Spano, Lesnick nor anyone on the the current or previous councils.

[oh boy.......]

the only surprise here is Hezi hasn't connected the dots.
not much of surprise at all.
Lesnick is about to appoint Sansone to Parks department
Sansone has had Fidelco up his ass for years.
Go ahead Chuck: i f#cking dare you to approve Sansone's nomination.

and Hezi...you keep playing your game...... we'll see you at the end of this road too.

[oh boy.......]

What's the status of the $4M loan to SFC.
I would hope the City Council President would know the answer to this simple question. He was there and approved it.

[anon]

Bottom line.....nothing gets built and the city sinks deeper into irrelevancy.

[lezloser]

Chuck Leznick doesnt care about anything other than other liberals and kissing bigger named politicians asses like Elliot Engel and Stewart Cousins. Of course Yonks is stuck w him and his lies as part of our history and legacy so we have to explain his parthetic/wishy washy actions for the next generation.

Lesnick and the rest of our leaders have driven us off the fiscal cliff long ago...

Unless your an illegal immigrant or a degenrate, Why live in Yonkers?

[Face in the Crowd...]

Where is the ten million dollars given to Lesnick by Forest Ratner to develop the alternate routes to the Ridge Hill giveaway????

He and his pal Maryann held a few meetings at which NOTHING was accomplished. Surprise, surprise!! They kept changing the venue of these meetings so that less and less people knew where the meetings were held and therefore did not attend.

Will there be a "Charette" or shall I say "Charade" this time??? Like we needed to spend SIXTY THOUSAND DOLLARS to review what we were following from the begining.

He had 5 years or he had to give it back. Still waiting for an answer. Where are the Feds on this one??
Where is the money Chuck?? Did you wash it through your campaign?? Is Ratner one of the "Friends of Lesnick"?? Still waiting for an answer.....

[threesidesto truth]

Everything gets built in the city. Just no tax base except for the homeowners.

[threesidesto truth]

Mayor DelBello got you guys good on the Cappelli project Mr Council President.
What were you thinking. A personal loan? 4 Mill.?

[Crappy Yonkiss]

Hey Arch, what a crazy apologist you turned out to be. There should be no more fire houses built anywhere until the ones that need to close are closed and consolidated.
Furthermore all developments of the future should be fireproof in materials and design, unlike the cheap crap we allow to be erected.

None of these retail outlets bring I. Property taxes which we need Including the NYC ones which are all abatements with low and no skilled part time jobs with low pay, yep thats just what we need more of.

Let's see if SpaNuts can give away more than Spender and the clown?

[Paytoplay]

You will not see Ratners name on any contribution list. I worked for FCR. They have all their vendors donate to candidates. You get a call telling you who to donate to and how much. If you don't surprise surprise you never do work for them again.

[Que]

Now that's what is called corruption

[Kiss my Yonkiss]

"There should be no more fire houses built anywhere until the ones that need to close are closed and consolidated. "

Hey Einstein: What firehouse(s) needs to be closed or consolidated?

You know something I don't?

No one except our idiot Mayor and his Bitch wants to close and/or consolidate firehouses.

Yes, a new firehouse was agreed to and included in the Ridge Hill Development plans.

RIDGE HILL WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN APPROVED IF THE BUILDERS DID NOT PROVIDE FOR A NEW FIREHOUSE UP AT THAT LOCATION!

This decision was based on the MANY reports and findings from independent studies.

This new structure is supposed to have Engine 310 relocated to it, and a newly formed (additional) truck company (which our city desperately needs.)

So before you parrot what you are reading or listening from Mikey and the boys, I suggest you do a little research.

The YFD is way understaffed and they are spread out real thin geographically. Now, when you have rigs constantly responding Ridge Hill, our citizens have less protection….Get it?

I am waiting for the first lawsuit to be brought against Yonkers if a home or business gets lost up in the North East section of our city because all of the first due apparatus are at Ridge Hill.

Know what the facts are before you open your mouth….

[French Kiss]

Look at this bully, a typically under worked, over paid government worker. Smells just like a UNION Goon.You have not provided one "fact" that a fire house was to be built on Ridge Hill. Show us the contract that states this... Didn't think so, because you can't.

"
This decision was based on the MANY reports and findings from independent studies." WTF does this mean, I mean really?????

Ass to understaffed, how and where. With 10 fire trucks appearing at single auto accidents, you'll have to pull the other one. As you state. If resources are that plentiful that they are deployed in the manner that they are, what is going to happen if there is another incident some where else at the same time???

I'm no fan of the SpaNO's, but a reality check needs to come into all of these union idiots working in Yonkers, who just need to understand they cant make 200k a year and actually do nothing.

[French kiss my sac]

Oh my God! Where to begin with your stupidity?

Let’s break your fiction down, shall we?

Look at this bully, a typically under worked, over paid government worker. Smells just like a UNION Goon.You have not provided one "fact" that a fire house was to be built on Ridge Hill. Show us the contract that states this... Didn't think so, because you can't.

First: I am not a “union Goon”, just a home owner/taxpayer. Second: The builders have one million dollars in escrow for the construction of said firehouse. It is up to the COY to identify the land (up at Ridge Hill.) Get off your lazy fat ass and go check it out. It is a matter of public record (but you won’t, you would prefer to bark bullshit from your couch.)

This decision was based on the MANY reports and findings from independent studies." WTF does this mean, I mean really?????

Environmental impact studies. Density studies. Traffic studies. ISO studies, and several others. Again, it is all a matter of public record. Put the corn dogs down and take the bus to Shitty Haul.

Ass to understaffed, how and where. With 10 fire trucks appearing at single auto accidents, you'll have to pull the other one. As you state. If resources are that plentiful that they are deployed in the manner that they are, what is going to happen if there is another incident some where else at the same time???

That was my point moron! Stop pulling factious numbers out of your ass because you really sound stupid! For an alarm of fire, 4 engines, 2 trucks, 1 chief, and a safety battalion will be dispatched to that location. If it is a medical alarm, it will be 1 engine. So my point is (and was in my last post you illiterate) is this: When there is an alarm of fire at Ridge Hill the protection for the home owners in the north east is compromised because other apparatus will respond from the other side of the city. Get it? Shall I type slowly for you?

I'm no fan of the SpaNO's, but a reality check needs to come into all of these union idiots working in Yonkers, who just need to understand they cant make 200k a year and actually do nothing.
How about a brain check for you?

Please tell me where I can get a $200-k fire department job…..Please! You are barking bullshit out of your ass. YFD salaries are also public information.

Back up your bullshit! Prove my statements wrong tuff guy! Go ahead. You won't because you can't, nuff said...

[millionare]

3-million, not 1-million....