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March 22, 1990. The Suffolk Times A3
,W'ic~kttam Claim ,Nears a Decisi,on
By Michael Gill
Attorneys representing Southold De-
velopment Corporation (SDC), the
owners of Robins Island, have until
tommorrow to file briefs in support of
their motion for summary judgment in
the case brought against them by
Robins Island Preservation Fund Inc,
(RIPFINC), SDC is seeking to have the
case thrown out of court
"In essence, what we're saying to the
court in our motion," said SDC's attor-
ney Samuel Kirschenbaum, "is that the
complainants don't have a cause of ac-
tion and their case should be dismissed.
There's just no substance to it"
The filing will be made in federal dis-
trict court in Uniondale, where Judge
Leonard Wexler will decide RIPFINC's
claim to the 443-acre island. The outline
of that claim is set out in a complaint
filed with the court in April of last year.
It is based upon the so-caIled Wickham
claim, the argument that Robins Island
was illegally confiscated from Parker
Wickham in 1779 for siding with the
British in the Revolutionary War.
Robins Island Preservation Fund Inc.
represents more than 70 percent of the
living heirs of Parker Wickham, who
are seeking return of the island in order
to preserve it in its natural state.
Until recently, the Wickham claim in
federal district court had been stayed by
SDC's July, 1989, bankruptcy filing.
But on Jan. 31, Judge Robert Hall, the
judge in the bankruptcy proceedings, is-
sued an order permitting the district
court case to proceed after all the parties
in the bankruptcy case agreed to such a
measure. RIPFlNC has until May 4 to
respond to the motion for summary
judgment
RIPFINC lawyer Bert Hirsch said his
client also will cross-file for summary
judgment. Mr. Hirsch explained that
motions for summary judgment are an
expedited procedure for resolving a case
by settling on an agreed set of facts
rather than having the plaintiff prove all
of the elements of his claim through
. testimony given in a trial.
Commenting on his client's chances
of success, Mr. Hirsch said that if a
decision is made on the merits of the
Wickham claim - as opposed to the
court basing its decision on some pre-
liminary jurisdictional question like
lapsing of the statute of limitations -
"I think a lot of people will be really
surprised. There is a large body of law
which supports our every point"
More Than Robins Island?
Mr. Hirsch also reacted strongly to
suggestions made by SDC attorney
Kirschenbaum that the Wickham claim
might extend beyond Robins Island,
calling them "totally false."
Referring to the fact that other lands
in Riverhead, Cutchogue and Southold
were confiscated from Parker Wickham
at the same time as Robins Island, Mr.
Kirschenbaum said in a telephone inter-
view on Monday that logically, all of
the properties once owned by Parker
Wickham could be affccted by a judg-
ment for the plaintiffs in the Robins Is-
land case. "If there's any substance to
the claim, why would only Robins Is-
land be affected?" he said. "The owners
of the other property should have as
much concern as do the present owners
of Robin> Island. But that is not
much," he added.
Asked to comment on the assertions
made by the SDC lawyer, Mr. Hirsch
said: "An idiot could read our complaint
and see immediately that we are not ask-
ing or seeking any such thing. It is a
total distortion, and it so completely
misrepresents everything that has hap-
pened in this case that it really isn't
worth comment. I think Kirschen-
baum's remarks are deliberately intended
to whip up anti-Wickham and anti-pre-
serve-Robins-Island sentiment"
Mr. Hirsch estimated that the court's
decisions on the motions for summary
judgment could take six months to a
year if based on the merits, rather than
on the statute of limitations question, in
which case, he said, a decision could be
rendered much sooner.
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LONG ISLAND'
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Newsday Photo
Looking south from New Suffolk, a file photo shows Robins Island, which a Manhattan real estate company has offered to buy for $14 million
A Fading Dream
Effortto prevenide~~iop~e~t'~f Rcl>ins 'Island n~~-;~ ~~bitter end'
By Steve Wick $1.35 million, by a Manhattan company, Lazard Real-
Seen from a distance, the house looks like it has ty, a subsidiary of a billion-dollar investment banking
been swallowed by a forest. Up close, a chimney can firm, Lazard Freres. The company currently is devel-
be seen poking through the greenery. Holes where oping a 400-acre, waterfront tract in the village of
windows were never fitted look like dark soCkets. And North Haven, a few miles east of Robins Island.
out front, a boat dock is collapsing and along with it a Sources familiar with the negotiations say the com-
small boathouse. pany hopes to turn Robins Island into a luxury second
Here on Robins Island, where a man named Lane home market, where estates similar to Lane's vision
stopped building his country retreat after his wife died, would be built.
leaving paint buckets sitting in the middle of unfin- Since the disclosure, lawyers familiar with the offer
ishedrooms, nature presides over the works of man. In and officials of Lazard Realty have refused to com-
the woods, around the ponds and along the wooded' ment. In addition, Mittermier's Manhattan attor-
shoreline. there are few signs that man was ever here. neys, Tenzer and Greenblatt, declined to comment on
Only the house's skeletal remains act as a reminder, a the pending sale. A source, however, said, "They are
decaying monument to an unfullftlled dream. negotiating out the fmal points right now."
In the more than 70 years since millionaire sports- Even as a sale appears imminent. and as county
man James Warren Lane walked away from paradise, officials express hope that they will eventually prevail,
Robins Island continues to seduce would-be owners. the North Fork's unique history may offer up its own
who rent boats and circle its shoreline. dreaming of solution. In 1783, a Cutchogue farmer named Parker
the possibilities. Numerous parties have coveted it in Wickham had hundreds of acres of his land seized by
recent years, only to back 01T. One potential developer the new government of the State of New York. Along
got cold feet in the middle of a closing; a later grandi- with more than 50 other property owners around the
ose plan for golf courses. an air strip and huge estate state, Wickham's land was seized and auctioned off as
homes collapsed when the developer seeking to buy punishment for his alleged pro-British sympathies
the island was killed in a car accident. during the Revolution. Included were his Riverhead
Now, another plan to develop the 435-acre island, farm, a Cutchogue farm - and Robins Island.
which sits like a naturalist's dream near the center of Last year, in a well-received book published by the
Peconic Bay in Southold Town, has surfaced. Those SulTolk County Historical Society, historian Dwight
who want the island left as it is, a wildemess of origi- Holbrook argued that the seizure violated the terros
nal Long Island, fear this is the plan that could alter of the f'reaty of Paris, which ended the war. In short,
the island forever. Suddenly, after more than a decade Holbrook argued that Wickham's heirs could press a
of public debate over its future, Robins Island seems claim in court and, in the end. win back some of their
out of reach of preservationists. lost ancestral lands.
For Suffolk County officials who view the island as Last week, some of Wickham's heirs went about
the hoped-for centerpiece of the county's preservation their springtime tasks on their Cutchogue farm. pre.
efforts on' the East End, the news has been an unwel- paring to sell asparagus at the family farmstand. Tom
come reminder that development pressures on the Wickham, the farm manag~r, said he and his father,
East End continue unabated. "This is a fight we are John, shared the view that the island should remain
in to the bitter end," County Executive Patrick HaI- undeveloped, and he said they have made the first
pin said. "We are ready and willing to buy the island. tentative steps towards the possibility of filing a claim
It could be the crown jewel in the county's open space on the island. Tom Wickham said he has spoken with
program." a Manhattan attorney. William Carmean. who is mar.
Two weeks ago, it was disclosed that a $14 million ried to a Wickham heir, and to Queens attorney Ber-
~~e!, ?a~ b~~l! J..1l.ad~ t~ ?~~~e~ ~.i~~i~:. the Ge!,.. _ ~~a_~ !iJ~s~h. ,!ho ~asj)ressed similiar land claims for
lan aeveloper who oouglit the Island m 1979 Tor an upstate N'ew York 1ndian tribe.
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"Weare taking this very seriously," Wickham said.
He also said that next week a group of the heirs would
meet in Hauppauge with county officials to discuss
the ramifications of filing such a claim, including the
question of what would happen to the isl;md if the
Wickhams were successfuL
A number of attorneys and experts on the history of
the treaty that ended the war, and the laws that exist-
ed at the time the British evacuated, were unanimous
that the claim had merit. All, however, said it would
be a tough court challenge, not unlike the Indian
claims that have taken years to resolve. -c
Hirsch, who has represented the Oneida Indian
tribe in a decades-long fight with the state over some
five million acres of land, says he has spoken with
some of the heirs - and believes they should move
ahead. Importantly, he said, his research shows that,
in 1830, an heir to one of the New York property
owners whose land was seized by the state after the
Revolution went to court and won.
"When I saw this case," he said, "I thought this is
the Wickham claim right down the line. Yes, it is 150
years old, but it is a very powerful precedent. There is
no doubt in my mind that what happened [to Parker
Wickham] was improper. It was done largely by indi-
viduals with great greed in their hearts who worked s:
the legislative will to their own aggrandizement. ~
"Looking at this now, I really can't imagine how a _co
buyer could get title insurance without it being sub-
ject to this claim," Hirsch said. "They would be very
foolish to write an insurance policy on a purchase
without taking this into consideration. There is a very
real cloud on this title."
Ultimately. the dream of preservationists is that the
island be part of a well-planned system of protected
parklands, stretching from the headwaters of the Pe-
conic River in Brookhaven to the ends of both the
North and South Forks.
"It is 1988 and there are still wild landa in the
shadow of New York City," said Legis. Steven Engle-
bright (D-Setauket). "It is quite astonishing these
lands even exist. We must make a commitment to
preserving the whole system. I am willing to take
whatever steps are necessary to that end. If there is
going to be a test of our will, we will meet the test."
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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1980
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~'-BUITae~s Eye Idyllic Isle
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ByJAMESREVSON
At the same time, however. COUAty and state gov.
emment officials want the Island preserve<! and are '
seeking$<! milliOllin Federal funds to buy it along with
~,~, trill i..ee-E.----(1)ppelman,~_
tive director of the Long Isiand Regional Planning
Board and director of tbe Suffolk County Planning De-
partment. ,.
The pIlrcbaoe money is the mainstay of an applica.
tion to be tiled this year with the Federal Office of
Coastal Zone Management to bave Peconic and Flsn.
ders Bays, which comprise 110,000 acres, designated a
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-.u."y , a re sanctuary of
, woods and deer in the middle of Peconic Bay,
, rarely seen by the public and considered one
of the least disturbed natural wildlife habi-
tats.on Lollg Island, may soon became the focus of a
tUHf-W\lr.
only four bomes bave beep built on the isle since
King Charles I of England ori&jpally deeded It to the
Earl of Sterling in 1636. But nMt Its Current oWner, a
German-Swiss.real estate syndicate using the name
Southold Development Corporation, plans a com-
,munity of 28 waterfront homes to be served by private
. ferry from New Suffolk. -
- Plans to subdivide bait the island into bomesites
averaging seven acres bave been filed with the Souto
hold Town. Planning Board. The island's remaining
acreage would be beld in col"mon ownersbJp by the in- .
dividual purchasers..
The corporation, beaded by a New York lawyer, Ar-
mende Lesser, purchased the property last July from
Johr) W. Mackay for $1.35 million, according to Wil-
liam W. Esseks, a Rlverhead lawyer who represents
the corporation. .
Continued on Page 6
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Robins Island: 'One of the least disturbed natural wildlife habitats 011 Long Island'
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Continued From Page 1
National Estuarine Sanctuary.
The possibility of that designation's
being granted has caused an uproar. Of
the three towns - Southampton, Sout.
hold and Rlverhead - that control
lands In the proposed sanct1lary area,
only Southold does not, as yet, oppose
the Federal designalloo. .
Southold's Town Supervisor, William
PellJd, said that his Town Board would
await the findings of a $50,000 preaequl.
sition feaslbllity study, which, accord.
ing to Federal officials, would take two.
to six months. But even then, Mr. Pell-
said, there are ICtoo many unanswered'
questions" as to control over the sanc~
tuary, loss of local tax revenues and
use of the bay for commerciallishing.
Both Riverhead and Southampton
Towns oppose the application because
of fears of losing home-rule COI\trol.
"We don't want someone telling us
what we can and can't do, Of said the
Southampton Supervisor, Martin;Lang.
To which the Riverhead Supervisor, J G-
seph Janoski, added, "Tbe program
only causes complications.'" ,
The two Supervisors stressed their
dissatisfaction with a New York State
law that, in extending the boundary of
the preserve 500 feet inland from the
high.water mark, could be used, they
felt, to limit access to the water.
However, fears of a Federal take-
over are unfounded, according to
Frank Cbristbllf, sanctuary project
manager fu Wasbfugtoo. "Tbe Feds
don't add any additional laws or regu.
lations, tI Mr. Christhilf said. Recrea-
tional and commerCial use of the bays
. would not be hfudered by the Federal
designation, he added.
I James MacFarland, the estuarine
sanctuaryprogntm manager, said that
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"right now we're committed" to fit. -:.MA.:
DWlCing an approval that would make:' {-l'~~
the designated sanctuary the second
largestfuthecountry. ~ __
Tbe twG-part preacquisltion grant
and then formal financing process,
which includes an environmental im-
pact statement, puljllcbearing and
day puhlic comment period, weald talii> .,,' i
a minimum of one year. - .. ~-;~~.
But even if the application receiv~:,',~!
approval, Mr. Esseks said that the cot. . ~
poration would not sell voluntarily."i;...
uThe properqr was bought for invest- ~;~:
ment alld deve~men~," he'Said. ~
However, Mr. Koppelman said: ,
uWhetlfer tb@y're.interested 01" ilot is '"
no: the.;ssue.' Tbe prope.ty will be COlI. ;:
demncd. The owners can go to court ',I
and sue.' , . ,~
As the center of the proposed .anctu. ."
ary, Robfus Island holds a key position :
and if developed .would PQll!lte the bay, ..,
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accor ng to Mr. Koppe man. "Its .,
development would put an end to main. ,
talnlng the bIg!l quality of the water.:.
ways," he said; ~:
Meanwhile, the Nature Conservancy, ,1'
a national nonprofit land-preservation :::
group, has purchased the 2,IJOO.acrc ..'
Masbomack p~rv'e on Shelter Is, . ~
land. The. 1>reseIV~ which encom- l'
passes alm...t a third' of Shelter Island, ~
....emhles Rebfus ISland In that both ",
.'
are impqrtant b~g grounds for .'
waterfowl and shellfish: ,I;
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"The '''Federal designation would 'I
gh ~
hei ten the im~~tance of the area 'I
and. raise eonscloUshess as to future :~
threats of Oevellipment," said Brad. ~,
ford C. Northrup, the conservancy's '::1
eastern reDional director. .1
... "
As part of the Federal deslgnatioo, "
the ..tate would matcb -the Federal ::
funds with. ~'several tbouBand acres of 1,1
I,'
wetlands" of equal valllll U> be part of :'.1
tbe.sitoctoaiy, Mr. Kopi>eIm~ said.
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WhIle the national designallon lloolf
does not prohibit development, Mr.
MacFarland said, Federal preserves
are "the best.Jmown estuarine wet.(
lands In the counUy so that chances 0
tum1ngoneoftl1em Into, let's aay, anu"
clear power plant are remote. I'
Currenlly, there are seven Federal
marine sanctuaries in the country,
which are uaed mainly by scientists
and environmentalists to study unells-
turbed plant and animal life.
Robins Island, which is a five-minute
boat ride from both North and South
Forks, wuuld prQVIde an,!deal situallon
"
for studying birds nallve to the region,
accorcllni to Larry .Penny, stall ecolo-
gist for thejGroup for Ame':\ca's South
Fork, a BrRlgebamplOn-blIted environ-
mental org~llon. The loland boasts
some of tile most producllve osprey
nests in tile area, as well,as 40 black-
crowned night heron rookeries, he said.
"It's now in its primitive state," Mr.
Penny aald. "But a couple 01 spllls of
gasoline or diesel fuel could be very
harmful."
Robert Tuthlll, Robljls Island's care-
taker for the last eight years, who
t.
I.
THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDA Y, FEBRUARY 10, 1980
proudly shows oll pictures 01 himself
band-feeding deer, is also not eager to
see homes, cars and people disturb the
tranquillity.
"I can't aay J'd like to see this devel-
oped," he aald, driving a visitor along
what he calls the Robins Island Ex-
pressway, a straight, narrow dirt road
running through the woods.
Near the dock, three of the lour
houses on the island flank the road. All
were reportedly built by James Warren
Lane. an armaments manufacturer.
about 1919. Two of thIlm, red and white
painted country-style houses, have
been used occasionally by various own-
ers and caretakers.
The third, an imposing shingled man-
sion with flve brick chimneys, was
never completed or occupied. Inside,
wood lrames lor walls stand unlln-
lsbed, and sheets 01 leaded stained
glass lie strewn across the floors.
'The fourth house is farther lnland,
also red and white and also supposedly
built b;;IMr. Lane. It was the original
care~r's cottage, but it was not used
becaus1l 01 its large size. There have
been caretakers on the Island at least
since the early part 01 the century and
possibly lor many years before that.
Since the 19th century, the island -
which has undergone numerous
Changes in ownership - has been used
as a brickyard because 01 its substan-
tial clay deposits, and by a hunting
club. .
Most recently, under John W. Mack-
ay, the island's previous owner and the
author of llMark" and uGood Shoot-
ing, II there has been a licensed shoot-
ing preserve stocked with pheasant.
.
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7
"It's just as it was 200 years ago,"
aaid Louis Carter, a lieutenant with the
law enforcement branch 01 the State
Department 01 Environmental Conser-
vation. "All kinds 01 waterfowl congre-
gate there during the year. It's one 01
the lew isolated spots on eastern Long
Island."
On the island In lront 01 the Lane
mansion, two young deer spotted Mr.
TUttle's jeep, and rather than turn and
flee, they walked cautinusly toward the
sound of the sputtering engine. "They
used tobea lotlriendller," he said. .
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All fined, 16put on probation in pistol-test cheating
By Tom Demoretcky
The Suffolk County Police Department has disci-
plined 22 officers - including 16 supervisors - after
a departmental investigation into charges that some
results of annual firearms tests were falsified.
Police Commissioner Daniel Guido, who took over
the department earlier this month, fined all 22 offi-
cers up to 10 days' pay, and placed the supervisors on
a two-year disciplinary probation period that would
mean a reduction in rank for any infraction. The pro-
bation also halts any chance of their being promoted
for two years.
Fines against the officers ranged from $2,000 to
$6,000. .
Allegations had ranged from outright falsification
of qualification forms to officers' being given credit
for participating in police qualifying shoots held by
the FBI.
The highest ranking officer disciplined was Dep.
. Insp. Robert Nolan, executive officer of the Thir~Pre-
dnct in Bay Shore. Three captains - Kevin P. 'Car-
ney, James J. Gallagher and David McHaffie - also
were disciplined. The lieutenants were Frank Cop-
pola, Herbert Kellar, Raymond Petersen, John Pep
trowski and Ronald Smith.
Guido said yesterday there was no indication that
any of the officers involved could not qualify at the
pistol range, but that a "gradual erosion of strict
range procedures" had occurred. He said he believed
the practice was isolated to a handful of officers and
that a check had been done on records of all members
of the department.
"It was pretty localized," Guido said. "I'm con-
vinced that this will stop the practice." Noting that
this was the last major pending departmental investi-
gation launched by the past administration, he said:
"It's time to turn the page and put the past behind
us."
Department rules and procedures require annual
pistol qualification by every, officer. According to
Guido, some officers either didn't take their full tests
or didn't show up for the tests at all, and then bogus
results were forwarded to headquarters from the
range in Westhampton Beach. Among those disci.
plined was Sgt. Raymond Flood, range supervisor.
In some cases, the investigation found no certifica-
tion sin>.:e 1979.
The investigation of pistol-range testing was initi-
ated by the police department under former Commis-
sioner James Caples Jr. after alleged abuses were re-
ported by an officer.
The matter was turned over to the Sutlblk district
attorney's office on Feb. 24, which, after a review, did
not, launch any prosecutions but returned the case to
the police department for administrative action.
Presidents of both the police officers' and police
supervisors' union said the punishments were harsh,
but they would not contest them. Each officer in-
volved agreed to the punishment, waiving his right to
a departmental hearing on charges of conduct unbe-
coming an officer. Those hearings could have resulted
in I'tricter punishment, including dismissal.
:. HI can't argue with any of the commissioner's
statements at all," said Arthur Cliff, president of the
Superior Officers Association. But he added: jlI think
Please see POLICE on Page 37
A Higher, Private Bid for Robins I.
. Long Island Soun,r. '>,' .
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Newsday I Philip Dionisio
By Steve Wick
. A group of New York investors has offered to buy
Robins Island for $14 million - more than twice
what Suffolk County had hoped to pay for the pristine
island so that it could be preserved - and plans to sell
buildingil>ts around its wooded shoreline.
If the group's financing is approved, the sale of the
island could be announced shortly, perhaps as soon as
next week, according to sources familiar with the ne~
gotiations. While declining ,to provide details, Thomas
Gill, a Southampton attorney who represents the
group that made the offer, confirmed that a sale was
pending.
HClearly there has been an offer, but we can't
comment on the particulars right now/' Gill said.
The sources said the offer was made by Lazard
Realty Inc., a Manhattan company that is developing
a 400.acre tract in the village of North Haven in
Southampton Town. Known locally as the "stock
farm," the property is surrounded on three sides by
water and is heavily wooded. Earlier this month, the
sources said, the group made an offer to buy Robins
Island for $14 million from Herbert Mittermeir, the
West German devel.'1per who bought it in the early
1980s. V
Mittermeir and officials of Lazard declined to'com~
ment yesterday.
Once a contract is signed, the sources said, the
group plans to seek approval from Southold Town,
which has jurisd,iction over the island, to develop it.
One plan under consideration is to circle the island
with building lots. While the exact number or size of
the lots has not been decided, the sources said at least
40 would be sold, at a range of $1 million to $1.5
million each. At the $1.5 million figure, the 40 lots
could net the developer $60 million.
A 435~acre, tear~shaped island, Robins Island sits
like a lush oasis of virgin Long Island land in the
heart of the Peconic Bay in Southold Town, between
New Suffolk on the north and Southampton on the
Please see ISLAND on Pag~-.37
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VIEWPOINTS
63
Robins Island Must Be Preserved
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The real cost of saving its irreplaceable resources is minimal.
By Fred W. Thiele Jr.
IF SOMEONE told you that for $1.40 a year,
you could help insure water quality, protect
fish and wildlife resources and increase open
space, what would you say?
Debate is again raging over the future of Robins
Island and what role government should play. East
End environmental advocates have
lobbied since the 1970s for the full
preservation of this unique and ir-
replaceable 4oo-acre island. In the
early 1980s, the county could have
acquired Robins Island for $1 mil-
lion. This effort failed because of
public officials' lack of commit-
ment. Then, in 1986, Suffolk Coun-
ty included Robins Island as part of
its $60 million Open Space Preser-
vation Program. The goal of acqui-
sition seemed to be within the grasp
of Suffolk again in 1989 when the
kcounty entered into a $9.2 million
contract with the owners.
However, the preservation of
Robins Island has remained elusive
over the last three years. At times,
it seems as far away as it did more
than a decade ago when the issue of
preservation was first seriously
raised, First, the owners attempted
to seek refuge in bankruptcy as a
way to avoid conveying the proper-
ty to the county. While the owners
experienced some preliminary suc-
cess in pursuing the matter in
bankruptcy proceedings, most re-
cently a federal court has upheld
the validity of the county's position.
Of course, the litigation is far from
over, with a potential for lengthy
appeals.
Against this backdrop is a change
in the county's economic and politi-
cal climate. The deep national eco-
nomic recession has hit Long Island.
Suffolk County has seen dramatic
reductions in nonproperty tax rev-
enues, while at the same time, it has
had to shoulder steep increases in
mandated, nondiscretionary expen-
ditures. The result is a seemingly never-ending bud-
get deficit.
Meanwhile, changes in Suffolk's executive and
legislature may have shifted the balance away
from the county's longstanding commitment to
preservation. The county appears poised to sell out
the preservation efforts of Robins Island under the
guise of a lawsuit settlement.
To help put this all in perspective, we need to ask
the fundamental question, "What are the real costs
of preserving Robins Island?" Let's examine the
numbers. Every year, Suffolk County spends $1.4
billion in its operating budget. The amount spent
Fred W. Thiele Jr. is super-
visor of the Town of South-
ampton.
for land acquisition and environmental protection
is less than 3 percent and dwindling. The so-ca1led
savings from not acquiring Robins Island would
represent less than 0.79 percent or about $1.40 per
household a year, during the next 20 years, for a
total of about $28 per household. Ask yourself if
doing without a cup of coffee and a bagel annually is
worth the preservation of Robins Island.
The island possesses a rich array of natural re-
sources, including rare and endangered species
that are worthy of protection. Moreover, the island
is believed to contain many archaeological re.
sources that provide a window to our past. There
remains no other large uninhabited island in the
eastern United States.
Robins Island is situated in a very shallow por-
tion of the Great Peconic Bay. The preservation of
the surface water quality of this system is essential
to its environmental health as well as to the near-
by extensive fIshing resources. Since 1985, the Pe-
conic system has been racked by brown tide, which
has resulted in significant ecological damage. In-
creased nitrogen and pollution from overdevelop-
ment in sensitive locations has caused stress to a
carefully balanced ecosystem.
Government and private land trusts have made
a significant investment in protecting sensitive
coastal lands in the Peconic system from develop-
III
ment. The Grace estate, Barcelona Neck, Hither
Woods, Clam Island, Ram Island causeway and
Orient Point wetlands are but a few of the invest-
ments in this bay sytsem over the last decade. It
would be foolish to devalue these investments now.
What message does it send to the public? We
urge businesses, private citizens and local govern-
ments to limit boating wastes, pesticides, storm-
Newaday f BOO Newman
water runoff, sewage effiuent and other pollutants
into the bay, while the county's own financial com-
mitment may be abandoned.
In spite of pollution and the degradation of wa-
ter quality, the commercial fishing industry still
remains a major industry. Further, tourism gener-
ates millions for Long Island's economy.
People do not come to the East End to marvel at
the sight of unwise development. They come to
enjoy our waterways, fIshing and open spaces. The
Robins Island acquisition is an excellent insurance
policy for the future of these industries.
The acquisition of Robins Island is a long-term
investment in our heritage, our economy and our
environment. We must not forgo this investment
because of short-term financial problems. This op-
portunity, lost once before in 1980, may not come
again. Let us hope that 20 years from now our
children will be able to praise our vision in pre-
serving Robins Island.
--- VICE PRESIDENTS EDITORIAL ADVERTISING OPERATIONS CIRCULATION ADMINISTRATIVE
Foonded in 1940 by SeniorV.P.-Fin., New York Editor Manag1I11Editorll Alllristant Managing """"" 1);""", - SERVICES
Alicia Patterson and Administrntion DonaklFonrt Robert F. Bnmdt Ed.... John Mcl<om Ed_ Bruce Murray Directar
Han-y F. GumnhOm JameB Fit.zgernld -ng James Toedtman lUcloaro Golant L1.~ ~ N__ Bernard Bottomley
.......V.P."""" ChriHtineMilJer Howard Schneider RnOOrt"""'" Richard Beekman D"""" Rober1Brennan
COMMUNITY
Information Systems Direct(lr (If Editorial Charlotte H. Hall Martin J. Bartow Suffolk Manager
ROO.rt M.JoImwn E........,Publk Tom Redder 0..;.., David C. Hamilton :'\r.Y. Mana,er AFFArnS
Adrninistr&Uve RichardVJOia
PubI_ & C.E.O. M.... Community Affairs RnOOrt "- Robert E. Keane Carey ""'" """"" L.I.Direct.or
"",.",... N.Y. Manacer Reginald Tuggle
"""""- Sam Ruinsky Chief Photo Edib C1assirJed Manager John Wills Fred Bellise
_ B. Fox Editor and Senior V ,P. Finance James C. Dooley JonM. Pes.sah Patricia A. Bumagiel N.Y. Director
_&C.O.O. l'hyllieSinger - MARKETING
Anthony Marro Gerald R.I.. 1'ryhane AMoci.ate Editor ~atiomd Manager .....""""" ChiaraColett.i
Debra Whiteflcld SERVICES
Circulation s,m..,H."""""",,, RaynyJIldJ. FINANCE Promotion Director HUMAN
HaroldF. W:l1dtJr. """"""'" RESOURCES
TIMES MIRROR COMPANY Cootroll... .....,,"""'"
""" Robert F. Erburu WIiIiamP.Gt-eenb&un """"'h_ """""
Chainn~ Edward Farrell Elimbeth v. Drewry
~ David LID"5lthoI
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NC warns cty. on ega costs rfdr!MIJU, IfjlfiZ,
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Robins I. buy in ieopardy
,
eliminated all county legal
By Mark Woolley fees associated with the pur-
chase of Robins Island. Hal-
With the Nature Conser- pin vetoed that legislation,
vancy's Long Island chapter but was overridden, 13-5, on
in the red some $330,000 in November 7, 1991.
paying for outside legal coun- Meanwhile, Gaffney and
sel for the county's defense members of his staff have
of its $9.2 million contract to held discussions with South-
purchase Robins Island, the old Development Corp., the
possibility of. Suffolk acquir- owners of the island, which is
ing the 460-acre island may located in Peconic Bay. The
be in jeopardy. . talks have centered on ways
In a letter from Nature to resolve the issue over title
Conservancy Director An- to the island, including a set-
drew Walker to County Exec- tlement proposal from. prin-
utive Robert Gaffney, dated cipal owner Claus
July 22, 1992, Walker says Mittermeyer allowing for the
the,eI"':c0umental group's le- development of some 30
&<<1 costs on Robins Island acres for weekend and vaca-
are in excess of $330,000. tion homes, with the remain-
When taken into account der of the tract protected as a
with expenses the Nature nature preserve.
Conservancy has accrued in The discussions are de-
acting as a go-between in signed to end a lengthy court
other county Open Space battle that began shortly after
program acquisitions, he the county entered into a
states, the Long Island chap- $9.2 million contract of sale
ter is now about $900,000 in with the owners in 1989.
debt. South old Development Corp.
"Consequenfly, it will be subsequently filed for bank-
impossible for the conser- roptcy and attempted to sell
vancy to continue to under- the island to Robis Corp., a
write the legal actions of the California-based real estate
county unless we can work firm, for $15.2 million. As a
with you to reduce at least result, the county sued for
some of these outstanding breach of contract, with the
debts," Walker states. The matter being tied up in court.
total debt amount, he notes, Gaffney said the corre-
represents more than one spondence he received from
year's operating budget for Walker was not a "threat"
the group, and is money the that the Nature Conservancy
group has borrowed with in- would no longer pay the legal
__..-,t~!est. _ _._ ____C.~!~LQ1:~J~}!a~,B!or~ofanjlh.,
. Now that the Nature dication of the group's frus-
Conservancy has paid more tration that the court
than $330,000 in outside le- proceedings are taking an
gal fees to defend the coun- inordinate amount of time.
ty's purchase contract. the He said since the time
total cost in the litigation Walker wrote the letter, ef-
over title to the ,teardrop- forts have been made to pay
shaped island has risen to the group from the purchase
more than $800,000. The price of lands the county has
county, up until last year, bought under the Open
had paid some $276,000 in Space program, to help re-
defense-related expenses, duce the Nature Conservan-
with another $213,000 pen- cy's debt.
ding, until the Nature Con- However, Gaffney said
servancy, in a letter to it's his understanding that
former County Executive the Nature Conservancy may
Patrick Halpin, dated June continue to pay the legal fees
II, 1991, agreed to retain only until December, but
and underwrite the cost of that the group has not said
outside legal counsel in the that time frame is final. He
case. said he is hopeful the dispute
The Nature Conservancy, over title to the island can be
which receives two percent resolved by December, and,
of the purchase price of any if not, he will see if there is
property it helps the county sufficient support ainong
acquire under the Open lawmakers to have the
Space program, took over the county assume the cost of the
county's legal expenses be- legal expenses, if the Nature
cause the legislature passed a Conservancy no longer can
bill offered by Legislator foot the bill.
Tom Finlay (R-Islip) that "We are pursuing Suffolk
Divers' flea lIIarkel set
The Submersibles Diving
Club at the Southampton
Campus of Long Island Uni-
versity will sponsor its 15th
annual divers' flea market on
Sunday, December 13, from
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the cam-
pus gymnasium.
The event is the largest
annual sale of diving equip-
ment on Long Island and will
feature new and used sport
and commercial diving
equipment for sale or trade.
Diving antiques, arti-
facts, underwater photogra.
phy equipment and vehicles
will also be on display. More
than 20 dive shops from all
over the East Coast are ex-
pected to attend.
For ticket information,
call Michael Dostaler in the
Student Activities Office at
Southampton Campus at
283-4000, ext. 361.
County's rights under the
contract," Gaffney said. He
noted that the Nature Con-
servancy retained attorney
Louis Scarcella to handle the
court case, and said talks
with Mittermeyer are ong-
oing.
For the county to assume
the legal costs, Finlay's bill
would have to be overturned.
If the legislati9n is not over-
turned and the county picks
up the legal expenses any-
way, according to Finlay,
Gaffney would be violating a
county law.
"I can't understand how
the county executive can
consider going back to the
legislature to overturn my
bill when he already pro-
posed a 20 percent tax in-
crease to Suffolk County
residents. Now he wants to
bailout the Nature Conser-
vancy, who said they would
pick up the tab," Finlay said.
"If the Nature Conservancy
wants to buy Robins Island, .
let them do it. I'll be damned NEW BUSINESS--Robert J. Bausmger, left, of Subarn's
if I'm going to stand by and New York district office, congratulates ~ict,?r Niosi, gen-
watch the county executive eral manager of R.ayrnond Chevrolet/BUIck I':' Bay Shore
spend my constituent's on. recently IK:commg a new Subaru dealershIp. Photo by
money unwisely." M,chael J_ Wtllmott. (FUL 321-V)
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'Suffolk Moves
To OK Plan For
Robins Island
Part would be developed
r By John McDonald
f" STAFF WRITER
.! The Suffolk legislature voted yesterday to begin processing a court
settlement with the owner of Robins Island that will encourage residen-
tial development there.
While the vote yesterday was preliminary and was made before de-
tails of the settlement were available, 10 of the 18 legislators said in
interviews that they favor the county's giving up any claim to purchase
the island in return for county support to develop part of Robins Island,
a 435-acre mostly wooded island in Peconic Bay. Four legislators oppose
development, three said they were undecided and one was absent from
yesterday's special meeting.
The lawsuit stems from the county's entering a $9.3 million contract
to purchase the island from Southold Development Corp. to turn it into
a conservation preserve and environmental education center. Since the
contract was entered, the island's owner, Southold Corp., and the coun-
ty have been in court in ~ dispute over the validity of the 1989 purchase
. contract.
Prospects for a early settlement will depend in part on whether an
environmental impact statement is needed before a fmal authorization
of the court settlement is reached. The resolution before the legislature
yesterday calls for a decision to be made by the legislature, after hearing
the recommendation of the county's council on environmental quality,
on whether an environmental impact statement is needed. Such a re-l
view, if required, could take many months.
Even if no environmental review is demanded by the legislature, i
Southold Town will certainly require one before any development on
Robins Island is permitted, said Richard Wart!, chairman of the South-
old Town Planning Board. Ward said that no application for develop-
ment on Robins Island has been submitted to the town and that the
town holds exclusive zoning powers over the island. He said that while
application could be acted on quickly by the town, numerous county,
state and federal agencies would be called upon to review the plan, and
that would take time.
Lawyers for the county, for the owner of the island and for the
potential developer are under pressure to settle the case before April
24, SOUrces close to the case said. The Second Circuit Court of Ap-
peals has extended its deadline from April 12 to April 24 for the fil-
ing of the appeal of a lower court order that a contract by Robis
Corp. to buy the island from Southold does not supercede the coun-
ty's. If no settlement is reached by then, the papers _ which in-
clude 10 copies of the voluminous court file, will have to be submit-
ted to the appeals court. The sources said the copying cost alone will
be "tens of thousands of dollars."
Appearing before the Suffolk legislature yesterday was Assemb. Ste-
ven Englebright (D-Setauket) who as a county legislator in 1988 led the
, drive to purchase Robins Island. He argued against the proposal to
l. allow Robis Corp. to build 22 houses there. In return, 93.5 percent of
~ the island would be used for a conservation center. Englebright, who
formerJy headed the county legislature's parks committee, said Robins
Island was meant to be the centerpiece of a 30,OOO-acre park system in
the Peconic Bay area. "Robins Island is a masterpiece. You can't cut the
smile out of the Mona Lisa and keep the essence of the work, and you
can't deveJop 30 acres on Robins Island and keep the essence of the
island."
The vote yesterday was limited to referring the settlement resolution
to two legislative committees. Some legislators said that the final vote
could be as early as April 20.
Several legislators who oppose the settlement expressed dismay over
the many questions that were unanswered in the resoJution. One in-
volves who will hold title to the promised conservation area.
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1993
A Setback
On Island
Agreement
Council Urges
Impact Report
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HAUPPAUGE - In a move that
may kill the county's Robins Island
settlement, Suffolk's Council on En-
vironmental Quality yesterday deter-
mined that in changing the county's
policy of seeking full preservation of
the island by public purchase, the plan
that called for the construction of 22
vacation homes must be reviewed in
a full environmental impact
statement.
The proposed settlement, designed
to end several pending island owner-
ship lawsuits, carried a February ap-
proval deadline. The completion and
review of an environmental assess-
ment could take a year.
Had the council, which advises the
County Legislature on environmental
matters, determined that an impact
report is not needed, the legislature
probably would have acted on the set-
tlement during its December 21
meeting. Pro-settlement forces, and
County Executive Robert Gaffney,
anticipated legislative approval.
Fearing that to be the case, en-
vironmental groups actively lobbied
the CEQ in favor of an impact
statement.
County Legislator Nora Bredes of
Setauket, a leading settlement foe,
called the council's action "good
news. It's the right thing:'
She stopped short, however, of
declaring the settlement dead. "I'm
not so sure;' she said, adding that, on
the Robins Island fight, "People have
a way of discovering more lives than
a cat has:'
"That takes care of that. Next;'
said Claus Mittermayer, president of
Continued on Page 9
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Busi~essman Buys a.n Is/and Hideaway for $11 Milli~
Continued From Page Al I
termayer, a German businessman,
. and his son Claus, bought the island in
1979 for $1.3 million, expecting to find
a buyer willing to pay far more. Over
the Jast 14 years, they have tried to
sell It for about $10 million to Suffolk
County, which wanted to preserve it,
and to a succession of wealthy indi-
viduals and private developers, who
at times have vowed to build luxury;
homes on the island. f
But over the last two weeks, after
four years of government wrangling
over how to proceed, Mr. Bacon
swooped in out of the blue, and took
over the deal with an efficiency and
decisiveness that has long character-
ized his financial dealings.
"U's amazing," said Robert S. De-
Luca, the executive director of the
Group for the South Fork, an environ-
mental group. "They turned 20 years
of public polley into swap-and-shop."
A Wall Street Fortune
Mr. Bacon, the principal of Moore
Capital Management lnc., an invest-
ment management firm with offices
in Rockefeller Center In Manhattan,
last year earned $35 million, accord-
ing to Financial World magazine,
making him the eighth highest-paid
individual on Wall Street on the publi-
cation's annual list. In the eight years
since he established his firm, he has
brought in about $2 biJIion to manage
for European investors, trading
largely in internaUonal currency and
: bond markets, The Wan Street Jour.
nal reported in September.
A North Carolina. native, he. lives in
o Greenwich, Conn., with his wife and
two children in a Tudor-style home
that he recently restored. He was
descrIbed in a Wall Street Journal
profile in September as competitive
and adventurous, recently going to-
- Zimbabwe to hunt water buffalo with
a crossbow. He Is said ~o release
tension at work by hitting a punching'
bag or Shooting a basketball.
I Despite his accomplishments, Mr.
. Bacon is relatively unknown outside
, select financial circles and has avoid-
: ed the limelight, declining to speak
I with reporters about his business suc-
, cesses out of a concern that it could
I hinder his future dealings.
And while associates said the sale
of the island was not a business deal,
he seemed to bring his skiJIs as a
negotiator to bear.
At a lengthy hearing today In Fed-
i eral bankruptcy Court in Westbury,
Mr. Bacon said that for tax reasons,
his offer to buy the Island had to be
approved before the end of this year
or it would be withdrawn. Neither he
nor his associates would explain the
tax implications of thl? deal or w~eth~
er the island would be turned over to
some charitable trust with Mr. Bacon
retaining rights to use it.
'We Tried to NegotIate'
At the bankruptcy hearing, Judge
Robert John HaJJ gave approval for
Mr. Bacon to buy the island and re-
fused to grant lawyers for Suffolk a
stay in that ruling. Within minutes,
Mr. Bacon handed Claus Mitter-
mayer checks for $11 million and
received title to the island.
The deal needed to come before the
court because Mr. Mittermayer's
company, Southold Development Cor~
poration, has filed for bankruptcy.
Accordingly, judge Hall had to ap-
prove Mr. Bacon's purchase and re-
lease the company from a previous
agreement to sell it to the county for
$9.2 million. .
Mr. Bacon told reporters he had
tried to convince Suffolk officials that
he was intent on restoring and pro~
: tecting the island. "We tried to negoti.
ate with them, but they wanted this
day in court," he said.
o He said his purchase of the island
was lOa victory for the citizens of
Suffolk County and New York State,'"
but declined to forswear future devel-
opment, although people who have
spoken with him said he apparently is
only Interested in building a vacation
home for his family and perhaps re-
storing a manor home that was start~
ed in 1910 and never completed.
Mr. Garcia, his spokesman, said
Mr. Bacon first visited the island ear-
lier this month when another sports-
man told him it was available.
"He found it breathtakingly beauti-
ful," Mr. Garcia said.
Thomas Wickham, who was recent-
lyeJected Supervisor of Southold, the
town that includes Robins Island, and
a farmer whose ancestors were
among Long Island's original Euro~
pean settlers, said he was favorably
impressed with Mr. Bacon after tour-
ing the isJand with him on Dec. 19.
Mr. Wickham said Mr. Bacon first
became intrigued by the island when
he was a young man, working on a
charter fishing boat in the area. Now,
Mr. Wickham said, Mr. Bacon has
vowed to preserve the island and has
been working on covenants that
would protect the land in perpetuity,
while allowing the public to visit.
"He seems like an honorable per-
son who really does have the long-
term preservation of th'. island at
heart," Mr. Wickham saht. .
He added: "He's the kif of person
that many people here the town
. could relate to. He didn't Orne across
to me as a financial magnate, as a
Milken or one of those kinds of people.
He's a sportsman who would like to
bring .out a bunch of his friends and
have a big shoot at the end of Septem-
ber."
'\
\
Executive PayS=$J.l Million,
And Island Hideaway Is His
By JONATHAN RABINOVITZ
SJX!clal to The New York Times . ,~X I
GARDEN CITY, L./.. Dec. 28 _ l%ii 'NASSAb
Roughly 15 years ago, Louis Moore
Bacon was a hired hand on a charter
fishing boat out of Montauk. As he
passed Robins Island, 445 unspoiled
acres of forest and bluffs in the Great
Peconic Bay. he could only dream
about what it was like.
Today, Mr. Bacon, 37, and now an
immensely successful trader on Wall
Street, bought the island for $11 mil-
lion, ending a long-running dispute be-
tween Suffolk County, private develop-
ers and the previous owners over the
fate of one of the most valuable unde-
veloped islands on the Eastern Sea~
board.
Fred Garcia, a spokesman for Mr.
Bacon, said Mr. Bacon planned to use
the island as a private family com-
pound and would work with the Nature
Conservancy to preserve it in its natu-
ral state. In the next week, he will
create a fund of more than $1 million to
be administered by the conservancy
for the island's conservation, Mr. Gar-
cia said.
The acquisition was the latest chap-
ter in the saga of an island that local
environmentalists have described as
Long Island's Yosemite Valley, the
Mona Lisa of the East End, and one of
the few remaining natural jewels in an
area that many say has been taint.ed by
averdevelopment.
Since the arrival of European set-
tlers on Long IsJa"ld in the 17th century,
Robins Island has been owned by a
The New York Times
A new owner plans to turn Robins
Island into a retreat lor his lamily,
series of families, and it still looks
much as it did centuries ago, when
Indians referred to it as "a place full of
timber." A teardrop-shaped island 80
miles from Manhattan, it is ringed by
beaches and steep bluffs, with deer
roaming its forest of oaks, locusts, ce-
dars and cherry trees.
The prevjou~ owners! Herbert Mit-
Continued on Page 84, Column 2
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ia available fur hilJne ot
(lffice deli\lery in mo.t
majlll U.S. dtiea. Plellle
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Hey, Who's that Guy?
Mittermayer? Really?
CUTCHOGUE - If Claus Mitter-
mayer designed his own line of clothing,
the slogan could read "I own Robins
.Island and all I got is this lousy T-shirt;'
An uninvited guest to Saturday's auc-
tion of an original oil painting of the
island, donated by Cutchogue artist
Jackie Penney to aid the Robins Island
Preservation Fund in its effort to wrest
the property's title away from him, Mit-
termayer was quietly told that he could
not bid on the work "Robins Island
Race;' which shows the island from the
New Suffolk waterfront.
But Mittermayer's attorney, Albert
D'Agostino, did buy a few T-shirts
emblazoned with a reproduction of
Penney's painting and the words
"Robins Island Keep it Wild:'
"I wasn't allowed to bid;' said Mit-
termayer. ., I could have made an issue
out of it, but that really doesn't add
anything:'
Mitterrnayer and D'Agostino were
among about 100 people attending the
auction at the Nassau Point home of
Southold businessman Jim Gray, whose
yard offers a sweeping view of the
island's eastern shore.
The painting went to Neil
McGoldrick of Garden City for $3,500.
His bayfront Mattituck home has a
vista of the island's northwestern point.
No Offense
Arthur Ross, a spokesman for the
Preservation Fund, said the bidding
limits were agreed upon before Mitter-
mayer's arrival. He said the group had
earlier decided to accept no bids from
anyone connected with Southold
Development Corp., Mittermayer's'
company, or the Robis Corp., which is
attempting to buy it and build about 15
vacation homes.
"We thought it would be inap-
propriate for our property, this gift
from a very generous lady, to be pur~
chased by someone we don't want to
own it:' said Ross. "I hope he doesn't
feel put out or offended. Obviously, we
tried to make them welcome:'
Ross, an attorney, said he quickly
took D'Agostino aside and explained
the bidding limits. D'Agostino, he said,
noted that Mittetmayer did not intend
to pa.rticipate in the 'auction.
The proceeds from the sale will go
toward the Fund's continuing legal
challenge to Southold Development's
ownership. The group filed an action in
federal court arguing that New York
State illegally confiscated the 435-acre
island from Parker Wickham, an 18th
Century magistrate declared a Tory
sympathizer, following the American
Revolution. It asked the court to grant
title to Wickham's heirs, who want the
property to be left as is.
A federal justice lasl year dismissed
the suit ruling that too much time had
passed to pursue the claim. The deci-
sion was upheld on appeal, and that ap-
pellate court recently rejected the fund's
.request for a rehearing. The group
subsequently filed a petition with the
U.S. Supreme Court.
Mittermayer has asked County Ex-
ecutive Robert Gaffney to formally end
Suffolk's legal fight to close on a $9.2
million deal signed three years ago, and
to endorse Robis' plans for a limited
development leaving all but 30 acres.
untouched.
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In Person
Ross said he had thought that Mit-
termayer might have placed a few of his
representatives among the auction
crowd, but that "He was honorable
enough to come himself with his at-
toroei'
Mittermayer, who previously had
taken pains to remain personally in-
conspicuous, turoed quite a few heads,
said Ross: and his presence upset some.
auction.goers.
H I was surprised to see him, but'
nothing really surprises me on the
Robins Island caper;' he said. "He
could have come in with the Sheik of
Araby. The cast of characters in this is
endless:'
Mittermayer described his reception
as "cordial. I walked around and talk-
ed to some people, and people introduc-
ed themselves to us. The reaction more
often than not was surprise. This was
the last thing on earth they would
expect.
"For the most part they are not die-
hard preservationists;' he added, "but a
social club designed to pursue the
Wickham Claim:'
After the auction Ross asked Miller-
mayer if he had enjoyed himself, and
the answer was yes. "As he left he told
me he would see us sometime;'
-Tim Kelly
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Robins I. Appeal Money Halt
Conservancy cuts off Suffolk
By John McDonald
STAFF WRITER
The Long Island Chapter of The Na-
ture Conservancy has notified Suffolk
that it will no longer fund the county's
appeal of a court order allowing the sale
of Robins Island.
Sara Davison, the chapter's executive
director, also announced that the orga-
nization has signed an agreement with
the island's new owner, financier Louis
Moore Bacon, to prepare a management
plan that will "address the unique natu~
ral features and the rare and endan-
gered species found there." As part of
the agreement, the conservancy will
manage a $1.1-million endowment set
up by Bacon, who purchased the island
for $11 million last month.
Despite the conservancy's action,
Tim Ryan, a spokesman for Suffolk
County Executive Robert Gaffney, said
the county would proceed with the ap-
peal. "We'll do whatever is necessary"
to continue the court action, he said.
The Nature Conservancy, a nation-
wide group dedicated to preserving
threatened plants and animals and en-
vironmentally important ecosystems,
has spent about $500,000 on Suffolk's
legal expenses in the battle over Robins
Island during the past three years. The
conservancy funded. the action after the
Suffolk Legislature barred the USe of
county funds to pursue a D.S. Bank-
ruptcy Court case in which the county
has sought to buy the island from bank-
rupt SouthoId Development Corp. Paul
. Sabatino, counsel to the legislature,
said that Gaffney probably will have to
get the legislature to authorize funding
to continue the appeal.
"We're delighted to have The Nature
Conservancy recognize the facts of the
case," said James Kelly, a spokesman
for Bacon. He said Bacon purchased the
island "for two reasons: for personal
use and to restore the island" to its
original use. The endowment is set up
to preserve the island and provide a
plan for its use - by Bacon as an occa-
sional family retreat and hunting pre~
serve, and by others for educational
and scientific purposes sanctioned. by
The Nature Conservancy.
The 435-acre tract in Peconic Bay is
the largest uninhabited island in the
northeast.
Implementation of the management
agreement has already begun, said
Davison. "We've had one visit already
to the island, and we now will be given
immediate access for the purpose of
drawing up a conservation plan."
She said the last comprehensive envi-
ronmental study of the island was con-
ducted about 10 years ago. "Since then,
there has been no systematic inventory
of the island," which contains endan~
gered species like the piping plover and
unusual types of habitats such as the
island's coastal bluff.
A Crawn Jewel for LI Open -Space Plan
f
From the air, Long Island's pre-eminent
flower appears to be the concrete cloverleaf, a
species more voracious even than the bull
dandelions of this wet spring. That's why the
announcement last week of Suffolk County's
purchase of Robins Island offers an occasion
for rej oicing.
The island, all 435 acres of it, has no clover-
leafs, no lawns, no traffic lights, no traffic, no'
fast-food franchises. In short, it has no inhabi-
tants. The only signs of development are a
mansion (abandoned in 1919) and a caretak-
er's shack. It is home to heron, osprey and
tern, and a large herd of deer, frequently visi-
ble to fishermen and boaters in Peconlc Bay.
The island - a core element in the great
Peconic River- Peconic Bay ecosystem - of-
fers an amenity rare in this corner of the
54/VIEWPOINTS
globe: It is unspoiled, a time capsule offering
a glimpse of what Long Island was when only
Indians roamed its plains and hills.
Ifthe county hact not arranged its still tenta-
tive purchase agreement, all that would have
changed. Among the development plans was
one that called for a 200-room hotel. It's in
abeyance now, but it, or something like it,
could come alive again unless two suits that
cloud the owner's title are settled. We hope
the county's contract holds and the $9.2-mil-
lion sale is validated.
It is an historic land purchase that fully jus-
tifies County Executive Patrick Halpin's glow-
ing assessment. "Robins Island is the largest
undeveloped island in the Northeast," Halpin
said. "It is the crown jewel of our open-space
Program. ..
5
. NEWSDAY, MONDAY, JUNE 12, 1969
'1~3 :::"u+~j( or ,,1.\':';>
Rescue Robins Island
Gaffney gave up a bit of Eden for a sales-tax hike, but the state could still save it.
It's hard to imagine anything more short-
sighted than Suffolk County Executive Rob-
ert Gaffney's decision last week to allow
development of Robins Island in exchange
for one legislator's needed vote to extend a
penny increment in the county sales tax.
The wild, uninhabited island that floats be-
tween the North and South Forks holds the
closest approximation any Long Islander.
may ever experience to life here before subur-
banization. Its windswept silences, its rare
bird and plant life ought to be saved for envi-
ronmental study today and preserved intact
for future generations. If the legislature rati-
fies the deal, as expected, the state ought to
dip into its new environmental trust fund and
make an offer to buy and save Robins Island.
The county had the right idea in 1989 when
it tried - with the help of the Nature Conser-
vancy - to buy the island for a nature pre-
serve. Unfortunately, that contract became
enmeshed in a welter of costly lawsuits involv-
ing the bankrupt owner and a rival purchaser.
With legal fees skyrocketing (they've cost
the Nature Conservancy alone $250,000) and
complexities multiplying, Gaffney grasped at
an out-of-court settlement that 1) won him
Legis. Joseph Rizzo's sales-tax vote, and 2)
will allow a developer to build 22 luxury
homes, and - at no cost to Suffolk -leave 92
percent of the 435-acre island undisturbed
for use as a county nature preserve.
If the property were on Long Island itself, it
might be a very good deal, especially since the
land will stay on the tax rolls. But on Robins
Island, it's not. It's impossible for a small is-
land to be a little bit wild. Homeowners bring
with them dogs and cats that can threaten
rare birds and other wildlife; they ornament
their garden with plants that can crowd out
native growth; they change the ecosystem by
digging cesspools, drilling wells and eradicat-
ing pests like mosquitoes and ticks. Perhaps
the island's most haunting feature for Long
Islanders - its traffic-free quietude - would
give way to merry shouts and slammed doors.
No doubt it would be a wonderful place to
live - for 22 lucky families. But for the rest of
Suffolk, it would go from being an environ-
mental Eden to merely a nice place to visit.
But future uncertain
Robins Is. deal reached
By Wayne W. Nester
Much has been reported about last week's news that
Suffolk County has reached an agreement in principle with
the owner of Robins Island, Claus Mittermayer's Suffolk
Development Corp. (SDC), and the potential buyer of the
435-acre island, Robis Corp. of California. The county had
initially intended to purchase the island for $9 million, but
as the county stumbled deeper into financially troubled wa-
ters, the plan changed. .
County Executive Robert Gaffney, along with many
county legislators from both sides of the aisle, began to
look at a partial development plan for the island with the
county receiving the balance for free. At least th~t is what
has been widely touted by both the proponents in the
county for this option and the owner and proposed devel-
oper of the land.
After last week's announcement, some of the details of
the plan that had been worked out back in April were
~earned. According to Kevin Gary, the attorney represent-
109 the owner of Robins Island, the plan will be imple-
mented as follows: in exchange for the county deciding not
to pursue a purchase of the island or stand in the way of its
sale to Robis Corp., both the owner and the county'would
drop any lawsuits still pending. After Robis Corp. has gone
through the necessary permit process to build 22 homes on
33 acres, through the Town of Southold in which Robins
Island is located, the developer will deed over the balance
of the island to the homeowners' association that will be
created there by the 22 residents who buy the houses. It
will be that association that will be charged with the re-
sponsibility of maintaining the undeveloped portion of the
island with a $2 million trust fund which Robis will con-
tribute to the homeowners' association for that purpose.
The homeowners' association would then be obligated to
make available limited access to the island for scientific
and educational groups to study the flora and fauna on the
remaining acreage.
According to Gary, although the county will not be
given title to the land, it would have the right to get first
lien on the property should the homeowners' association
not live up to its end of the agreement as spelled out in the
covenants and restrictions in the deed, which Robis will
transfer to the homeowners' association.
Assistant County Attorney William Burke confirmed
Gary's version of the agreement's contents.
"I'm delighted that an agreement has finally been
reached, but no assurances were given by the county that
this would go through. It still has to be passed by the legis-
SEE Page 6
Robins Is. deal...
from page I
lature and then signed by (Gaffney)," Gary
said.
Southold Town Supervisor Scott Harris
and many Southold residents are opposed
to any development on the island, and it is
expected that the planning department in
that town will playa critical role in the fu-
ture of Robins Island if the legislature ap-
proves the agreement.
In a letter to County Attorney Robert
Cimino dated April 16, 1993, Southold
Town Attorney Harvey Arnoff warned that
"...Under no circumstances will the Town
of Southold be bound by any settlement"
by the county and that said settlement
could in no way "bind the town" to ap-
prove the project. "The SEQRA (State En-
vironmental Quality Review Act) process
relating to our municipality shall not be
subverted by any agreement," Arnoff
stated. A spokesperson for Harris stated the
intent of that letter is still valid today, re-
gardless of whatever deal the county and
the owner of Robins Island reach.
Legislator Michael Caracciolo (R-Aque-
bogue), who has strongly opposed any de-
Ul velopment on the island, claims despite all
ffi the talk about a deal, none is truly in place
~ at this time. "It is premature to state that
ll; there is deal set forth as yet. Any plan to de-
~ velop must first go through the Town of
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Southold. I don't believe any developer
would gamhle $12.5 million (the purchase
price Robis will pay for the island) without
some assurances that they will be able to
develop the land. No one would buy a pig
in the poke for that kind of money, and at
this point I would have to say that getting
approval for the necessary permits will not
be easy," Caracciolo said.
Legislator Joseph Rizzo (R-East Islip),
who forced last week's county decision on
the settlement in return for his vote on the
sales tax extension, admits that it won't be
an easy row for Robis to hoe.
"They (Robis) will have to go through
the SEQRA process in the Town of South-
old to get approval to build there," Rizzo
said.
Gary claims that the county will now
have to conduct a SEQRA review for the
agreement, which the county will pay for,
and should be completed within 30 to 60
days. "It is possible to have a closing on the
sale of the island within six months if the
legislature votes to approve the agreement
within the next 60 days," Gary said.
The agreement must also be approved
by the bankruptcy court which is overseeing
SDC's bankruptcy proceeding. Gary antic-
ipates the court's approval, he said.
..-.~...
Robis '_-1
Maps"7H~)
Robins
Development and
preservation eyed
By .Jeff Miller
Robins Island has been mapped for
development. And preservation.
Robis Corp. of California has submit-
ted to Suffolk County a conservation
easement proposal that would set aside
375 of the 434 acres of Robins Island
"for scientific and educational pur-
poses." The rest, a strip of waterfront
ringing the north and west coasts, would
be developed.
Douglas Riemer, local agent for
Robis Corp., said the talk is of any-
where from 12 to 20 multimillion-dollar
homes on five-acre mini-estates. The.
homesites themselves would actually be
1.5 acres, with 3.5 acres included in the
conservation easement, he said. They
would be "more than 200 feet back from
the high water mark and will be sited in
such a way as to minimize visual impact
from the water," according to the Robis
plan.
The proposal also calls for on-site
septic systems behind the homes, a new
community dock and construction of a
nature center. As for transportation on
the island, "The road system would be
wide enough to provide fOl emergency
... vehicles but the landowners would be ,
allowed only the use of golf cart type
vehicles," says the plan.
The proposal was prepared for Robis
Corp. by Andrew Johnson of
Conservation Advisers in Chadds Ford,
Pa. It was submitted to the county last
week attached to a 1983 "Ecological
Evaluation of Robins Island" prepared
by Seatuck Research Program of the
Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Mr.
Johnson cites that study in his proposal,
and writes, "The report confums my ob-
servations in considerable detail ...
There are no plant species that are listed
as endangered or threatened to be found
on Robins IslauJ--.J.mo ~ e not proposed
See Robis, page 16
_._._.':":'.~:i~;
16 . The Suffolk Times. July 2, 19,,~
~ -
Source: the Mittermayers
Aren't the Real Culprits
They became the North Fork's local
villains for the 1980s. They've been
called "the mysterious Mittermayers,"
a.k.a. the "Pave Robins Island
Committee." They've almost never been
seen; they just came in, bought beloved
Robins Island, and then proceeded to
parlay it into big-money real estate.
But that's not the real Mittermayers,
according to Douglas Riemer.
Mr. Riemer says he ought to know. In
addition to being the manager of the
Peconic River Yacht Basin in
Riverhead, he's a subcontractee of the
Mittermayers' Southold Development
Corp., but also the local agent of the
Robis Corp. As such, he's become the
liaison between the two. Over the years,
he says, "I've spent more time on the
island than anyone but [caretaker] Bob
Tuthill, and I've fallcn in love with it."
This week, Mr. Riemer passed along
some news. Did you know, for instance,
that Claus Mittermayer, son of Herbert,
has been living on Shelter Island for two
years? (German Herbert Mittermayer is
the major partner of the SDC; son Claus
is the president and sole director of the
SDC, which bought the island in 1979
for $1.35 million.)
Mr. Riemer also says that Herbert
Mittermayer has regretted the name,
Southold Development Corp., because
he is not the destroyer he is feared to be.
Mr. Riemer said Mr. Mittermayer
"would not deal with people who
wanted to develop the island to the max,
and bought out the partners who did,"
Why wasn't that information ever aired
before? "Nobody ever asked," said Mr.
Riemer.
Another item: As suspected, the name
What's Robis?
. It's a derivative of Rob(ins)
Is(land).
. It's headed by Allen Senal!.
. Its principals are involved In
the entertainment and
financial industries.
. They have no interest in
revealing their identities.
"Robis" is a mix of the first syllables
"Robins" aJ)d "Island," California-based
Robis, headed up by Allen Senall, is a
consortium of investors who want to
own the island, said Mr. Riemer. He de-
clined to reveal their identities, but said
some are in vol ved in the entertainment
industry and some are the heads of fi-
nancial institutions. "They want their
privacy, and they can have it here," said
Mr. Riemer.
'The Untold Story'
Mr. Riemer also aired some intriguing
documents this week. In addition to the
proposed Robis Corp. conservation
easement scheme, he produced a seven-
page treatise signed by Claus
Mittermayer entitled, "The Untold
Robins Island Story," The tract, report-
edly written in 1990 and submitted to
the bankruptcy court that is currently
deciding the island's fate, states the fol-
lowing:
. That it wasn't the Mittermayers
who pulled out of the sale of the island
to Suffolk County, but rather the
county, allegedly hoping to get a price
See Mittermayers, next page
Who's Paying Robins Is. Taxes?
A Corporation Called Y.O.U.
is out a total of $4 I ,690.08 in Robins
Island taxes.
County government pays these tax
bills out of its general fund, according
to deputy county treasurer Eugene
Lester. And that means this: "We're all
paying more than our fair share," said
Mr. Lester on Monday. He noted that
the county also is paying the tax bills
for hundreds of other property owners
who have sought bankruptcy refuge
during the recession, and observed that
the situation is a contributor to the
financial woes of the county.
In the long run, the assumption is that
whoever buys Robins Island will have
to pay that property lien. But here's a
twist What if Suffolk County somehow
manages to buy the island? In that
event, it would seem likely that the
county would be out the money, since it
couldn't pay itself. But that's not neces-
sarily so, according to Terry Young,
secretary to chief deputy treasurer
General Rains. These days, she said,
some bankruptcy courts are ordering
owners to make good on at least some
of their delinquent taxes.
New Suffolk Divided
When it comes to Robins Island
taxes, the most concerned parties would
have to the residents of little New
Suffolk. Bob Sokel, superintendent of
the New Suffolk Common School
District, said this week that opinions on
Robins Island are mixed within the
hamlet. Said Mr. Sokel: "Some would
See T811ies, next page
By .Jeff Miller
Guess who's been paying the taxes
on Robins Island since 1989? If you're
a Suffolk County resident, you have.
According to the county clerk's of-
fice, the last time the island-owning
Southold Development Corp. paid taxes
on the island was on June 7, 1989,
which a clerk described as "not too ter-
ribly late" for that year. After that, how-
ever, the owners filed for bankruptcy
protection, which relieves them from
paying taxes and other bills pending
court rulings. So who's been paying the
taxes? The peopte of Suffolk County.
And a pretty good tax bill's been
snowballing since June 7, 1989.
Including penalties and interest, the
SDC now owes a total of $305,208.10
in back taxes.
How do you come to be stuck for that
tax bill? Under the Suffolk County Tax
Act, taxes that cannot be collected are
paid by the county, and a tax lien is
placed on the delinquent properties, to
be repaid when bankruptcy settlements
are reached or deeds change hands. If
the county didn't step in, the New
Suffolk Common School District, in
which Robins Island lies, would be out
a total of $120,108.58 in Robins Island
taxes over the three years, which would
put something of a strain on the school.
The county also picks up the tab on
town taxes and special district taxes.
The town tax bill since 1989 totals
$77,137.56. Not only does the county
cover these payments, the county itself
. -P
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THE PLAN-The Robis Corp. map shows the proposed homesite swath in
the light shade. and the proposed conservation easement area in the dark
shade.
Robis Corp. Maps Robins...
Continued from page 1
to be preserved by the conservation
easement."
The Johnson analysis also states:
"Robins Island is not a pristine ecosys-
tem as has been reported in the press. A
large portion of the island was clear cut
for agricultural purposes many years
ago. The agricultural lands were then
abandoned" and a "successional forest"
grew, states the proposal, which also
cites "e.vidence of commercial activity"
in the form of "a brick factory that ex-
isted on the island for many years.
'Pristine Nature' (Not!)
"In summary, therefore" writes Mr.
Johnson, "the island is interesting as a
successional forest and because ot the
balance-of-nature question posed by the
abnormally high fox population, but I
feel the "pristine nature" of the island
has been greatly exaggeraced," That
view is shared by several county
legislators, who are calling for
financially pressed Suffolk County to
abandon efforts to purchase the island
for preservation.
A valid question is, why is Robis
Corp. submitting any proposal involving
Robins Island? When last seen, a federal
judge had thrown out the $15.2 million
Robis contract to buy the island from
the Southold Development Corp. last
December, supposedly putting the
county's $9.2 million contract back in
the driver's seat.
Why is Robis still in the picture? Mr.
Riemer's answer: "Easy. It doesn't cost
them anything," He said the develop-
ment group sees the predicament facing
Suffolk County and is proposing a solu-
tion: Limited development and 375
acres of nature preserve. "I think it's the
best solution, myself," said Mr. Riemer.
"Robis still has to go through Soulhold
Town [for development approvals]. If it
can't be developed, it will all be pre-
served one way or another. So why
spend the money when the county does-
n't have it?" Mr. Riemer said Suffolk
now faces in for $1.2 million in legal
fees, and more if the case goes on. He
suggests that all legal entanglements be
dropped and that Robins Island gets a
fresh start.
"Let's go back to the open marlcet and
see what happens," said Mr. Riemer. If
Robis does prevail in the bidding,
there's a chance that, at the end of at
least two years of permit-seeking, the
necessary permits will be denied, he
said. "So after two years nothing will
have happened except maybe there will
be a new dock."
The Mittermayers...
Continued from previous page
lower than the $9.2 contract by forcing
the island into a foreclosure sale.
. That Claus Mittermayer suffered
"an emotional breakdown" due to the
events of June 7, 1989, the day before
the Robins Island foreclosure sale by
North Fork Bank. Mr. Riemer said
Claus Mittermayer was nearly disowned
by his father as the SDC almost lost the
island.
The document suggests the connec-
tions between various players in the
Robins Island struggle that are cited in
the SDC's $600 million conspiracy law-
suit, filed in 1991 and still pending. Mr.
Mittermayer writes that The Nature
Conservancy (TNC) "enjoys a specially
rewarding relationship with the county,"
It charges that the Wickham family re-
ceived "more than fair market value"
upon selling development rights of part
of its Cutchogue farm to the county in
1989, and "certainly more per acre than
the county is willing to pay for fee sim-
ple title to Robins Island." It says: "It is
interesting to note that NFBT's [North
Fork Bank's] attorneys are Wickham,
Wickham & Bressler, and that John
Kanas, the president of NFBT, is also a
trustee for TNC. In addition, one of the
Wickhams is a director of NFBT. One
can only question the ability of these
parties to make independent decisions in
___ light of their relationships with the
Wickhams and TNC," It says, "In early
1989, the Town of Southold discrimi-
nately up-zoned Robins Island residen-
tial development zoning from 2 acres to
--=-~.
---'
10 acres." And there's more.
The most compelling passages deal
with events surrounding the first fore-
closure sale. Although the sale was can-
celed, Mr. Mittermayer wrote that the
pressure to achieve the delay was like
someone "putting a gun to my head and
about to pull the trigger." By 10:21 on
the night after the auction on the steps
of Southold Town Hall, Mr.
Mittermayer writes: "...1 contacted my
father in Germany but I was only able to
mumble that the auction was off, then I
was unable to continue to speak. The
lack of sleep, lack of food, physical and
mental exhaustion and stress during the
last 60 hours caused me to experience
an emotional breakdown."
.Jeff Miller
Robins Island Taxes...
Continued from previous page
like to see some development; a couple
of million-dollar mansions would help
tremendously. But a lot are concerned
about what it would be when
developed, with ferry boats running
back and forth."
The obvious advantage of develop-
ment is financial: Mansion dwellers
would pay taxes into the school district.
Conversely, if the county buys the is-
land, the school loses roughly $40,000
per year in taxes (governments don't
pay taxes, they collect them).
How big a jolt would the loss of that
$40,000 per annum be? Mr. Sokel said
Robins Island accounts for 13.4 percent
of the school district's tax flow.
Without Robins Island taxes, the tax
rate would increase from $15.32 to
$17.37, On a house assessed at $4,000,
which he said is a bit high for New
Suffolk, the tax bill would climb $82
per year. "Not a killer," said Mr. Sokel,
but not a clambake, either. However, at
$15,32, the New Suffolk school tax is
the lowest on the North Fork by a wide
margin. And at $17.37, it still would be
the lowest on the North Fork by a wide
margin.
July2,1992 . The Suffolk Ti~e; ":::'-7
Feds Don't
Ante Up
On Robins
The Feds will not be saving
Robins Island this year,
The House Appropriations Com-
mittee this week declined to in-
clude the $2 million Congressman
George Hochbrueckner (D-Corarn)
had hoped to secure to aid in the
purchase of the island for preser-
vation. Mr. Hochbrueckner and
others had been talking of a
coalition of federal, county and
private funding sources to provide
sufficient cash to achieve the
purchase from the Southold Devel-
opment Corp.
"In an effort to help reduce the
deficit ... the committee slashed
funding for acquisition of new
federal lands, and it therefore did
not include funds for the phase
of Robins Island," Mr. ch-
brueckner reported on Wedne y.
1/7/13
- ---.---- --------
and contains no rare flora. That week
we also learned that SDC president
Claus Mittermayer was living on Shelter
Island and directing the SDC campaign
personally.
Two weeks later, Mr. Millermayer
suddenly joined the fray, after 13 years
of virtual silence since the SDC bought
the island for $1.35 million. In a series
of faxes and phone calls. Mr. Miller-
mayer advanced the argument that the
SDC is the wronged party in the Robins
Island struggle. And then, on July 18,
Mr. Mittcrmayer appeared in Cutchogue
at an auction of a painting entitled
"Robins Island Race," painted and do-
nated by Cutchogue artist Jacqueline
Penney to further the cause of the
Robins Island Preservation Fund Inc.
After his trip into the lion's den, Mr.
Mittermayer said of RIPFINC, "It
seems to be more of a social club than
what I would call a purely motivated
environmental group."
Island ownership continued its twist-
ing path through the courts in the fall,
and the year ended with a blow to
RIPFINC. The U.S. Supreme Court re-
fused to hear the merits of the Wickham
claim, the Wickham family' s bid to as-
sert its pre-Revolutionary claim to
I Robins Island in order to promote
preservation. It was the last avenue of
- lItgument for RIPFINC, and in effect
_~g p~S killed the claim. Said group spokesman
Art Ross, "It's been a long, interesting
fight, and we're disappointed of
course." But he added, "We don't want
to hear chainsaws across the land on
Robins Island this spring, so we'll keep
on working" on different paths.
the island.owning Southold Develop-
ment Corp. were negotiating. The sub-
ject of the talks was shrouded by a gag
order.
The shroud fell off in early June when
Suffolk County officials toured the is-
land in order to determine its viability
for development. Although the gag or-
Robins Island
",-
~\'v~
~\
The seemingly endless tug-of-war
over Robins Island began tugging again
in March with reports that Suffolk
County Executive Robert Gaffney and
der supposedly was IDled by then, offi-
cials were mum on the negotiations, ex-
cept for suggestions that some sort of
partial development deal was afoot. In
return, there was talk of the SDC with-
drawing lawsuits naming the county,
which still was half -heartedly pursuing
its $9.2 million contract to purchase the
island. The following week, the North
Fork Environmental Council staged a
rally to protest the county negotiations.
The issue jumped onto the front page
on July 2, with the airing of a proposal
I by the Robis Corp. of California for a
partial development of Robins Island.
I Robis, the group of investors whose
$15.2 million contract to purchase the
I island had been invalidated the previous
year by a federal judge, proposed a con-
I servation easement plan that would set
aside 375 of the island's 434 acres "for
I scientific and educational purposes."
The rest, a strip of waterfront ringing
I the north and east coasts, would be de-
veloped with 12 to 20 multimillion-dol-
I lar homes on five-acre mini-estates. The
proposal was submitted attached to a
1983 "Ecological Evaluation of Robins
I Island" upon which pro-development
forces in coming weeks based argu-
I ments that the island is not "pristine"
I
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Fire Pensions
The Defined Benefit Service Awards
retirement plan for long-term fuefight-
ers had been approved by several North
Fork districts when it became a hot is-
sue in Orient. After several meetings
and much dehate, that district voted
down the plan on Aug. 3.
The issue kicked up two weeks later
in Southold, wben that district approved
the pensions, but some residents com-
plained of insuffICient public notice of
the vote. A call arose for a revote. Dis-
trict comntissioners argued that the legal
requirements had been fulfilled, and no
revote was scheduled.
Orient put the pension plan to a
revote on Oct. 1, and again it was de-nfeated. "I think it's going to be a dead
issue to the time being," said Pete Luce,
chairtnan of the Orient fue commission-
ers. That same week, the Greenport Fire
District began discussions leading to
toward a pension plan vote.
r--------------,
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There's
something
ne~
in the air
on
the East End.
Vincent Tirelli
CERAMIC TILE AND MARBLE
Over 30 Years Experience
765-5734
WINTER SPECIAL
Any standard size ceramic tile tub or shower enclosure
. Washed down with approved solvent
. Regrouted with acryUc additive
. Tub seams and comers caulked
Labor and material
$8900
L____________~_~
Mittermayer Issues (0
An Island Ultimatum
Seeks a Quick County Answer
On Vacation Home Settlement
The president of the corporation that
owns Robins Island has issued an
ultimatum to County Executive Robert
Gaffney to either endorse a limited
development plan or face litigation "in-
to the next millenium~'
The county, said Claus Mittermayer,
South old Development Corp. president
in a July llletter to Gaffney, "is clear-
ly at a take it or leave it crossroad~'
Mittermayer said the county must
respond before a federal court again
takes up Suffolk's effort to gain ap-
proval for a $9.2 million purchase
agreement signed three years ago. The
case could continue in a matter- of
weeks. After that, he said, no settlement
will be considered.
Earlier this year the county and
Southold Development entered into a
"standstill agreement" postponing the
litigation on the fight for the island's
title. Gaffney, who long has said the
county cannot afford the island, was
said to be leaning towards an endorse-
ment of a limited development pro~
posal.
South old Development is seeking
court approval to close on a 1988 con-
tract with the California-based Robis
Corp. for $15.2 million. Robis has pro-
posed the construction of up to 20
houses on 30 acres, leaving the rest un-
touched and managed by a conserva-
tion group such as the Peconic Land
Trust.
Political Ping Pong
Gaining support from six Democratic
county legislators for his budget deficit
package, Gaffney' pledged to reconsider
his opposition to the county acquisi-
tion.
Mittermayer told the Traveler-
Watchman he believes he has been
caught in a political"ping pong game"
and that "we are simply not willing to
wait for him to make up his mind when
he thinks it is politically expedient:'
Gaffney did not respond to requests
for comment earlier this week.
In a separate letter, Mittermayer,
whose company purchased the island in
1979 for $1.3 million, also urged former
North Fork Environmental Council
President Ronnie \\!acker to end her op-
position to the construction of vacation
homes on the 435-acre island, which is
zoned for IO-acre lots.
"There is a short window of oppor-
tunity to make a settlement with the
county;' Mittermayer wrote. "Alter-
natively, after continued litigation a
full-scale development to the extent per-
Continued on Page 9
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The report's findings, Mittermayer
wrote, "completely rebut and are con-
trary to the unfounded and un-
documented claims... that Robins
Island is 'pristine' and must be preserv-
ed untouched in its entirety because of
its unique ecological significance'
He declared that "pseudo-environ-
mental advocates" kept the findings
well hidden. He suggested that an of-
ficial at the Nature Conservancy, which
requested the report and later acted as
the county's agent in negotiating the
1989 county agreement, and former
County Legislator Steven Englebright,
currently a State Assemblyman, gave
instructions to "kill" the report.
Englebright, formerly a SUNY Stony
Brook professor who wrote the descrip-
tion of the island's geological features,
said Mittermayer incorrectly states that
he was a member of the county
legislature when the 1983 report was
prepared. He did not take office until
January 1984.
No effort was made to kill the report,
said Englebright. "This is baloney;' he
said. "It was just a preliminary field
survey. It was not meant to be for
anything other than internal use. At
that time the Conservancy was assess-
3
. G)
109 the merits of getting involved with
the preservation effort~'
Englebright conceded that the
island's appearance has been shaped by
human activity, including brick making
and iron smelting operations. Even so,
he said, "it has recovered and has not
lost its character~'
The Assemblyman also questioned
why South old Development takes issue
with the use of the term "pristine" in
describing the island when the com-
pany's own sales brochure makes that
same claim.
In that brochure Robins Island is
described as "a beautiful work of art
by the Creator" and "an example of
unspoiled nature without ecological
problems~'
It also quotes the opening line of a
poent appearing on the back of a hand-
painted menu from a hunting club par-
ty in 1888 calling the island "an
emerald rare and bright~'
HThere is a contradiction as to what
they have said in print previously and
what they are saying now;' said
Englebright. "It appears to be based on
their sense of opportunity perceived at
any given moment:'
-Tim Kelly
Robins Island's Human History.::
NEW SUFFOLK - Continuing its
inventory of the natural resources on
Robins Island, the administration of
County Executive Robert Gaffney is
unlikely to offer any pronouncements
on the island's fate before the end of
the summer.
Saying Gaffney also is awaiting word
on the availability of state and federal
purchase funds, George Proios, assis-
tant county executive for environmen-
tal affairs, told the Traveler-Watchman
this week that the county's discovery of
several past commercial enterprises on
the island, including brickmaking and
iron smelting, may lower the value
below the $9.2 million the county
agreed to pay for the property three
years ago.
A lO-year-old Cornell report found
that "the history of Robins Island is
one of human use and exploitation of
the island's resources~'
Several county officials toured the
island on three consecutive days earlier
this month to determine if there are
non-sensitive areas where new residen-
tial construction could take place.
The island, said Proios, "obviously
is not pristine. I was Quite surprised
about the iron smelting. That's not
something we could have expected to
see there. We're surprised how much ac-
tivity was on this small island. It ap-
peared to be a manufacturing center~'
Calling the island a unique and in-
valuable piece of open space, several en-
-vironmental groups and elected officials'
are urging Gaffney to continue the fight
for the purchase agreement signed in
1989.
County Legislator Michael Carac-
ciolo of Wading River scoffs at the con-
tention that the long-abandoned iron
and brick works have reduced the
island's value.
"That sounds terrible, but how long
ago was that and what impact did it
have on the island?" the legislator said.
"Does that suggest that there is not an
abundance of wildlife and endangered
species on it? Of course noC'
The Southold Town Democratic
Committee joined the debate this week,
urging the Republican Town Board to
press the Republican County Executive
to press for the purchase initiated by
former Democratic Executive Patrick
:Halpin.
Gaffney, who has said the county can
not afford the island, earlier this year
entered into negotiations with Southold
Development Corp., the island's owners
since 1979, seeking to end several
lawsuits on the property's ownership.
Refusing to honor the 1989 agree-
ment, South old Development has re-
quested court approval to sell the island
for $15.2 million to the Robis Corpora-
tion, a development consortium.
Last December a federal judge found
that the 1988 contract between Robis
and Southold Development had ex-
pired. But the court did not rule on the
Continued on Page 9
ls1and'8 History
ties are more valuable than others:'
In addition to its own recent field
surveys, the county is reviewing a 1983
ecological evaluation of the island com-
pleted by the Seatuck Research Pro-
gram of Islip for the Cornell
Laboratory of Ornithology.
The ;eport found that "the history
of Robms Island is one of human use
and exploitation of the island's
resources~ '
It said that "human occupation has
played a major part in determining the
present ecology of the island. Since
Europeans arrived at Robins Island in
the 1640s the island has been cleared
farmed, grazed, mined and stocked
wtth exotIc flora and fauna. The ap-
pearance of the island today is mainly
a result of these human activities~'
The East End's aboriginal in~
. habItants called the island "Anchan-
nok" meaning a place full of timber
and used it as a fishing and sirellfishin~
statlo~, and for portage in crossing
Peconrc Bay.
Continued from Page I
,alidity of Suffolk's agreement, and in-
;tead returned the case to Bankruptcy
Court. That decision is now on appeal.
Gaffney, who took office in January,
has been expected to drop the county's
acquisition efforts and instead back the
construction of luxury homes on 30 of
the island's 435 acres.
First District Congressman George-
Hochbrueckner has requested a $2
million federal grant to aid the acquisi-
tion drive. Supporters of a public pur-
chase also are pressing the State
Legislature, now in the final days of this
year's session, to approve a $100 million
environmental trust fund which also
could provide partial funding..
"If we had unlimited funds, no pro-
)lem:' Proios said Qf a county pur-
;hase. "But without unlimited funds
Ne have to set criteria on what proper~
They fashioned pottery from the
island's clay, and believed the iron-rich
water from the spring near the clay pit
had medicinal properties. The later-
arriving Europeans also found uses for
those resources.
cea.st:u 111 ............... .. ........ ..... ~...._.iU was sold
to the Robins Island Club Inc., which
operated a shooting preserve. That use
continued under different owners until
Southold Development Corp. purchas-
ed the property from John Mackay,
who acqUired it in 1958.
In addition to recounting the island's
history, the Sea tuck Research Program
report lists the island's geological
features, soil types, and native or in-
troduced plant and animal species.
. It found one to five rare plant species,
five to 20 considered "uncommon" and
21 or more in the Hcommon" category
The island also is home to a length;
list of birds, including the least tern and
osprey.
The study also found a large popula-
tion of white-tailed deer, and said the
eastern gray squirrel, white-footed
mouse and red fox are present but rare
. It listed the European hare, muskra;
and Norway rat as locally extinct.
-Tim Kelly
In the mid-1700's and again a century
later, the clay was fired into bricks. Bet-
ween 1790 and 1792, one Cutchogue
store purchased 100,000.
Near the time of the Civil War the'
black sand near the clay pit was pro-
cessed into iron use, the report said, "to.
make high grade cutlery:'
Colonists grazed cattle on the island.
as early as 1656, and there was a tan-,
nery in operation in 1712. By the early'
18th century most of the original
woodlands were cleared for farming,
but most have since grown back. [n'
1931 about half the island was wood-
ed. Ten years ago trees covered 80 to 90
percent.
Commercial agricultural activities
SDC Launches a Letter Call1paign
By .Jeff Miller Ronnie Wacker of the Save Robins
Island Committee, in response to her
comment in a New York Times story
printed the day before. The comment!
"We never said that it was pristine. We
said that it was natural and undevel-
.------
There's a new Claus Mittermayer
around town. The old Claus Mitter-
mayer was the mysterious, silent West
German president of the Southold
Development Corp., owner of Robins
Island. But all of a sudden, Suffolk
County is mired in fiscal crisis, preser-
vation efforts are in doubt, and Claus
Mittermayer is encamped on Shelter
Island, firing off letters to keep the fires
burning.
In his first known communications
since the SDC bought 434-acre Robins
Island for $1.35 million in 1979, Mr.
Mittermayer sent out two letters this
week, the first to County Executive
Robert Gaffney. That letter begins by
attacking preservation forces, and then
shifts into a hard-sell presentation, as-
serting that full preservation will cost
the county $57.5 million, whereas
Suffolk can have 92.5 percent preserva-
tion for free.
The letter's lengthy and headlong
opelllng shows the eagerness of the
new, assertive Claus Mittermayer:
"Dear Mr. Gaffney: Please examine
the enclosed information documenting
that Robins Island is nei!her pristine not
ecologically significant and that the
pseudo-environmental advocates of the
island's acquisition by Suffolk County
have conceivably known and concealed
these facts for nearly 10 years culminat-
ing in the Halpin Administration's
cons.istent and possibly deliberately mis-
leading and deceiving your constituents
- the people of Suffolk County."
The second letter went out Monday to
'Suffolk County
could receive, at
absolutely no cost
... complete pro-
tection against any
development on
more than 400
acres (92.5%) of
Robins Island'
-Claus Mitlermayer
.
'Balderdash.'
-Ronnie Wacker
oped, and that the people who owned
the island have always been very careful
of it until the current owners. So what if
it's not pristine? It's still the most natu-
ral island we have on Long Island, and
it's a relief to look at something like
that instead of shopping centers and
malls and that sort of thing."
'Use and Exploitation'
Mr. Mittermayer's response to Mrs.
Wacker:
"It appears that you are acknowledg-
ing that Robins Island is not pristine and
in fact has a long-standing history of
human use and exploitation of the is-
land's resources." He then lists uses as-
cribed in the Seatuck Research study in
]983, including the following: "Large
portion[s] orthe island have been clear
cut several times for agricultural pur-
poses; extensive cattle and sheep farm-
ing; clay from the island was used for
pottery, the clay pit was also used for
brick making (about 100,000 bricks per
annum); iron smelting operation; tan-
nery utilizing oak trees as source for
tannin; shooting preserve as Robins
Island Club..... The last item on that list
says that previous owner John Mackey
used the island as a shooting preserve,
and that "John Wickham, a hunting
companion of Mackey, did clear large
sections of the island near the manor
house on behalf of Mackey."
Considering those uses, Mr.
Mittermayer wrote to Mrs. Wacker that
he is "perplexed that you, in good con-
science," could suggest that previous
owners have nurtured the island and that
the SDC has not. He argues that the
-
H,
July 16, 1992 . The Suffolk Ti~ 5
SDC has cut no trees and built no
houses.
Regarding Mrs. Wacker's "shopping
centers" remark, Mr. Mittermayer
writes, "Had you reviewed the ... lim-
ited development proposal... you would
have noticed that it does not include the
construction of shopping centers and
malls, in fact it only discusses the con-
struction of a low number of seasonal
vacation homes which are set back
several hundreds of feet from the bluffs
making it virtually impossible for you to
see anything other than what you are
currently seeing from your home at
Nassau Point or from Peconic Bay for
that mauer." And so, Mr. Mittermayer
writes, "I trust that upon reflecting on
the facts at hand vs. fiction you will re-
frain from further derogatory, un-
founded and untrue statements in re-
gards to Robins Island or its current
owner(s)."
Wacker: 'Balderdash'
Mrs. Wacker responded in assertive
tones of her own. "This is absolute non-
sense. Ba.lderdash," she said. The island f
See Campaign. page 17
----ca-mpalgn...
Continued from page 15 '
must be preserved in its natural state,
not partially developed, which she de-
scribed as similar to being "partially
pregnant" She said, "I've made no un-
founded statements:' and stressed that
the island's naturalness would be de-
stroyed by houses. "I've been to the
island a number of times, and I've had
deer eating out of my hand," she said.
, She also said that Mr. Mittermayer
baSe ~rQ"gh' u-IJublc upon himself by
seeking to maximize his profit. "I just
feel that he's been greedy." she said.
In his letter to County Executive
Gaffney, Mr. Mittermayer boosts the
partial development plan submitted to
the county two weeks ago by the Robis
Corp. of California, which also has been
seeking to buy the island. He writes !hat
development would be limited to 30 of
!he island's acres, meaning !hat, if ap-
proved, "Suffolk County could receive,
at absolutely no cost to !he county or its
taxpayers, complete protection against
any development on more !han 400
acres (92.5 percent) of Robins Is]and."
Conversely, if Suffolk continues to
"litigate into !he next millenninm," !he
cost will total $57.5 million, !he $9.2
million purchase price plus debt service
over 30 years. And since the Robis pro-
posal offers all but 30 acres free, Mr.
Miuermayer argues that Suffolk would
in fact, be spending $57.5 million for 30
acres. In bold-faced, underlined print,
Mr. Mittermayer writes, "Are 30 acres
of land that have been previously devel-
oped and are not environmentally sensi-
tive worth more than $57.5 million, plus
hundreds of !housands of dollars lost
annually in tax revenue so that nobody
can enjoy any part of Robins Island?"
Mr. Miuermayer supplies bis own re-
sponse: "The objective answer to lhis
question is clearly - No! Realistically,
it is far beller that !he county publicly
takes a stand and removes its objection
to limited development of Robins
Island."
In closing, Mr. Mittermayer suggests
!hat !he county might "be well-advised
to appoint an impartial investigation
committee and/or prosecutor to examine
what appears to me to be the deliberate
and systematic plundering of taxpayer
funds for the benefit of special interest
groups like The ~ture Conservancy
and their cronies."
He concludes: "You will seriously
consider consummating immediately !he
proposed settlement of this matter, as I
cannot in good conscience as president
of SouJllold Development Corporation
strive ll\' keep any settlement offer out-
_.__..1:__ ~n""" In.nnts'' Plp.!).lU'. nntp. that
-
I
t
Poppycockl
New Suffolk
To the Editor:
Balderdash! Now that's a delightful
and well-reasoned response by Mrs.
Wacker to the proposal by the Mitler-
mayer group. I think that if Jeff Miller
accuralely reported the essence of the
SDC's Ialest offer in last week's paper,
we, the taxpayers of Suffolk County,
owe it io ourselves and our children to
take a hard look at the compromise now
: being offered.
1(); !q;)-
If I understand it correctly, Suffolk
County would get title to 92.5 percent
of the 434 acres for free in exchange for
permitting limited development of vaca-
tion homes that would be set back from
the bluffs so as not to spoil Mrs. Wack-
er's view.
Robins Island is beautiful; however, it
is not pristine nor unspoiled. On numer-
ous occasions, I have personally ob-
served evidence of a variety of previous
uses, including light manufacturing and
agriculture on the island. Now consider
that banks routinely require what is
known as Phase I and II site assess-
ments before lending money on a parcel
such as this. Assuming that the 1983
Seatuck study was reasonably accurale,
it is not unthinkable that such an as-
sessment would uncover levels of con-
taminants, including heavy metals, from
some of the prior uses which would
need to be cleaned up before a bank
would provide the development financ-
ing.
Such a cleanup if it were found to be
necessary could be very costly. I have
some insight into the process being an
environmental consultant myself. I'm
also an attorney and I know howexpen-
sive (and pointless) protracted litigation
can be. I'm as concerned about the
environment as I can be but we need a
balancing of the interests not a one-
sided approach.
I also know the effect of removing
property from the tax rolls forever. It
means that, for the rest of us, we pay
more. Worse yet, it means that the rale
of increase also rises. When all avail-
able property is finally owned by the
state or county and not generating tax
revenue, it will be sucli a wonderful
place... to visit, except lor one other
small item. The county or state govern-
ment probably won't have the money
for the upkeep either, and what do you
suppose that unattended public lands fi-
nally become?
So Mrs. Wacker, it looks like the
county will get title of 404 acres no mat-
ter what happens. However, if the
caunty wants all 434 acres it will have
to pay $57.5 million, (9.4 million amor-
tized over 30 years) plus lose the land
from the tax rolls forever, plus the cost
of any environmental cleanup and
preservation should that be necessary.
The choice is then to let Robis Corp.
have 30 of the 434 acres while the
county gets 404 acres for free or to pay
$57.5 million for those last 30 acres so
we can "have it all."
Really Mrs. Wacker, why not show
that you can be just as reasonable as the
next person and at least give the pro-
posal a fair analysis. Why should we
miss the opportunity to obtain 92.5 per-
cent of what you want, for free. The rest
is ... well ... poppycock!
Very truly yours,
Dunewood Truglia, Esq.
President
Dalton Environmental Ltd.
Mittermayer Speaks
Owner gives Suffolk County a 'grace period'
Two weeks ago, we found out that
Claus Mittermayer, president of the
Southold Development Corp., has been
living on Shelter Island for two years.
This week, Mr. Mittermayer began
sending out faxes with his Shelter Island
telephone number on top. On
Wednesday, 13 years after the SDC
bought Robins Island, Mr. Mitlermayer
returned a phone call left for him earlier
in the day.
Mr. Mittermayer confIrmed that he is
once again pursuing the sale of the is-
land to the Robis Corp. of California .
through the federal Court of Appeals.
And the time that remains until that case
is decided is a "grace period" for
Suffolk County," he said, adding, "We
cannot hold off any more. We have
---------._---
. creditors to pay."
Asked how he and Allen Senall of the
Robis Corp. fIrst met, Mr. Mittermayer
said: "We came together through a bro-
ker. Mr. Senall came to New York, my
father and I were in the area, so we met
and looked at the island and came to
terms. Then we ran into problems with
the Wickham claim, and we couldn't get
title insurance, not because they gave
any merit to the claim, but out of con-
cern over litigation costs." Asked if Mr.
Senall himself intends to live on Robins
Island someday, Mr. Mittermayer said,
"I don't think he'll live there; maybe
he'll have a vacation home there." He
said he's met one other principal of the
corporation, but declined to give a
name.
Mr. Mittermayer said Shelter Island
has become his base of operations due
to the Robins Island litigation.
Regarding Shelter Island, he said, "It's
very nice, very quiet. But I do have to
travel quite a bit." He travels on busi-
ness, "not in the U.S." And the business
trips don't have much to do with real
estate, he said. "Real estate is not really
our primary business," said Mr.
Mittermayer. The family business is
aircraft electronics.
Southold's
hometown newspaper
The $uffollc Times
14. The Suffolk Times. July 16, 1992
Robins Island Appeal Rekindled
The standstill agreement between
Suffolk County Executive Robert
Gaffney, the Robins Island-owning
Southold Development Corp. and the
Robis Corp. that wants to buy the island
has expired.
Gaffney aide Tim Ryan confirmed
Wednesday morning that the pact,
which included a press blackout, ran out
on Monday. But the expiration means
little as far as information from the
county goes. "The agreement expired
Monday, but there's nothing to report,"
said Mr. Ryan. "Nothing's happened.
The legal ramifications are still ongo-
ing."
What will happen, however, is that
action will begin again on the SDC's
appeal of Federal District Court Judge
Leonard Wexler's Dec. 22, 1991, ruling
that the Robis Corporation's $15.2 mil-
lion contract to purchase Robins Island
had expired.
The appeal of that decision has been
on a "suspense calendar" since the
standstill agreement has been in effect,
according to Louis Scarcella, one of the
attorneys who has represented Suffolk
during the SOC's bankruptcy proceed-
ings. With no further extensions of the
standstill, which had been extended
several times over its lOO-dayexpanse,
the SDC has notified the federal Conn
of Appeals that it will once again prose-
cute the case, said Mr. Scarcella.
Indications from within the Gaffney
adminislIation are that the standstill was
put in place so that the county could
work out a partial development plan for
Robins Island. The Robis Corp. of
California submitted such a plan to the
county two weeks ago. Had .the deal
worked out, the proposal called for
much of the island to go under a con-
servation easement, to which the county
would get title. Robis would get the
right to develop a slIip of homesites
along the 434-acre island's north and
east coasts. The SDC would be paid for
the island by Robis.
Had the standstill negotiations
worked out, the suggestion is that there
would be no need for the SOC to pursue
the appeal of the Wexler decision. And
so, island-watchers are speculating that
the negotiations fell apart
What Gag Order?
Not necessarily so, said Mr. Scarcella
Wednesday morning. "Maybe it's just
an attempt [by the SOC] to protect their
rights." He also said he's "not sure all
attempts [toward a county agreement]
have been futile."
As for the gag order, it's not clear if it
died along with the standstill. Mr.
Scarcella said he is not at liberty to dis-
cuss details of the negotiations since
they are ongoing. He said it's tip to the
SOC to decide. But he also said that so
m uch ~as been leaked to the press that
the blackout has already been effec-
tively broken.
Later on Wednesday, SDC attorney
AI D' Agostino confirmed th~ expiration
of the standstill agreement, and said the
decision to pursue the appeal was made
because "we can't just keep Robis
hanging on the vine forever." Regarding
the press blackout, Mr. D' Agostino said
it has also "fallen by the wayside," but
negotiations with the county are ongo-
ing and still caDDOt be discussed.
Jeff Miller
~
F ~
.'t',.' ~,'. ..', ~ 1'_'t~,<J ~:' :';,,-,.. _...~.+ .)~.
", :..., I .,_ \_ \"'.". . ~.' I! .~', f ' . I J ' 'I j. ~ }
Ju', 23. 1992. The Suffolk Times. 3
Mittermayer's Surprise Appearance
- Unannounced visit
into the 'lions'den'
By .Jeff Miller
CUTCHOGUE-If George Stein-
brenner walked into a New York
Yankees nostalgia night, it would have
roughly the same impact that the sur-
prise visitor had on Saturday's Robins
Island function.
The event was the auction of "Robins
Island Race," the painting donated by
Cutchogue artist Jacqueline Penney to
help the Robins Island Preservation
Fund Inc. (RIPFINC) effort. Imagine
the reaction of the faithful when none
other than Claus Millermayer himself
walked in. It lOOk place at the home of
developer Jim Gray Sr. on Nassau
Point.
Mr. Millermayer is the West German
president of the Southold Development
Corp., which owns Robins Island. The
SOC, which has been striving to sell the
island for partial development, last year
named some of the people in the room
on Saturday in its $600 million lawsuit
charging that a "conspiracy" to block
the sale was afoot
After years of silence, Mr.
Millermayer has suddenly become a
presence on the North Fork. He is living
on Shelter Island
and, with Suffolk
County's resolve
to purchase the is-
land in doubt due
to the county's fis-
cal crunch, he is
personally direct-
ing an effort to
persuade the
county to back the
development of 12
to 20 mini-estates
on the island by
the Robis Corp. of
Claus Mittermayer California.
B utto suddenly walk into the enemy
camp was an unexpected level of in-
volvement.
CUlChogue allorney Art Ross, who
serves as RIPFINC spokesman and who
conducted Saturday's auction, said the
appearance was a stunner. "Here comes
Banquo's ghost to the feast," he said
later of his reaction. Accompanying Mr.
Millermayer was SDC allorney Al
O'Agostino.
Unfamiliar with auction procedures,
d!J
Photos by Judy Ahrens
GOING, GOING...-Art Ross, conducting the auction of "Robins Island Race" (with Robins Island in background)
on Saturday. Below, artist Jacqueline Penney (right) with winning bidders, Neil and Amy McGoldrick.
Mr. Ross said he had previously looked
up business corporation law on the sub-
ject, and had wrillen into the provisos
that no principal or agent of the SOC
would be eligible to purchase the paint-
ing, because supporters didn't want it to
be used for real estate promotional pur-
poses. "We wanted a member of the
public to have it," said Mr. Ross.
Ground Rules Explained
Upon Mr. Mittermayer's arrival, Mr.
Ross took allorney D' Agostino aside
and explained the ground rules. "I de-
cided it would be courteous to tell him
of the reservation clause. I didn't want a
confrontation." Mr. 0' Agostino report-
edly replied that Mr. Mittermayer had
no intention of bidding. Meanwhile, the
SDC president was having a glass of
punch and mingling with the crowd that
included Dwight Holbrook, who wrote
"The Wickham Claim." Mr.
'Here comes Banquo's
ghost to the feast.'
-Art Ross, RIPFINC spokesman
Mittermayer has said that the claim has
caused most of the SOC's problems,
and Mr. Holbrook is named in the con-
spiracy suit
In the end, the painting was purchased
for $3,500 by stockbroker Neil
McGoldrick of Garden City and
Mlltituck.
On Wednesday morning, Mr.
'From Robins Island, I
have had to look at all
these house on the
mainland...for the last
13 years.'
-Claus Millermayer
Miuermayer returned a telephone caIlto
The Suffolk Times and called into
question the maneuver that barred him
from bidding on the painting. He said
the printed notice for the auction did not
mention any anti-SOC stipulation.
Asked if he had planned to bid, Mr.
See Surprised. page 32
"~-
Repor: cvmplicates cty. buy
Say Robins Is. no' Ipris'ine'
~
Space program.
However, Southold Development Corp. subsequently
filed for bankruPtcy and attempted to sell the island to Ro-
bis Corp., a California-based real estate firm, for $15.2 mil-
lion. As a result, the county sued for breach of contract, with
the matter being tied up in the courts and a possible set-
tlement being eyed.
Meanwhile, Englebright, who now is a state assembly-
man and who has openly advocated a county purchase of the
island, which he has often labeled as being "pristine," co-au-
thored the report. Andrew Walker of the Nature Conser-
vancy did not return phone calls for comment prior to press
time.
Mittermeyer alleges that the Nature Conservancy and
Englebright hid the facts brought out in the report, which
were reinforced by an independent report of Conservation
Advisors of Chadds Ford, PA, indicating that the island has
a long history of human use, commercialization, industriali-
zation and exploitation.
The report found that a large portion of the island has
been clear cut several times for agricultural purposes; that
the island has seen extensive cattle and sheep farming; that
clay from the island was used for making pottery; that there
was an iron smelting operation on the island; that oak trees
from the island were used in a tannery; and that a shooting
preserve once was on the island, among other things.
"These findings completely rebut and are contrary to the
unfounded and undocumented claims of certain county offi-
cials and so-called environmentalists, including the Nature
Conservancy itself, that Robins Island is 'pristine' and must
be preserved untouched in its entirety because of its unique
ecological significance," Mittermeyer states.
Indeed, Andrew Johnson, president of Conservation Ad-
visors, who turned up the Cornell report during his research
of the island, confirms in a memo to Robis Corp. that Ro-
bins Island is not a pristine ecosystem as has been alleged.
"...the island is interesting as a successional forest and be-
cause of the balance of nature question posed by the abnor-
mally high fox population, but I feel the 'pristine nature' of
the island has been greatly exaggerated," Johnson states.
What's more, Mittermeyer states, one of Southold De-
velopment Corp.'s law firms spoke with Dr. Thomas Litwin,
author of the Cornell report, who advised Southold Devel-
opment Corp. upon submitting the report to the Nature
Conservancy and Englebright that Litwin was instructed by
them not to finalize the report for distribution and publica-
tion.
Englebright, who labeled Mittermeyer's allegations "a to-
tal fabrication and distortion of reality," denied he used hiS
position as a legislator to suppress the report. He noted that
he wasn't a member of the legislature until 1984, months af-
ter the report was done, and was involved in the study based
on his knowledge of Long Island geology.
As for the report, Englebright said it was not designed to
be released by the Nature Conservancy, since it was an "'in-
ternal poliCY-determining document," one that the Nature
Conservancy was using to determine if it should get in-
volved in preserving Robins Island. Although he has seen
SEE Page 6
By Mark Woolley
Those portraying Robins Island as a "pristine" tract in
selling the idea of a public acquisition by Suffolk County are
being accused by the island's owner of covering up a 1983
ecological evaluation indicating that the island is far from
being the "crown jewel" of Peconic Bay.
In a recent letter to County Executive Robert Gaffney,
Claus Mittermeyer, owner of the 460-acre teardrop-shaped
island, alleges that deliberate attempts were made by the Na-
ture Conservancy and former Legislator Steven Englebnght
(D-Setauket) to "kill" the report in 1983, the same year, he
says, the Nature Conservancy began acting as the county's
agent in trying to buy the island.
The Nature Conservancy, who commissioned the re-
port by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and the Sea-
tuck Research Program, receives up to three percent of the
purchase price of lands acquired under the county's Open
Space program. The county entered into a $9.2 million con-
tract of sale with Southold Development Corp., of which
Millermeyer serves as president, in 1989 under the Open
ISLAND PARADISE?--Those knowledgeable of a report
claiming that Robins Island is not as pristine as the report
claims have come under fire for allegedly withholding the
findings of the document during attempts by the county to
acquire the island under Suffolk's Open Space program.
This aerial photo of Robins Island indicates the tract has
some pre-existing homes. Eagle Eye aerial photo. (FUL
C22F)
...
.-
- -
Robins Island...
from page 2
the report, Englebright as-
serted it was not his to issue,
that he has shared any infor-
mation he has of the island
with the county, and that he
never represented the island
as being untrod upon.
Englehright said he has
represented the island as be-
ing of high ecological Quality
that is worthy of preserva-
tion, a view shared by the
Nature Conservancy, but has
never said the island is a vir-
gin wilderness. The word
"pristine," which he ac-
knowledged he has used to
describe the island, is not
enough to define public pol-
icy in acquiring the island, he
said.
Furthermore, Englebright
asserted that Robins Island is
pristine in the same sense as
Gardiners Island, which was
intensively cultivated by the
end of the 1600s. And, he
said, Mittermeyer is being
contradictory in claiming
Robins Island isn't pristine,
because Mittermeyer has
used "glowing ecological easements or deeded outright
terms" to describe the island to a "bonafide" environmen-
in a promotional brochure to tal organization.
sell the island. The limited development
Englebright said he also plan, Mittermeyer states,
rejects the allegation that he consists of weekend and va-
and the Nature Conservancy cation homes, with the
tried to keep the report se- county getting complete pro-
cret, pointing out that those teet ion against any devel-
involved in preparing the re- opment on more than 400
port stayed on the island for acres, at no cost. It also al-
at least five days in shelters lows fill' scientific and special
provided by the owners, groups to utilize the pro-
meaning that Mittermeyer teeted a~ge under the su-
had knowledge of the report. pervisiOl.of a "bonafide"
Whether Mittermeyer ac- nonprofit environmental
tually saw the report until re- group.
cently, as Mittermeyer Mittermeyer, in his letter
claims, is something Engle- to Gaffney, also adviscd the
bright said may also be false. county executive to appoint
"He's reaching and has a an impartial investigation
look of desperation about committee or prosecutor to
him," Englebright said. examine the role of the Na-
Despite his recent discov~ ture Conservancy m the
ery of the report, Mitter- county program, along with
Englebright's involvement in
meyee states, a settlement
over title to the island still is co-authoring the report. And,
he urged Gaffney to seriously
pending between the owners consider the settlement plan,
and the county, onc that calls "as I cannot in good con.
for developing some 30 acres
of the island and the remain- science...strive to keep any
settlement offer outstanding
der subject to environmental much longer."
. At this point, according
to County Attorney Robert
Cimino, the county is not lit-
igating over title to the island
for complete preservation.
Instead, hc said, the county
is "kind of talking" to the
owners, leaving it open to
thepossibility of partial de-
vclopment of the island.
Legislator Nora Bredes
(D-Stony Brook), who favors
total preservation of the is-
land, said she "has not seen
the report, and asserted that
the report had been released
by developers with "self-
serving motives:' She also
said Gaffney, in forming a
tri-partisan coalition of law-
makers to help resolve the
county's fiscal problems, of
which Bredes is a member,
gave no commitment for a
county purchase of Robins
Island.
~"wtead, Bredes said, Gaf-
fney offered to keep an open
mind on the possibility of a
publie/private purchase.
However, the possibility of
federal funding playing a
part in a joint acquisition bas
diminished now that the
House Appropriations Com-
!mittee failed to include the
island on a list of $67 million
in proposed nature refuge ac-
Quisitions.
Despite the loss of fed-
eral funds and the damaging
evidenee in the Cornell re-
port that Robins Island isn't
pristine, Bredes said she still
believes the island should be
preserved for future genera-
tions, with the island being
used for environmental stud-
ies by school children. As for
how the school children
would gain access to the is-
land, she said, "We'll cross
that bridge when we come to
it."
But Legislator Tom Fin-
lay (R-Islip) said he still op-
poses the county purchasing
the island, and said it " should
be bought by a developer
who is interested in putting
the island on the tax rolls.
"
~
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JUDITH T. TERRY
TOWN CLERK
REGISTRAR OF VITAL STATISTICS
MARRIAGE OFFICER
Town Hall, 53095 Main Road
P.O. Box 1179
Southold, New York 11971
Fax (516) 765.1823
Telephone (516) 765.1801
OFFICE OF THE TOWN CLERK
TOWN OF SOUTHOLD
".... ~ '-
l't')~
June 25, 1992
To:
From:
Re:
All Southofd Town ~epartments
Judith Terry, Town Clerk
Robins Island
Attached is a request under the Freedom of Information Act with respect
to documents pertaining to Robins Island. Please review this request very
carefully and submit to me copies of everything you have on the subject
at your earliest convenience. Thank you.
Supervisor
Town Attorney
Board of Appeals
Assessors ~
Planning Board
Building Department
Trustees
Community Development
Historian
Superintendent of Highways
ill U: ::2~ ,00
._.---1
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SCHEDULE A
/Q70
---
M+- ' I wk''f
I 1-----'
Request from the Town of Southold
under the Freedom of Information Act
1. olutions or Recommendations pursuant to Sec. 239-m
of the General Mun' . al Law, the Suffolk County Charter or any
other Municipal Ordinance atute which may have been issued by
the Suffolk County Planning Commis' in relation to the up-zoning
of Robins Island or in any way relatinto Robins Island.
,
2. A d all Document3i_( including Minutes of Meetings,
Memoranda, Correspon ce, etc.) relating to Robins Island,
involvin the Town of Sou (including any representative or
agent thereof) jmd any Branch, Ag_E!_~,r_subdivision of the Suffolk
County Government (including any representative or agent thereof) .
-3~ ny and all Document~ (including Minutes of Meetings,
Memoranda, Corr dence, etc.) relating to Robins Island,
invo~ying the Town of olq (including any representative or
agent thereof) and any Branch, cy or subdivision of the Natu~e
~~onservan~y (including any representa' or agent thereof).
4. h . 9nd~alJ- DO-9!!lIS!nt~ (including Minutes of Meetings,
Memoranda, Corre dence, etc.) _~~latinq to Robins Island,
involving the Town of old (including any representative or
agent thereofr'aniCany Branc - ... subdivision of the peconic Li3,ng
.Trus.t (including any representative agent thereof).
~and_a_!.lj)ocuments (including Minutes of Meetings,
Memoranda, Corie~ e, etc.) relating to Robins Island,
involving, tl}!';Town of l?9_U,! including any representative or
agent thereof) and any Branch or . vision of the Seatuck
Research Program (including any representat~ -sr agent thereof).
-Eh--An, and all Documents (including Minutes of Meetings,
Memoranda, Corre nce, etc.) relating to Robins Island,
involvinq the Town of Sou . including any representative or
agent thereof) and any Branch 0 bdivision of the~rnelJ..
Labo~~torY_9f_9rnitholo~~ (including any .sentative or agent
'thereOf) .
'7 ~ and all Documents (including Minutes of Meetings,'
Memoranda, Correspon etc.) relating to Robins Island,
involvin3..~he Town of, Southo ~uding any representative or
agent thereof) and the Southold DeveloPrnent~or~ion (including
any representat~ve or agent thereof).
, Co
. .
~n and all Documents (including Minutes of Meetings,
Memoranda, Cor ondence, etc.) relating to Robins Island,
involvin the Town Southold (including any representative or
agent thereof) and any Agency or subdivision of the-Mew
York State Governmen~ ng any representative or agent
thereof).
9. and all Documents (including Minutes of Meetings,
Memoranda, Correspo ce, etc~) relating to Robins Island,
in~olving the Town of Sou (including any representative or
agent thereof) and any Branch, Age r subdivision of the !ULLt~g.
States Governmen~ (including any represen ive or thereof).
10. .. A1!Y_End all DQcumgnt!? (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranda, Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the Town of Southold (including any
representative' or 'agent thereof) and the Robins I.slan.dXr:l:_~ervClti.on
Fund, Inc. (including any 'representative or thereof).
and all Document~ (including Minutes of
Meetings, , Correspondence, etc.) relating 'to Robins
Island, involving the n of Southold (including any
representatIve or agent thereof) any Branch or subdivision of
the Suffolk County Historical Society (in any representative
or tnere<)'f'}-:-' , -
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoran , orrespondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involvinq the _ of Sduthold (including any
representative or agent thereof) an Branch or subdivision of
the North Fork Bank and Trust Compi'lny (inclu' ny representative
or thereof).
AnY.........E.Q<L-A.ll Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoran orres ondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the Town.., S.outhold (including any
representative or agent thereof) and Branch, Agency or
subdivision ~f., the.~F.q!!J,l!~Js.l,fl1).~LA,dx.i.SQrY_Committee (including any
representative or thereof).
and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, corresporldeiice, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving t own o~__~o~i.hqld (including any
representat'ive"or agent the reo d any Branch or subdivision of
the Group for .the _South F9rk (inc . 9 any representative or
tnereaf) .
and _a1.1..__D9.~l!.ments (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoran Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving1:h~'_L__n _.9.t:.m.So!lthold (including any
representative or agent thereo~nY~B;~nch or subdivision of
the North Fork Environmental Council (~ing any representative
'or"ffieieofr:--- --_..
-.
. -
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memora Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving t own of Southold (including any
representativec-or u<agent~~ ancr- any Branch, Agency or
subdivision of the United states A~ of Enaineers (including
any representative or thereof). -
17. and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranaa, espondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involvin~ the To of Southold (including any
representative or agentU~thereof) a Branch, Agency or
subdivision of the Suffolk County Department of Parks (including
any representative or thereof).
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memor Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving Town of southold (including any
representcf1:l.ve or agent - the and any Branch, Agency or
subdivision of the Suffolk County artment of Conservation 7
(including any repre e or ereo
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memora Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving t own of Southold (including any
representative or agent the and any Branch, Agency or
subdivision of the Southold Town Dem tic C.ommi:t:tee_ (including
any representative or thereof).
20. and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranda, respondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the of Southold (including any
representatIve'or agent thereof) an ight Holbrook (including any
representative or agent thereof)~<-<~c- ----
21. Any and all Documents. (including Minutes of
Meetings, Mem6ran , Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the wn of Southold (including any
representatTite nor agent thereo d Robert Pik~ (including any
representative or agent thereof).
22. Any and all Documents. (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memor'iinda,--.Correspondence, etc. ) relating to Robins
Island, involving the Town of Southold (including any
representative or agent~tlnereof) and~~Wickham (including any
representative or agent thereof) .----- '
~ Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoran Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, invol,v~~g: t ' Town of ___Southolci (including any
representative or agent thereo nd Thomas Wickham (including any
representative or agent thereoff.--
24. , Al1Y___.Cll}d all Docul1lent~ (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranda, Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
.
.
. .
Island, involving
representative or agent
representative or agent
Town
there
thereof) .
of Southold (including any
d Gregory Blass (including any
and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, orrespondence,etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the wn of Southold (including any
representative or agent thereo d Fred Thiele (including any
representative or agent thereof).
26. and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranda, respondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the n of Southold (including any
representative or agent thereof) steven Englebright (including
any representative or agent thereof).
2 . ny and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranda, espondence, etc. ) relating to Robins
Island, involving the To of Southold (including any
representative or agent thereof) and . k Halpin (including any
representative or agent thereof) .-'-'
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving Town of Southold (including any
representative or agent there and Joan Scherb (including any
representative or agent thereof).
and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving tne own of Southold {including any
representative or agent thereo Thomas Bo Ie (including anyw~~r
representative or agent thereof). ? WHD IS wytE7, !\6,gf9ji7/L
I tv?
30. and all Documents (including Minutes of . I
Meetings, Memoranda, ondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the Town Southold (including any
representative or agent thereof) and Clau . termayer (including
any representative or agent thereof).
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Town of Southold (including any
thereo nd Arthur Krener (including any ?
thereof) . ? WHo 1$ 1<.l1.i",U2... /
r
3. Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoran Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the wn of Southold {including any
representative or agent the and Congressman George
Hockbruckner (including any representa . ~t thereof).
33. Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranda, Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Meetings, Memor
Island, involving
representative or agent
representative or agent
.
.
,;. ~.
- ."
"
'I ~
Island, _ lving the Town
representative 0.-- n t thereof)
representative or agent t
of Southold (including any
and Larry -Penny (including any
34. Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoranda, Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, inyolving the Town of Southold (including any bJl~
representative or agent thereof)_~nd Kevin McDonal9(including any 0 ~
representative or agent thereof). L.... 7,.1"" '" Iu.. ~ysf -: p"
and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, , orrespondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involvin the of Southold (including any
representative or agent thereof) and ~e Scopaz (including any
representative or agent thereoff.-'
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memora Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the of Southold (including any
representaElve or agent thereof) a d-CPris K~lly (including any
representative or agent thereoff: - .
Any and all Documents (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoran respondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island,involving the of Souti}gld (including any
representat1ve or agent thereof) a onnie Wacker (including any
representative or agent thereof)'-
Any and all Docum~nts. (including Minutes of
Meetings, Memoran Correspondence, etc.) relating to Robins
Island, involving the of Southold (including any
representat"lVE! or agent there.of) uth olfepa (including any
representative or agent thereof). ... -. . - tJiut'---
Any_ .C1!l.g. -.-a1:L. D09.1,IJllEmts (including Minutes of
Meetings; Memoran Correspondence, etc. ) relating to Robins
Island, involving the of Southold (including any
representat-i:ve or agent~nereof) a mes Gray (including any
representative or agent thereof). -
~ll Documents (includinq Minutes of Meetings,
M_emoranda, correspcmden~. 1_ concerning or involving Robins
Island.
_.._---
4L To
particular category
documentation.
the extent there are no documents for a
a letter is requested stating that there are no
J
~.
.:... .! .;;. "
2fI1ttt~D ~hti~z J0 tztrtrt ([our!
UNITED srATES DlSTRIcr COURT F-"-STERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
/..Z-Cyl17..-- PIcE
',.
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SOUTHarD DEVEIDPMENT CORPORATION
a/k/a EWE LAG::XlN RESORI'S,
Debtor-in-Possession
PlAINTIFF ,
SUMMONS IN A CIVIL ACTION
v.
SJFFDLK COUNTY, PATRICK HALPIN, in his
official cpacity as Suffolk County Executive,
'lliOMAS BOYLE, in his official capacity as
Suffolk County Attorney, JOAN SCHERB, in her
off~cial capacity as Cannissioner of the Suffolk
'O:mnty Real Estate Depa:rt:men.t, POBERI' PIKE,
GREU)RY BlASS, JOHN WIO<HAM, TOM WIO<HAM, POBINS
lSU\ND PRESERVATION FUND, INC., THE NATURE
(J).\lSER\IANCY, INC., NORlH FORK BlINK and TRUST
a::MPANY, DWIGHT HOLBROOK; THE 'ICmN OF
SOUTHOLD, ABIGI\lL WIO<HAM.
CASE NUMBER:
\./;:Y \ F R '. j
N. n _ ,. ,
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JO \{ V i-\ \"1. f~.~"
'ID:
SEE AITAOillJ LIST
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YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED and required to file with the Clerk ,of this Court and serve upon
'MELTZER, LIPPE, GJlDSTEIN & WJLF, P.C.
' '190 Willis Avenue
Mineo1a, New York 11501
ffin m@mOW~ill
. : I...
!'IDV : 9 J'9?1 "t
PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY (name and addresS)
SOU:H9UJ J~?f1!:'
PtANfi,i'lf... ~'I\II""O
an answer to the complaint which is herewith served upon you, within twenty (20) days after service of
this summons upon you, exclusive of the day of service. If you fail to do so, judgment by default will be taken
against you for the relief demanded in the complaint.
J:,$E~.
~~,~
Dnor-4r";;- .........
IIVI.JL;:; -', ::~: :X:\'i/\NN
/O/!IF/q/
DATE '
cc:
Town Board
Town Attorney
Chief of Police
Supt. of Highways
William F, Mullen, Jr.
Griffing & Southwick
CLERK
J/1~~ f2~roO~
~ptJTY c ERK ,
"
.
11 440 {Rev. 5/8S} Summons In 8 Civil Action
,
RETURN OF SERVICE
Service of the Summons and Complaint was made by me1
DATE
lAME OF SERvER
TITLE
-, - --~
':-..:.:k une :J~';" b:....uw to indicate af,;.;.-:;prfafC method of ~I-~..ce
o Served personally upon the defendant. Place where served:
o Left copies thereof at the defendant's dwelling house or usual place of abode with a person of suitable age and
discretion then residing therein.
Name of person with whom the summons and complaint were left:
o Returned unexecuted:
o Other (specify):
'AVEl.,
STATEMENT OF SERVICE FEES
I SERVICES
'TOTAL
.
".,,,,DECLARATION OF SERVER
I declare under penalty of perjury ,Jnder the laws of the United States of America that the foregoing information
Contained in the Return of ' Service and Statement of Service Fees is true and correct.
Executed on
.::..;..
Si!1rUmlr~ ::!f :Ie,,:,:]!'
.
...;1,;........'
Address of SelVer
'0 may s",.-...& a summons s_ .Rule 4 of the Fedo,.-... Rules of CI...1l P"-ocodu,.-e.
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LIST OF DEFENDANTS
Suffolk county
County center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Patrick Halpin
county Center
Riverhead, New York 1901
Thomas Boyle
county Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Joan Scherb
county Center
. Riverhead, New York 11901
Robert Pike
138 Ostrander Avenue
Riverhead, New York 11901
Gregory Blass
peconic Bay Blvd.
Jamesport, New York 11947
John Wickham
Private Road
Cutchogue, New York 11395
Thomas Wickham
Private Road
Cutchogue, New York 11935
"
Robins Island Preservation Fund, Inc.
Post Office Box 928
cutchogue, New York 11935
The Nature Conservancy
250 Lawrence Hill Road
Cold Spring Harbor, New York 11743
North Fork Bank and Trust company
9025 Route 25
Mattituck, New York 11952
I
!.
!I
,
Dwight Holbrook
Breezy Drive
~o~~~k: ~AW V~rk
I
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.~:;:i.:,1'
,
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Town of Southold
Main Road
Southold, New York 11971
Abigail wickham.
Main Road
Mattituck, New York 11952
2
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CIVIL COVER SHEET
The JS-44 ci~il cOlfer sheet and the information contained herein neither replace nor supplement lhe filing and service 01
pleadings or other papers as required bV law, except as provided by local rules at Cour1. This form, approved by the Judicial
;:; Conlerence of the Uniled Slates in September 1974, is rCQu:ired for the use of the Clerk o' Cour1lor the purpose of initialing
the civil docket sheer {For mOH~ dalailed instructions, see separate instruction sheet.)
PLAINTIFFS . I DEFENDANTS
SUFFOL.'< COUNI'Y, PATRICK HALPIN, in his capaci tv
SOUTH OLD ...DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION I as SuffolJc County EXec., TlJCX'1AS BOYLE, in his -
a/k/a BLUE LAGOON RESORTS, I capacity as SuffolJc County Atty., JOAN SCHERB,
Debtor-in-Possession . in her capacity as Corm. of Real Est. Dept.,
I roBERT PIKE, GREffiRY BLASS, JOHN WICKHA/1, 'lU-!
I WICKHAM, roBINS ISLAND PRESERVATION FUND, INC.,
! THE NATURE CONSERVANCY, INC., NORl'H FORK BlINK
I and TRUsr m., rNlIGHl'IDIBIDOK, et aL
COUNTY OF RESIDENCE OF FIRST LISTED PLAINTIFF -Buffalk COUNTY OF RESIDENCE OF FIRST LISTED DEFENDANT
(EXCEPT IN U.S. PLAINTIFF CASES) (IN U.S. PLAINTIFF CASES ONLY)
NOTE: IN LAND CONDEMNATION CASES, USE THE LOCATION OF THE
TRACT OF LAND INVOLVED
.,
ATTORNEYS"IRRM NAME, ADDRESS. AND TELEPHONE NUMBER) ATTORNEYS (IF KNOWN)
MeTtzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Wolf,. P.C
190 Willis Avenue
Mineola, New York 11501
RECEIVro
J!.t:i0 /f"<<.
~~~
(PLACE AN El IN ONE BOX ONLY)
o 1 U,S. PLAINTIFF 0 2 U.S. DEFENDANT
BASIS OF JURISDICTION IF DIVERSITY, INDICATE
iax3 FEDERAL OUESTION 0 4 DIVERSITY CITIZENSHIP ON REVERSE.
(u.S. NOT A PARTY) (28 USC 1332. 1441)
CAUSE OF ACTION (CITE THE u.S. CIVIL STATUTE UNDER WHICH YOU ARE FlUNG AND WRITE A BRIEF STATEMENT OF CAUSE)
42 U.S.C. 1983 a violation of ~~e- Plaintiff's civi1.rights to engage
in its lawful business.
(PLACE AN ElIN ONE BOX ONLY)
NATURE OF SUIT
o
o
o
o
CONTRACT TORTS ACTIONS UNDER STATUES .
CIVIL RIGHTS F<lIlFEITURE PENAlTY BANKRUPTCY ~ OTHER StATUTES C~crt
110 INSURANCE PERSONAL INJURY 0 420 TRUSTEE I 0 450 COMMERCE Ice
120 MARINE 0 310 AIRPlANE 0 44' VOTING 0 610 AGRICULTURE 0 421 TRANSFER {S15bl I RATES. ETC.
130 MILLER ACT 0 J1S AIRPLANE" 0 442 JOBS 0 620 FOOD & DRUG 0 422 APPEAL (801) I 0 460 OEPORTATlO/\
140 NEGOTIABLE 1- PRODUCT 0 <<J ACCOM MOOATIONS I 0 630 LIQUOR LAWS I ! 0 al0 SElECTIVe
m~TRIIIJF/.Ir liABILITY 0 ... WELFARE n 64ll "R. ~ T~"Ur.K I PROPERTY RIGHTS ; - SERVICE.
. ... ....
"!IIIl'::-,,.......
'.'0-:'
pg: '" ::' ,C_:: C:'::L
. I u" 0..........("..... ('0.
(PLACE AN ElIN ONE BOX ONLY)
}[X 1 O(i~i";d [1 2 Removr.d from rJ 3 Rp.man~d from
:'~'l::.;':'::;;;y !;:a:o: CC.;;i1 .A.::;:-,:~~: :;:::rt
ORIGIN
I Q ~5!] !.:R:...I~::::S il.:G: ,Q J1?n r_(lPvPI';';~.. ' . "'~~ ~f~:~~~I~t~. .
".- _....~~;~~H .11 ~o<-J . a~ r':",-.:;;.. K I EXCHANGE
840 fRAOEMAR 1 0 891 AGRICUL1"URAl
r-- ACTS
SOCIAL SECURITY --~. 0 892 ECOt.;QMIC
! 0 S61 HI,(((1395tll . S'i"ABIUIATlON
J 0 862 BLACK lUNG (923) 0 ACT
o 853 DIWC (405 (9)) 893 ENVIRONMENTAL
o 863 01\\'\'1 (405 (9)) 0 MATTERS
o 864 SSlo Tille XVI 894 E~ER!iY
. 0 _. ALLOCATION ACT
~ . 865 RSI (405 {gJ}. I 0 895 fREEDOM OF
~,_-- TAX .SU,lTs__.__l 0 INFORMATlm! ACT
, 900 APPEAL OF fEE
I 0 870 TAXES : DETERMINATION
'I' 0 871 IRS. THIRD il. UNDER EOUAL
PARTY 26 Use ACCESS TO
I .~ 7609 JUSTICE
'lO 875 CUSTOMER I 0 950 CONSIlTUTIONAlITY
CHAllENGE 12 OF STATE STAH.'fES
USC 3410 0 890 OTHOl STATUTORY
~ ~CT In"'5
I -CTHEA.~jE~-: c{: : Town Boa rd
I~ T A
I U "" ,.... I own ttorney
REAPf'ORTlONMENT h' f f P .
o 410 .t.~n.IRUSI C Ie 0 ohce
o 43' BANKS AND Supt. of Highways
B4NKING Wm F MIIII~n Jre
Griffina &Soouthwick
Appejl to IstnCI
(J 7 Judge hom
Maaislrale
BOR
RDS
MGMI
NS
MGMT
NG'
URE ACT
Y
ACT
lA!l:u<!.
lIT1G.;;::;;
191 U,.~. fld. I~";.
SECURITY ACT
U"'':;f\roIlMCNI a.
... .::.L.ANUt:.ti
o IS.
o lS2
ENFORCEMENf IU 330 fEDERAL SAFETY'
Of JUDGMENT EMPLOYERS 0 690 Of HER
MEDICARE ACT 10 LIABILITY
RECOVERY OF 340 MARINE
DEFAULTED I~ 345 MARINE PRODUCT
STUDENT lOANS UABIUrv
RECOVERY Of 350 MOTOR VEHICLE
OVERPAYMENT 355 MOTOR VEHICLE
OF VETERANS 10 PROOUCT LIABILITY .
BENEfiTS .- 360 OTHER PERSONAL PRISONER ffllflONS LABOR
STOCKHOLDERS INJURY.
SUIIS 0 362 PERSONAL 0 51!) VACATE 0 710 FAIR LA
OTHER INJURY-MEO.
CONTRACT MALPRACTICE SENTENCE SfANOA
CONTRACT 0 365 PERSONAL INJURY (22SS1 0 720 LABORI
PRODUCT PRODUCT lIABIUTY 0 530 HABEAS RELATlO
CORPUS 0 730 LABORI
UA8IUT'i 0 540 MANDAMUS &- .REPORTI
ilEAL PROPERTY PERSONAL PflOPfRTY OTHER DISClDS
CONDEMNATION o 370 OTHER fRAUD 0 5Sll CIVil R1GHfS 0 HO AAllW.t.
FDRFCLO~URf o J71 TRUTH IN lABOR
QE:OJf IC:H."~ ~ LfNO!NG I ,0 lYO OJ H~R
iLl
10
J8i1 OTHER PE~SON~l I
PROPER TV I
3&5 PROPERTY QAMAGE
PRODUCT
liABILITY
I.
IU
o lS3
C 1S0
0190
o 19S
er
o
,..,
210
""
~:fJ
EJECTMENT
U 240 TORTS TO LAND
o 245 TORT PROOUCT
LIABIlITY
o 290 ALL OTHER REAL
PROPERTY
o 4 Reinstated or
P.c::l::e~~-j
Transferred from
o 5 anOlhe( dlSUict
!~~;l:'l
06 Mullidislricl
U~II t:u S.lJ\It:.::> DI~l RfCI COti'lT
!.ili('~ri(ln
l"ri~!""""1 . .
(Conlinuoo on He~erse Sidel
(ReVIsed WBT)
,
"..;,
,
CITIZENSHIP OF PRINCIPAL PARTIES
(IF DIVERSITY)
.'phecklFiIIln if demano"ed In complaint.
G CHECK IF THIS is A CLASS ACTION
UNDER F.R.C.P. 23
DEMAN 0 $
OTHER
CITIZEN OF THIS STATE
PTF DEF
01 01
INCORPORATED THIS STATE 02 02
- FOREIGN CORPORATION-PRINCIPAL
PLACE OF BUSINESS IN __ 03 03
STATE
flELATED CASEIS) IF ANY
IN RE: SOUTHOLD DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
UDGE WEXLER DOCKET NUMBER CV 91-201.
CIVIL CASES ARE DEEMED RELATED IF PENDING CASE INVOLVED
OTHER NON-GITIZEN
OF THIS STATE
04 04-
o I. PROPERTY INCLUDED IN AN EARLIER NUMBERED PENDING SUIT
o 2. SAME ISSUE OF FACT OR GROWS OUT OF THE SAME TRANSACTION .
o 3. VALIDITY OR INFRINGEMENT OF THE SAME PATENT COPYRIGHT OR TRADEMARK
Check. YES only II demanded in complaint:
JURY DEMAND: 0 Yes Ia No
ARBITRATION CERTIFICATION
I, John \'lesterman, ,counsel for
Southold Development Corp_ _ n/k/n RIlle r."goon R,,!';ort:!';_ Tn,.., doherebycertify
pursuant to the local Arbitration Rule Section 3(c): that to the best of my knowledge and belief the damages
recoverable in the above captioned civil action exceed the sum of $75,000.00 exclusive of interest and costs.
Relief other than monetary damages is sought
DISCLOSURE OF INTERESTED PARTIES-LOCAL RULE 9
Identify any corporate parents, subsidiaries Or affiliates of named corporate parties:
None
.-Did the cause of action arise in Nassau or Suffolk County? y,,!,;
If you answered y"es, please indicate which county.
Sl1ffolk
":'.-'.'.~".. ...r :'..,~j,-'p.nr.p. nr ~i!;l,ir:-.i:.'.~~~~~._...
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..............,..............",....
(2) _
(3)
Olhers __________
County of residence of defendant(s)
(1)
C:nfrnlk
(2)__
(3)
Others
I am currently a member in good standing of the bar of this Court.
YES
vV'
NO
Date: _ _ JQLlS/31_.
Signature of Attorney of Record:
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MELTZER, LIPPE & GOLDSTE'lN, P,C.
LITIGATION DISBURSEMENTS
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
190 WILLIS AVE.
MINEOLA, NY 2
PAY , -
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,.~O 440 (!lev. 5/85) Summons in a Civil Action
;.
,
~nitcD ~tatcs Jl3 istrict QIaurt
UNITED STATES DISTRIcr COURI' EASTERN DISTRICT OF" NEW YORK
SCXITHOLD DEVELOPMENT OJRPORATION
a/k/ a BWE LAG:X)N RESORTS,
Debtor-in-Possession
PlAINTIFF ,
SUMMONS IN A CIVIL ACTION
v.
ruFFOLK COUNTY, PATRICK HALPIN, in his
official cpacity as Suffolk Cormty Executive,
'IHOMASBOYLE, in his official capacity as
Suffolk County Attorney, JOAN SOIERB, in her
official capacity as Cannissioner of the Suffolk
. . O:l\IDty Real Estate Department, ROBERT PIKE,
GREXnRY BlASS, JOHN WIOG'lAM, TOM WICKHAM, ROBINS
ISLAND PRESERVATION FUND, INC., THE NATURE
mNSERVANCY, INC., NORl'H FORK BANK and TRUST
ill'lPANY, DWIGHT HOLBROOK, THE mqN OF-
SOUTHOLD, ABIGAIL WICKHAM.
CASE NUMBER:
TO: SEE ATI'ACHED LIST
YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED and required to file with the Clerk of this Court and serve updn
PLAtt:-'nFF'S ATTORNEY (name and address)
MELTZER, LIPPE, GOWSTEIN & w:JLF, P.C.
190 Willis Avenue
Mineo1a, New York 11501
.
an answer to the complaint which is herewith served updn you, within twenty (20) days after service of
this summons upon you, exclusive of the day of service. If you fail to do so, judgment by default will be taken
against you for the relief demanded in the complaint.
.
CLERK
DATE
pv nFPllTY 1":1 FRK
#'.- .'
"
,
AQ 440 (Rev ~:a5) S:,;,,'!':')()ns In a Civil Action
.. -
RETURN OF SERVICE
DATE
Service of the Summons and Complaint was made by me1
NAME OF SERVER TITLE
-.- --- .
r [;:;r;.:k une :Jc;.. b;.;uw to indicate a;;,;:;:c;JriiJiC mt.:Chod of :;en'ice
o Served personally upon the defendant. Place ~here served:
. 0 Left copies thereof at the defendant's dwelling house or usual place of abode with a person of suitable age and
discretion then residing therein.
Name of person with whom the summons and complaint were left:
o Returned unexecuted:
.
o Other (specify):
I
I TRAVEL
I
I
I
STATEMENT OF SERVICE FEES
I SERVICES
DECLARATION OF SERVER
ITOTAL
I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America that the foregoing information
contained in the Return of.Service and Statement of Service Fees is true and correct.
Executed on
w.'!
.~;!!r'!.~~l~ ,.,f..~~r.
I.
Address of Server
, ,
1) As 10 WhO m<ly UHvlI CI summons see Rulli 4 01 tI'>ll Feder.,ll Aul1l1 of Civil Procedurll.
,
LIST OF DEFENDANTS
Suffolk County
County Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Patrick Halpin
County Center
Riverhead, New York 1901
Thomas Boyle
county. Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Joan Scherb
County Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Robert Pike
138 Ostrander Avenue
River~ead, New York 11901
Gregory Blass
peconic Bay Blvd.
Jamesport, New York 11947
.John Wickham
Private Road
Cutchogue, New York 11395
Thomas Wickham
Private Road
[!) ~1;:t;!:;" o'J'.~ i .~f=I',"'..,..r.:~~r'::___.. -,~'...~-".~~.
.
Robins Island Preservation Fund, Inc.
Post Office Box 928
Cutchogue, New York 11935
The Nature Conservancy .
250 Lawrence Hill Road
Cold spring Harbor, New York 11743
North Fork Bank and Trust Company
9025 Route 25
Mattituck, New York 11952
Dwight Holbrook
:Oreezy urive
Noyack, New York
1
'..
"
.,
Town of Southold'
Main Road
Southold, New York 11971
Abigail Wickham
Main Road
Mattituck, New York 11952
.
2
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
.-
-x
SOUTHOLD DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
ajkja BLUE LAGOON RESORTS, INC.,
Debtor-in-Possession,
Plaintiff,
:
COMPLAINT
-against~ civil Action No.
SUFFOLK COUNTY, PATRICK HALPIN, in
his official capacity as Suffolk
County Executive, THOMAS BOYLE, :
in his official capacity as
Suffolk county Attorney, :
JOAN SCHERB, in her official
capacity as commissioner :
of the Suffolk County Real Estate
Department, ROBERT PIKE,
GREGORY BLASS, JOHN WICKHAM,
,TOM WICKHAM, ROBINS ISLAND :
'PRESERVATION FUND, INC., THE
,i NATURE CONSERVANCY, INC., THE
': NORTH FORK BANK and TRUST
:; COMPANY, DWIGHT HOLBROOK, TOvm :
OF SOUTHOLD, and ABIGAIL WICKHAM,
"
"
Defendants.
il
I! -
Ij
-x
Plaintiff, SOUTHOLD DEVELOPMENT CORP., ajkja Blue Lagoon
'i .t<.e::iO.i Cb":, I:itC..., Deb~o=--j.n- Dos-:::~sslcn j).y. )"'~,~:. ~ t"=='::-::~:':.3"" ~~.!:;': ....-=0,-
,I
,Lippe, Goldstein & Wolf, P.C., Inc., complains of the above-named
:: Defendants and respectfully shows the Honorable Court and alleges
as follows:
.
JURISDICTION AND VENUE
1. This Court has subject matter jurisdiction to
entertain this action under 28 U.S.C. S 1343; in that the acts
, ,"
, . '
. ~.:._, -. ". -. --~ - - ........ .' ~_.~. - ~.'
-1-
hereinafter complained of constitute a violation of 42 U.S.C. ~
1983.
2. All of the above-named Defendants either reside or
are doing business within the Judicial District of the Eastern
District of New York, and the claims asserted herein arose within
said Judicial District. Accordingly, the venue of this action is
properly within the Judicial District of the Eastern District of
New York.
PARTIES
3. Southold Development Corporation ("Plaintiff"), also
:1 known as Blue Lagoon Resorts, Inc., Debtor-in-Possession, said name
: change having been made by proper amendment to the certificate of
: Incorporation filed with the Secretary of State of the State of New
York and granted on May 28, 1991, effective May 29, 1991, is a
; corporation duly organized under and existing by virtue of the Laws
,i
"of the State of New York, conducting business within the State of
,New York with its principal place of business care of Post Office
.
'Box Z, Shelter Island Heights, New York
11965.
At all tl.me
relevant to this Complaint, Claus Mittermayer was Plaintiff's duly
: authorized corporate' representative in all matters hereinafter
alleged.
4. Plaintiff was formed in 1979 to own, manage and
;imarket real estate holdings throughout this and foreign countries.
5.
Plaintiff's sole assets are three parcels of real
. ~ properLy !oca:t€:d. in i..il.c TO'wn r";f sCi..::thold"j. Ccunty". oi. SJ.:.ffplk, state.
of New York. One of the parcels of real estate is known as Robins
-2-
Island, consisting of 435 acres, more or less, more specifically
described on the Suffolk County Tax Map as District 1000, Section
134, Block 3, Lot 5. The other two parcels of real estate are two
vacant lots located in New Suffolk, Town of Southold, County of
Suffolk, State of New York, more specifically described on the
Suffolk county Tax Map as District 1000, section 117, Block 8, Lots
19 and 20.
(Collectively, these three parcels are referred to as
"Robins Island" or "The Island.")
6. The Island was acquired by plaintiff in July 1979,
:\ by warranty deed, from one Mackay and the possession of The Island
:1 has been continuously held by plaintiff since said acquisition.
7. The primary business of Plaintiff, since 1979, has
" been the ownership management, upkeep, and marketing of The Island,
/
v'
i! and the time! effort, and money expended by Plaintiff in preserving
1;
'--
H its interest The Island.
j! r....
q
8.
Defendant county of Suffolk
(the
"County")
is a
;!
:i municipal corporation, of perpetual duration, with the power to sue
.
'.' and be sued, and is organized .under and exiS1:s uy 'li.L\.u,,,, V.L <-uco
laws of the State of New York, with its principal office located at
.. County Center, Riverhead, New York.
9. Defendant The Nature Conservancy (the "c~:mservancy")
!! is a not-far-profit corporation, organized under the laws of The
"
:!
Ii District of Columbia, operating within the jurisdiction of the U.S.
1; District Court for the Eastern District of New York since it is
.!
.:.; d'oi.nq -business ".1ithi~' the count:," al'd... maS.n:tains.a,,! off; ce.,. among
others, located at 250 Lawrence Hill Road, Cold Spring Harbor, New
-3-
York 11743. At all time relevant to the Complaint, John Kan~2 was
a Trustee of the Long Island Chapter of the Conservancy.
10. Defendant Patrick G. Halpin as County Executive of
Suffolk County, is the Executive of the County having assumed such
office on or about January 1, 1988.
11. Defendant Thomas Boyle as Suffolk County Attorney,
is the_Attorney of the County and has held such office during all
time relevant to this Complaint.
"
12. Defendan~ Robert pike is, upon info=ation and
;;belief, an attorney licensed to practice law before the Courts of
'I the State of New York who, at all time relevant to this Complaint,
'i represented groups and individuals that aligned themselves with the
:: County to unlawfully deprive Plaintiff of its right to develop,
:; refinance or sell all or any part of The Island to parties
:!
Ii interested in developing The Island.
ii
I
,j 13. Defendant Joan B. :,:!cherb as Commissioner of the
"
"
:: Suffolk County Real Estate Department was the duly appointed
.;
:;Commissioner of the Suffolk County Real Estate Department ana neLa
:. that position at all time relevant to this Complaint.
.,
Ii
14. Defendant John Wickham at all relevant time has been
~i involved in the development plans for the east end of Long Island
II in that for twenty-four (24) years he served as the Chai=an of the
. i .
!i Southold Planning Board, and upon leaving that position he joined
':the Suffolk County Planning commission.
At all time relevant to
.; ~his 'CoiIrpla.l.Gt Dc~2t1J.a.nt, Joh!"" ~~ick.haI!l~~ctcd ion conce.-:t yrith othpr-:
Defendants and assisted in organizing their assertion of a baseless
-4-
",
claim commonly known as the wickh~~ Claim, which was manifested in
the institution of a wrongful and unlawful lawsuit brought in the
name of the Robins Island Preservation Fund, Inc., against
Plaintiff before the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of New York designated as civil Action No. CV-89-1299 (the
"wickham Claim") which Claim was asserted to assist the County in
preventing the development of The Island.
15. Defendant Thomas Wickham was elected to the South old
Town Board in November of 1989; Defendant Thomas Wickham is one of
many alleged heirs of Parker Wickham and participated in the
institution of the "Wickham Claim."
16. Defendant Abigail wickham is one of many alleged
heirs of Parker wickham who instituted the "wickham. Claim" and is
, ~
service to The North Fork Bank and Trust Company with respect to
.
the determination of the marketability of title for such properties
as Robins Island. (Defendants John , Thomas and Abigail Wickham are
"
::sometimes hereafter referred to as the "Wickham Defendants.")
.
17. Defendant Robins _ Island Preservation Fund, Inc.
;, ("RIPF"). is a not-for-profit corporation organized under the laws
1
;
lof the State of Maryland doing business in the County created by
;certain of the alleged heirs of Parker Wickham and their
. . sup!:Jorters'.
RIPF wi:4,s the plaintif:: \'lhi::h .'-instituted ttl.-e v;ickham
Claim.
-5-
18. At all time relevant to the Complaint Defendant The
North Fork Bank and Trust Company ("NFBT") held mortgages against
The Island. NFBT instituted a foreclosure action against Plaintiff
and, acting in concert with the County, did wrongfully and
unlawfully coerce the Plaintiff into executing an alleged contract
(hereinafter "Suffolk Document") to sell The Island to the county.
At all time relevant to the Complaint, John Kanas was President of
NFBT.
19. Defendant Gregory Blass is an attorney and a former
i Suffolk County Legislator.
Defendant Blass is involved in the
:!environmental movement on Long Island to "save" Robins Island and
:: was the sponsor of legislation by the County that made funds
.; available to acquire the "development rights" to a farm owned by
'John Wickham.
20.
Defendant Dwight Holbrook wrote an article entitled
"
"
,I "The Wickham Claim" which was published in book form by the Suffolk
County Historical Society with the aid of funds provided by the
. ,
County.
21. Defendant Town of Southold (the "Town") is a
;municipal corporation of perpetual duration, with the power to sue
and to be sued. The Town is organized under the laws of.New York,
with its principal office located at Main Road, Southold, New York.
~ !
BACKGROUND
22. The Island consists of approximately 435 acres of
"land :!..Jc::.~;:d ir: th~ Peco~ic Bay, Suffolk county. The Island is
.'
,designated as the "jewel" in a crown desperately sought to be worn
-6-
by environmentalists, politicians; and individuals who share as a
common objective the unalterable goal of keeping The Island
"forever wild".
The determination that these groups share in
realizing this COmmon goal was accurately stated by Suffolk County
Legislator, Steven Englebright, who said:
". . . I am willing to take whatever steps are
necessary to that end (forever wild). If
there is going to be a test of ~ will, we
will.meet the test".
23. On August 9, 1983, the County joined forces with the
: well entrenched environmental team seeking to keep the Island
H
i' "forever wild." It was on this day that the then Suffolk County
H
:' Executive signed a Resolution introduced by former Legislator
'; Gregory Blass to commence negotiations for the purchase of The
. Island. That resolution appointed the Conservancy as agent to act
. on behalf of the County in the acquisition of The Island. This was
.,
:, the first
"
!:
'; Island.
it
"
official step taken by the County to acquire Robins
~~. ~==~ ti~~ ~~ ~~=e. ~~ter.A~~ust 9~ 1983 the County
., utilized funds provided for a program known as the "Open Space
,Acquisition Program" to induce various holders of the alleged
'Wickham Claim to wrongfully and un~awfully assist the County in its
efforts to force a below-market sale of Robins Island to either
Suffolk County or an environmental organization such as the
'Conservancy which shared the common 'goal of , preventing Plaintiff
'from developing Robins Island.
-7-
25. By
utilizing
funds
made
available
throua'1
Resolutions, the County made several offers to purchase Robins
Island. Each such offer represented a small fraction of the fair
market value of The Island, and was rejected by Plaintiff.
26. To explain why Suffolk County was proceeding by
attempted negotiated sale rather than by condemnation, thus
enabling the County to control the amounts offered for the much
sought after Island, former Suffolk County Legislator Gregory Blass
, admitted:
, ~
"Condemnation is completely out of the question.
It's both a political and practical impossibility.
The problem is that the County takes title first
and then settles the price later."
~ :
,
This quote evidences that the County knew that its offers for The
, Island were far below The Island's fair market value, which is the
. actual measure of compensation required by condemnation.
This
"
iiquote also illustrates the fact that if the County were going to
,;acquire The Island for such a small fraction of its fair market
:i
,idluc:" it ~0q".iref.1 t-he. ::\ssjsta.n~e of other p~rri,p_~.
.
27. In seeking an ally that shared the common goal of
',preventing the Plaintiff from developing The Island, the county
:l
turned to the Suffolk County ~istorical Society, NFBT, the
conservancy and the alleged holders of the Wickham Claim for
assistance.
"
28. In 1986' Suffolk County provided funding to the
'Suffolk County Historical Society which published a work by Dwight
Holbrook entitled. "The WiCicn.dIn claim. :t,';-'."Til1;::: ~0i~~ ~d~i-~5S~~ "t.~c
-8-
" "
1784 seizure of Robins Island by New York state from Parker
Wickham. It was the position of this County-funded work that the
200 year old seizure, for which the Wickhams had been compensated
by the British government, was enforceable as a contemporary claim.
The Wickham Claim alleged as its basis an ownership interest in
Robins Island and two parcels associated therewith derived from the
Attainder of Parker Wickham in 1784.
29. Having created the Wickham Claim as a cloud on the
': title of The Island with the assistance of the Suffolk County
'!Historical Society, the County then turned to the Conservancy for
ii additional help.
with the adoption of Resolution No. 2144-86
': Suffolk County retained the Conservancy as an "agent" for
, negotiations with Plaintiff. In return for acting as an "agent" of
Suffolk County, by attempting to buy Robins Island in the name of
the Conservancy, the County promised to reimburse the Conservancy
for the price paid for the parcels, ,all expenses involved in their
acquisition, and a "brokers" fee equal to three percent of the
.
acquisition price. With this relationship intact on November 18,
1987, at the instigation of the County, the Conservancy made a
" written proposal to Plaintiff to purchase Robins Island for Six
'Million ($6,000,000) Dollars. This offer was rejecte<fby Plaintiff
since it did not reflect the fair market value of The Island.
;i
30. Upon the belief that Plaintiff was coming to terms
'! with another prospective purchaser of Robins Island, the County
turned to' the alleqed \'iickhan: heir", "to .di~.9uss OilL"- hcpcz- f-or thfl
island and what the future might hold". In furtherance thereof, a
-9-
~ec~ing was held on or about May 13, 1988, and was attended by John
and Thomas Wickham as well as Joan Scherb, Gregory Blass and
others.
The purpose of the meeting was to ascertain the
willingness of the Wickhams to institute a wrongful and unlawful
claim of ownership to Robins Island. The meeting had the impact of
increasing the prevalent understanding that the marketability of
the title held to The Island by Plaintiff was in jeopardy.
31. with the passage of time, due to' th'e Unlawful
activities of ,the Def~ndants, the title held by the Plaintiff
" became less marketable. Despite these difficulties, Plaintiff was
'i able to conclude an agreement with The Robis Corporation ("Robis")
, on June 30, 1988 for the sale of the Island by Plaintiff to Robis
for the sum of Fifteen Million Two Hundred Thousand ($15,200,000)
I Dollars (the "Robis Contract"). Realizing the possibility that
,.
:1
i i there may not be sufficient obstacles in place to prevent the
I! closing of title to The Island'" under the Robis Contract, the
'!
,: Defendants further enlisted' the assistance of the Defendant Town of
. ~ - ..
.j
.; Southold. On January 10, 1989, Defendant Town of Southold put into
; place zoning modifications which up-zoned Robins Island from one I
;j dwelling per two (2) acres, to one dwelling for every ten (10)
. acres.
As a result of all of the aiorementioned conduct, the
: marketability of title was impaired and Plaintiff was unable to
i! deliver clear title under the Robis Contract.
In Aprii of 1989 i
': Robis instituted an action to compel Plaintiff to resolve the title
-: '!,robl "m8 and. t;10se title to ':'ha Isli'ind und~l" the Rcbis Contract.'
-10-
, ,
32. On April 24, 1989, the Defendants induced the
wickhams to institute the Wickham Claim through RIPF and to file a
lis pendens against the Island.
This claim was brought for the
sole purpose of creating a further cloud on the title of The Island
so as to interfere with any plans of Plaintiff for The Island such
.as refinancing, sale for fair value, and/or development.
33. Several weeks after being persuaded to institute the
- ..
Wickham Claim, the purported holders thereof received TWo Hundred'
. and Twenty Thousand ($220,000) Dollars for the "development rights"
.to twelve (12) acres of John Wickham's farm.
At the closing of
., this "deal" the County was represented by Patrick G. - Halpin, Joan
Scherb, then Town of Southold Supervisor Frank Murphy, and Town of
Southold Councilwoman Ellen Larson.
i:
34. Several weeks after the Defendant RIPF instituted
;.
:: the Wickham Claim against Plaintiff, and just hours before NFBT was
ji .
'I scheduled to conduct a foreclosure sale upon its mortgages against
'I
:,
;iThe Island, Defendants unlawfully coerced and forced Plaintiff to
h- . ;.:_-. _.4.'; - . ,-.- - .
: i sign the Suffolk' Document which is purportedly an agreemen1: 1:0 Se1.1.
I.
;/ .
Robins Island for less than two-thirds (2/3) of its fair market
:value.
This result was aided, abetted, and facilitated by the
a;tivities of John Kanas, simultaneously acting as a President of
.
',NFBT and as Trustee of the Conservancy. NFBT which had previously
:;denied any adjournment of the foreclosure sale, granted a
:conditional extension of the foreclosure sale since Plaintiff had
.,
.,
: .:=tqreed -to the:: (:Gndition that it to ~ell Ths Island to T~9 County
through The Conservancy.
-11-
35. Just as th~ plan of Defendants was about to come
together to prevent Plaintiff from developing Robins Island the
Honorable Judge Doyle on July 13, 1989, granted Robis Corporation
a default judgment compelling the sale of Robins Island to the
Robis Corporation under the Robis Contract. In a last grasp at the
"jewel" of their dreams, the Suffolk County Attorney, Thomas Boyle,
,yithout the necessa,ry legislative approval instituted an action to
'compel the sale of the Island to the County.
"
1!
.
FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION
AGAINST ALL DEFENDANTS
!!
:j
!;
il
!! allegation contained in paragraphs numbered "1" through "35" of
"
l!
:ithis Complaint as set forth herein, and makes the same a part of
36.
Plaintiff
repeats
and
realleges
each
and
every
'i
"
;i this First Cause of Action.;
:1
II 37. Subsequent to the election of Defendant Halpin and
I commencing in or about May of 1988 and continuing to the present
! ,time, all,of.~~e Defendants did wrongfully and unlaWfUlly pursue,
i i ;.::.' C':)TI.::.e-./:T" ...J "'-::(-:",. . ';"1...::-:"!n< ,....th;.':::::.~ -."-: co-.mnun p,-: ar(~'., ::,.i:..;i,'ClUC.'. a..l1": . ~e:;i.q:u. t..c, I
!i deprive the Plaintiff of its federal rights to due process of law I
jl in engaging in the business of developing The Island in accordance
!!
,'with applicable laws.
.
38. In furtherance of said wrongful and unlawful plan,
,iI
:i scheme and design and under color of state law, the Defendants
;jwrongfully and unlawfully committed acts which resulted in taking
'j Plaintiff's property without notice or an opportunity to be heard,
" and
further acts which were in excess of
Defendants'
lawful
-12-
authority, thereby depriving Plaintiff of its property wit::,out due
process of law, all such acts were and are in violation of
Plaintiff's civil rights as guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment
to the Constitution of the United states.
Said wrongful and
unlawful acts included, but were not limited to, the following:
39. Defendants Halpin, Scherb and Boyle did on or about
July 14, 1989, wrongfully aEd unlawfully file or cause to be filed
in the Supreme Court of New.York, County of S-Uffolk, an action by
ij the County of Suffolk as plaintiff against the Plaintiff and Claus
:i Mittermayer as defendants, Index No. 89-12468, seeking the specific
:i performance of the Suffolk Document and for the recovery of
'i
il compensatory and punitive damages arising from the alleged
,
;!
;1 fraudulent breach of the provision of said Document accompanied by
'i
ii the filing of a lis pendens on the sole assets of the Plaintiff.
"
:i
il The institution of said action was in excess of the lawful
!I authority of Defendants Halpin, .Scherb and Boyle as County
i
"Executive,' Commissioner of Department of Real Estate and County
"
.: -. . ..
II Attorney, respectively, of the' County, and was done by said
.j Defendants solely to wrongfully and unlawfully hinder', harass,
,i
'I interfere with and impede the.Plaintiff in engaging in its business
of selling and marketing. its properties in accordance with
applicable law. Such conduct on the part of said Defendants was
committed under color of state law and was aided, abetted and
participated in by all of the De.fendants in pursuance of such
I common dt:sign" SCheillE: arIa plan.
-13-
40. Pu~suant to said common design, sch0~e, and plan to
deprive the Plaintiff of its right to engage in its business of
selling and developing its properties in accordance with applicable
laws, the wrongful and unlawful conduct of the Defendants had the
effect of unlawfully placing a cloud upon the title of the
'properties of the Plaintiff thereby reducing their marketability
and preventing their sale and use as security for financing and
"forcing the Plaintiff to seek protection Chapter 11 of the United
::States Bankruptcy Code all to Plaintiff's injury and damage. Said
:!misconduct has caused Plaintiff to suffer severe injury and damage
!iin the sum of Two Hundred Million ($200,000,000) Dollars.
'j
SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION
AGAINST ALL DEFENDANTS
41. Plaintiff repeats and realleges each and every"
Ii allegation of paragraphs numbered "36" through "40" of this
,I
! Complaint as if set forth~~,::re~n and makes the sa~e a pa~ ,~f t~i~
;Second Cause of Action.
"
,
,
!lvarious offices in the Suffolk County Government took place with I
-,. .
:>-: ~~..:.c ~-~.l,:t
o,~
, on..,.
...._. u. ,
, elec~:'='::1
"'~"TlY"'Oo~;""""'C
----.a.:"-.-J---."
for th", "
,
':elections being held in November 1987 for terms beginning January
'1,1988. In the race for the Office of County Executive, Defendant
Halpin was elected.
On information and belief an integral part of
:: Defendant Halpin I s platform was the expansion of the "OJ?en Space
'!
"Program" in Suffolk County by the further acquisition of lands to
be designated by the Commissioner of the Department of Real Estate.
, ,
'Defendant, Joan B. Scherb, was appointed by Detenaanthaipin :Cu u~
-14-
sur!, Commissioner, and she assumed'her duties on or about April 1,
1988. Defendant Scherb met with Defendants Gregory Blass, John and
Thomas Wickham and others in or about the month of May 1988 for the
purpose of effectuating a common design to wrongfully and
unlawfully importune the Wickham Defendants into participating in
the creation of a cloud upon the title of The Island. The effect
. of this common design was to reduce the marketability of The
'.
< Island. Said Defendants knew "at the time of said meeting that the
i i assertion of a claim of a proprietary interest in Plaintiff's
;i
;:property was without foundation in law, frivolous, and devoid of
jj
!I merit. Nevertheless, said Defendants with such knowledge did
::wrongfully and unlawfully agree to participate in the assertion of
!: said bogus claim so as to wrongfully and unlawfully hinder, harass,
;;
ii interfere with, and impede the Plaintiff in engaging in
!ibusiness of developing its properties.
'I
I.
i' 43. As a result of said meeting in May 1988,
its'
the '
ii
!! Plaintiff was unable to deliver a marketable title to the Robis
.
i'Corporation as required by the Robis Contract.
44. The Wickham Claim had its origin over two hundred
., (200) years ago and it was, generally known to title abstract
.
companies throughout the U.S. that such claims were not considered
. as a cloud upon the title to real property nor did they, in any
!:
'way, impair the marketability of real property. Said stale claim
.only became an effective cloud upon title to The Island after the
De<:,<eTlrl"nts I wron<;!lll aau unia~l[ul ,::o':!c!'.lctn.of. in-lucing +:l:1e Wickham
Defendants to first publicize their intent to assert said stale
-15-
claim and then pursue such bogus claim by instituting the Wickham
Claim on April 24, 1989, in the United states District Court for
the Eastern District of New York under civil Action No. CV-89-1299.
45. Defendants organized or encouraged the organization
of RIPF as a not-for-profit corporation for the sole purpose of
furnishing a shell entity to institute a lawsuit that would deter
title insurance companies from insuring the marketability of
Plaintiff's title to The Island. Such refusal to insure was not
': based upon the merits o~ the "Wickham Claim" to an actual ownership
!i interest in The Island but upon the economic. considerations arising
i! from having to defend against potential lawsuits of the many
'.
.' alleged Wickham heirs. Not being able to use The Island either for
'; purposes of sale or as security for funds to develop same, the
,[ Plaintiff, on July 20, 1989, commenced its Chapter 11 case thereby
,
Ii incurring substantial costs, in an attempt to reorganize and i
II salvage any available equity in The Island and to permit it..to i,
,li_ccm~inue its business of selling and developing real estate. i
"
:!
"
46.
The Defendant Dwight Holbrook did wrongt'ul.iy ana
'. unlawfully solicit assignments to RIPF from alleged Wickham heirs
,
i i of their alleged proprietary, interest in The Island in exchange for
.
a discount on the price per copy of the book allegedly authored by
:! Defendant Holbrook and published by the Suffolk County Historical
"
i! Society, an organization partially supported by The County, which
. i .
;! publication costs, upon information and belief, amounted to Twenty-
, 'Pw,., '1'l:'>,.,usand I, S22 .0(0) Dollars.
47. All of the acts of the Defendants described in
-16-
paragraphs "41" to "46" both inclusive set forth above were
performed under color of state law in that each Defendant, at
divers times and places during the period 1988 through July, 1989,
and within the juriSdiction of the United States District Court for
the Eastern District of New York, did, in concert, wrongfully and
unlawfully participate in a common design, scheme, or plan to
deprive the Plaintiff of its right to engage in its business of
managing, marketing and developing The Island according to
'applicable law.
48. Said wrongful and unlawful misconduct set forth in
': the paragraphs numbered "40" to "47" both inclusive lias caused the
"Plaintiff to suffer severe injury and damage in the sum of Two
. Hundred Million ($200,000,000) Dollars.
THIRD CAUSE OF ACTION
AGAINST ALL DEFENDANTS
49. Plaintiff repeats and real leges each and every
i I 11 t . t' d'
ij a ega J.on con aJ.ne J.n paragraphs numbered "40" through "48" of
I,
~; ._hi~ CCmpl.~l~t: ?-.~ 2::: :=:.~"': "r.:C';':'"-T:h ;:I.,,:"". i ~n~.t.r: _ h~.re.ifi ;_.l~j =:4~:~~ ~~~"'. ~?~~_
11
'Ja part of this Third Cause of Action.
50. As a result of the common scheme and design of the
Defendants, the Defendants did," on or about June 7, 1989,
wrongfully and unlawfully procure by coercion and duress the
:; execution, by the Plaintiff, of the Suffolk Document, purporting to
'I
,.
,sell Robins Island to the Defendant County for the sum of Nine
Million and Two Hundred Thousand ($9,200,00.00) Dollars. Said
-17-
,
unlawful coercion and duress t60k place under the fol10w'ing
circumstances:
51. In the period of 1984
June 1987, the Plaintiff
placed mortgages against The Island in the total amount of Two
Million Two Hundred Thousand ($2,200,000) Dollars, in which NFBT
was the mortgagee of two mortgages, one for One Million One Hundred
Thousand ($1,100,000) Dollars and another for Eight Hundred and
Fifty Thousand ($850,000) Dollars.
- - . .
There was also a mortgage to
:;the Southold Savings Bank against The Island in the amount of Two
:! Hundred and Fifty Thousand ($250,000) Dollars.
The Southold
, ,
iiSavings Bank was merged into the NFBT which therefore became the
:i holder of all mortgages.
In each instance that a mortgage was
'i placed against Robins Island during said period, title insurance on
Island was duly issued.
The existence of the "wickham
was no obstacle to the
issuance of such insurance. On
August 2, 1988, NFBT filed a foreclosure action because said
:1 mortgages were in default for failure to pay the principal and
"
;! interest due, and June 8, 1989, was designated as the da'te ot:
I!
"
'jforeclosure sale for The Island.
:i
52. On April 24, 1989, Defendants John and Thomas
.
Wickham, together with Defendant Robert D. Pike, participa~ed in
;! the filing of the spurious and groundless Wickham Claim as the
'i!basis for disputing with Plaintiff its title to Robins Island. The
:!
jiassertion of the Wickham Claim in said lawsuit fulfilled Defendant
- : ~ Blass.' pul:ilic "s'i:att::~neL..t C!lat, f~the ~-?ick1"1a~.:-~laim . \'...il 1 scare_ o.ff_ <\ny
would-be-developers
of
Robins
Island,"
and
transformed
a
-18':'
theretofore purring pussycat into"a raging t~~er, beclouding the
title of Robins Island.
53. During that time Plaintiff sought refinancing of The
Island.
The appraised value of Robins Island, at that time, was
Fourteen Million ($14,000,000) Dollars and Plaintiff's indebtedness
to the mortgagees was approximately Two Million Two Hundred
Thousand ($2,200,000.00) Dollars, leaving an available equity that
. was more than adequate to raise Two Million Two. Hundred Two
. ; Thousand
($2,200,000). Dollars to discharge said mortgages.
.!Applications made by Plaintiff to title insurance companies
!ithroughout the United states for title insurance were all denied.
'The reason given for such denials was uniform; no insurance company
"was willing to buy a lawsuit.
It was not a good insurance risk
::inasmuch as the insurer would have to defend each lawsuit brought
I
'by the alleged Wickham heirs, and they were many.
54. Negotiations between. the County and Conservancy on
,the one
I
!: Island
"
'j-;)
hand and Plaintiff on the other concerning a sale of Robins
,. .
to the Defendant County were held beginning in May 1989.
!i
55. At a meeting of the Plaintiff with the Defendant
':County and Conservancy, Claus Mittermayer was separated from the
..
'negotiators for the Plaintiff, the County and the Conservancy.
.
,!
'j
56. At one time, early.in the negotiations, it was
..
'; relayed to Claus Mittermayer that the County was willing to pay
iiTwelve Million ($12,000,000) Dollars for all of the Island, or Ten
;i'Millo,,' ($10-.000.000)-' C011a,,:s with th~ ?laintiff- retai-fiiilg t:~.:o
'._4-....
...r..v,-~
on The Island plus the two mainland business zoned parcels, plus
-19-
.. '
the riparian rights ~round Robins Tsland for aqua-cultural use. In
addition, because the County/Conservancy offer was below the fair
value of Robins Island, Defendant County and Conservancy offered to
provide as a tax deduction for Plaintiff the difference between the
fair market value and the "bargain sales price." It was further a
part of the Conservancy/County offer to provide approximately $4-5
million dollars of_refinancing so that the foreclosure sale could
be prevented and Plaintiff CQuld resolve' some of its pressing
.:financial obligations prior to title closing.
,I
57. Claus Mittermayer was further informed that since
ithe Defendant County and Conservancy were instrumental in creating
;; and asserting the Wickham Claim that only they would be able to
'resolve it.
.,
58. The
following morning,
Plaintiff
reluctantly
"
ii
i acquiesced to the Ten Million ($10,000,000) Dollar package. Later
I that day, Claus Mittermayer was informed that the Defendant County
I .
Ii had changed its mind and was interested in only a complete sale for
:1 ..
i!Eight Million and Two Hundred Thousand ($8,200,000.00) Dollars.
!:
59. The Defendants were utilizing the passing of each
:Iday to increase the pressure on the Plaintiff resulting from the
'impending loss of The .Island to a foreclosure sale in order to
'1 reduce the acquisition price of The Island.
~ ;
60. The Conservancy stood to make a substantial profit
':in consummating the sale in that it had a direct financial interest
.;~:tJ. tile acqui~it..i.lJll wi 1.aHd~ for tt:-:.. Defend.J.!1t COC!1ty I.S ItCpG~ ~pac~
Program. "
Specifically, the Conservancy received a percentage of
-20-
t', .
the selling price of the land as acquired by the Defendant County
through the aid of The Conservancy, plus all of its expenses
incurred in each such acquisition. The Conservancy was acting as
an acquisition conduit for the County under its "Open. Space
Program." The Conservancy would derive further income from those
land acquisitions requiring "management".
61. The Eight Millio~ Two Hundred Thousand ($8,200,000)
'Dollar offer of the County not' being acceptable-, the Plaintiff
,'resumed its negotiations with other interested parties to either
~ ;
;!sell or refinance The Island in an attempt to prevent the
.,
.,
j; foreclosure sale.
I
Plaintiff I S efforts were fruitless not only
'! because
of
its
inability to
obtain title
insurance
on.. Robins
ii Island, but also because previously interested investors were
:!
:,
:1 warned by the Defendants "to back off" since Robins Island was to
Ii
libe purchased by the County.
! i 62. These acti vi ties of. the Plaintiff continued into
p
j! June until Plaintiff met the Aston Group which was willing to
Il .
"
~ i structure
an
arrangement to
ref inance. the mortgages
and tnus
:f
:'prevent the foreclosure sale.
These investors required a letter
1j agreement on the purchase of Robins Island.
63.
On June 5, 1989, the Aston Group was informed that
!iRObis Corporation had obtained a Temporary Restraining Order
.;
Ii restraining Plaintiff from negotiating or selling Robins Island to
!ianyone. This order was temporarily lifted.
- 6';".' . On" June 7,
- "89 tl ~"..' ~~
J..... ," l~" ....~...Lal:_n"'::l.&.:"..LJ
t~r~~;h ~h~ A~ton
. Group,
went to Defendant NFBT and offered to pay Defendant NFBT
-21-
r.' '.
,
Four Hundred Thousand ($400,000) Dollars in order to adjourn the
auction date for 30 days., If the Plaintiff or the Aston Group did
not satiSfy Plaintiff's indebtedness to the Bank wi thin the 30
days, the Defendant NFBT could keep the Four Hundred Thousand
($400,000) Dollars with no strings attached. NFBT refused such
offer.
65,. At the time of such refusal, Defendant Abigail
'Wickham, of the law firm of Wickham, Wickham & Bressler, was the
: attorney representing NFBT. At that time, ,Defendant John Kanas
.!was the President of said Bank and was a member of the Board of
Ii Trustees of the Long Island Chapter of the Conservancy. Also, at
· that time, Jay Wickham was a Director of said Bank.
66. Later, on the same day, after the refusal of the
., adjournment, the Plaintiff was informed it had no alternative but
:, to make a deal to sell Robins Island to the County. Pursuant to
ii ".'
!i that information, a conference with th~'county and Conservancy was
il
"
d arranged following the same format as in the prior meeting, i.e.,
t .
" separate negotiating rooms -- one for the seller and a separate one
for the buyer.
No face-to-face contact between the parties was
.; permitted although Plaintiff requested such face to face
.
negotiations.
67. Claus Mittermayer was informed that the County would
" pay Nine Million Two Hundred Thousand ($9,200,000) Dollars and the
: offer was not negotiable. Plaintiff was further informed that NFBT
. wCHJld r.u:.:cepi.: ollly a.~c:;on~:t.aC-c in whi~h ::~e Coun..::.y was t~E pur...;ha::::er-...
with this information in hand, Claus Mittermayer, representing the
-22-
. r"
.;.0
Plaintiff, proceeded to contact the Aston Group through Douglas
Reimer for a meeting. This meeting was arranged and took place in
the lobby of the building where the Defendant County negotiators
were meeting.
68. Thereafter,
Claus
Mittermayer
went
to
his
negotiating room upstairs and then to the Defendant County meeting
room. Ther~, Claus Mittermayer, as Plaintiff's representative, was
presented with the Suffolk Document and told to sign same.
69. Such duress and coercion deprived Claus Mittermayer,
: of the opportunity to exercise reasonable business judgment to
lawfully perform a binding corporate act.
70. Therefore, John Kanas, President of NFBT, demanded
-that the Plaintiff pay $30,000 to said Bank's attorney's offices
:. (Wickham, Wickham and Bressler) by 8:30 a.m. June 8, 1989 in order
'.
;j to obtain
II
!t
!i
,j Plaintiff
an adjournment for 30 days of the foreclosure sale.
71. It was about 11:00. p.m. on June 7, 1989, that
asserted he had no idea where the Thirty Thousand
.
($30,000) Dollars was to be raised; at this time Mrs. Prudence
~ ~Fairweather,
,
a friend of Mittermayer who had been at these
-----
:t negotiations, told all present that Claus Mittermayer did not
.
appear to be mentally or physically sound enough to sign the
, Suffolk Document and further that it should be signed the next day.
.;
72. Claus Mittermayer was told that Defendant John Kanas
'and Defendant Halpin had already been informed that, "'this is a
dO'1e de",_l' "'nd thi'lt the Def<=ndant' s _Documept -must -bes;;'qlled bef~!..e'
Claus Mittermayer leaves this building."
-23-
. 'l'-'"
73. Plaintiff executed' the docur"e..,t prepared by
Defendant County at approximately midnight.
74. The remainder of the night was spent in acquiring
the required Thirty Thousand
($30,000)
Dollars which was
accomplished. Arrangements had been made, in Connecticut, for the
money, a check, was obtained and Mittermayer then went at 8:30 a.m.
to the law offices of Wickham, Wickham and Bressler.
Abigail
Wickham, NFBT's lawyer, arrived at the office at 9:15 a.m. and then
i!
': proceeded to object to.the check and demanded that the $30,000 be
:i accompanied by a wire transfer of the funds, which was done.
Abigail Wickham then presented a document for execution by
Plaintiff agreeing that the Thirty Thousand ($30,000) Dollars was
not to be a credit against the indebtedness, but a fee for the
"adjournment. Since the sale was set for 10:30 a.m., said Thirty
i!
: I Thousand ($30,000) release document was executed by Plaintiff.
Ii
il Abigail Wickham required Claus Mittermayer to produce appropriate
i identification, although she knew Mittermayer, personally, for many'
, .
.
: years before.
75. Said Abigail Wickham left the office for the
:1 Courthouse and at 10:25 a.m. was notified that the $30,000 wire
.
transfer was completed. The foreclosure sale"scheduled for 10:30
.;
., a.m. was then called off and adjourned to July 6, 1989.
~ j
"
76. All of the foregoing acts of the Defendants were
,! part of an unlawful and wrongful plan, scheme or design whereby
"',;.. id Op.fendants acLinq i.. .;:c.nc:",rt with ~3.ch other, did w:t"ongfuU.Y ,
and unlawfully hinder, harass, impede, and interfere with the
-24-
'r"'" C
.
"
"J' ')>
Plaintiff's right to engage in Its business of marketing and
managing its real properties according to applicable law, thereby
unlawfully depriving the Plaintiff of its civil rights.
77. All of the foregoing acts set forth in the Complaint
at paragraphs "49" to "76", both inclusive, were committed by the
. Defendants under color of state law and pursuant to a common
;design,plan, or scheme of the Defendants to deprive the Plaintiff
"of its right to lawfully engage in its business of marketing and
d
'jmanaging its real properties. said acts of the Defendants had for
"
'J their intent and purpose the deprivation. of Plaintiff's civil
,
irights guaranteed by the Constitution of the United states and the
.;
'!Fourteenth Amendment thereto.
.,
'!
:!
78.
said wrongful and unlawful conduct of the Defendants
f ~
:: in depriving the Plaintiff of its civil right to engage in its
il .
II lawful business has caused the Plaintiff to sustain damages in the
Ilsum of Two Hundred Million ($200..000,000) Dollars in that the
.,
,.
'iPlaintiff was forced to file a petition in Bankruptcy to preserve
.1
.
;: its assets
I
:i
" enormous
and discharge
its
financial obligations,
to ~ncur
litigation
lucrative
to
business
forego
expense,
i:
;! opportunities
and
to
endure
the stigma of impaired
financial
standing.
79. With respect to the non-municipal Defendants,
':Plaintiff demands judgment awarding not only compensatory damages
;as set forth above but also punitive damages in such amount as to
make i.li-. exarnpl~ of said Defenuc::.nts o.:lU to deter others f~o1;l ~i:::lil~.r
-25-
"'\--:"" f
"
, ,
.
\11. .;.
conduct in the future of not less than Two Hundred ~illion
($200,000,000) Dollars.
80. Plaintiff further demands jUdgment for its attorney
fees and costs incurred in prosecuting this action.
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests a jUdgment
against the above-named Defendants as follows:
1. Upon the First Cause of Action in this Complaint,
'compensatory damages in the amount of ~NO Hundred Million
:1($200,000,000) Dollars against each of the Defendants jointly and
'!
,I severally;
"
11
"
i i 2 . Upon the Second Cause of Action in this Complaint,
:1
"
i!compensatory damages in the amount of Two Hundred Million
ii ($200,000,000) Dollars against each of the Defendants, jointly and
!I
"
J i severally;
If
II 3. Upon the Third Cause of Action in this Complaint,
"
I!compensatory damages in the amount of Two Hundred Million
i I .-;..
il($200,000,000) Dollars against each of the,Defendants jointly and
:!severally and also punitive damages against the non-municipal
i;
=1
!! Defendants in such amount as to make an example of said Defendants,
liand to deter others from similar conduct in the future of not less
;!
.
,ithan Two Hundred'Million ($200,000,000) Dollars; together with
,
!
;
,
oj
-26-
'-- I I
, ,.
. .. -.
Dated:
j 11844.wdd L
II
,I
:1
'1
II
i/
;j
:1
!i
il
11
:
i
I
,
:1
:/
:)
,.
'i
..
"
,I
!i
::
"
;1
"
4. Sucnother relief as the Court deems just.
'Mineola, New York
October 16, 1991
"
MELTZER, LIPPE, GOLDSTEIN
/~O;l' P;C.
By:/"M/j4~~ In No:
V....
Altorneys for Plaintiff
!90 Willis Avenue
Mineola, New York 11501
(516) 747-0300
.
-27-
AND
9863
.
i
I
!
'~,
. ,. ....
,'.,. '."7 ..
; ~nitEa ~httES JEl istriLt QIourt
UNITED srATES DISrRIcr OJURI' FJ'SI'ERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
UGjI1t- PI c..E
.
SCUTHOLD DEVEWPMENT OJRPORATION
a/k/a BWE lAQ)QN RESORTS,
Debtor-in-Possession
PlAINTIFF ,
SUMMONS IN A CIVIL ACTION
v.
SJFFOLK COUNTY, PATR!O< HALPIN, in his
official cpacity as Suffolk County Executive,
'lllCWIS BOYLE, in his official capacity as
Suffolk County Atto=ey, JOAN SCHERB, in her
offi.cial capacity as Cannissioner of the Suffolk
. County Real Estate Department, ROBERr' PIKE,
G<En:JRY BlASS, JOHN WICKHAM, 'It:M WICKHAM, ROBINS
ISlAND PRESERVATION FUND, INC., THE NATURE
CDNSERVANCY, INC., NORTH roRK BlINK and TRUST
<XMPANY, DWIGHT HOLBRXJK; THE 'IWN OF
SOUTHOm, ABIGAIL WICKHAM.
CASE NUMBER:
\. /'-y \ r R. j
.~ t;\.._ - ,: .
D '"'. !\!\\ i~fl
10 \{ \j;-\ \"1. i'l.~..
ill:
SEE ATrACHED LIST
--.....
r-' <5 ~ -tJ
. .~J..
4
~no
~U0
PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY _(name and addnrssl
YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED and required to file with the Clerk.of this Court and selVe upon
ill \: ~ : I:II~ 1m
'MELTZER, LIPPE, G:lIDSTEIN & WJLF, P.C.
. 190 Willis Avenue
Mineo1a, New York 11501
SOUTKOL;) ~9':,.!r\
PlANIW.G. j.i.'l,liJ
an answer to the complaint which is herewith selVed upon you, within twenty (20) days after selVice of
this summons upon you, exclusive of the day of selVice. If you fail to do so, jUdgment by default will be taken
against you for the relief demanded in the complaint.
. ~.$E~_
~~.~
DnDr:~r'.-:- ^
II v '-':"'; . : 0'. :-' - ~ ~.: ;:-~;'J\I\'If\J
0_-., '_.l.1 t,
;O/;b Jqj
DATE '
cc:
Towll Board
Town Attorney
Chief of Police
Supt. of Highways
William F..Mullen, Jr.
Griffing & Southwick
CLERK
J\/\_~~ i2~~oo~
~TYC ERK.
.f) 440 fRev. 5/851 Summons In a Civil Action
.'
RETURN OF SERVICE
Service of the Summons and Complaint was made by mei
DATE
lAME OF SERVER
TITLE
-:--'r.:~k u~~::uw to indicate a;;;;r:;;:JrfiJlC method Dr st!,-.,..i:e
o Served personally upon the defendant. Place where served:
o Left copies thereof at the defendant', dwelling house or usual place of abode with a person of suitable age and
discretion then residing therein.
Name of person with whom the summons and complaint were left:
o Returned unexecuted:
o Other (specify):
IAVEL
STATEMENT OF SERVICE FEES
J SERVICES
. ,DECLARATION OF SERVER
lTOTAL
.
I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America that the foregoing information
contained in the Return of'Service and Statement of Service Fees is true and correct.
Executed on
f;;anamr~ ::Jf SefYfJ!"
;;';;'0
.
'".......'
Address of Server
'0) mav serve a SUmmons s&o Rule 4 or the Fecforal Rules 01 Civil Procecfur<!:l.
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LIST OF DEFENDANTS
Suffolk County
County Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Patrick Halpin
county Center
Riverhead, New York 1901
Thomas Boyle
County Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Joan Scherb
county Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Robert Pike
138 Ostrander Avenue
Riverhead, New York 11901
Gregory Blass
peconic Bay Blvd.
Jamesport, New York 11947
John Wickham
Private Road
cutchoque, New York 11395
Thomas Wickham
Private Road
Cutchoque, New York 11935
"
Robins Island Preservation Fund, Inc.
Post Office Box 928
Cutchoque, New York 11935
The Nature conservancy
250 Lawrence Hill Road
Cold Spring Harbor, New York 11743
North Fork Bank and Trust Company
9025 Route 25
Mattituck, New York 11952
Dwight HOlbrook
Breezy Drive
~oy~~k: ~AW V~~k
I
!.
if
I
- -.,--
:F'~~~""~, ~,
.:.~;::!,:,i'
Town of Southold
Main Road
Southold, New York 11971
Abigail wickham.
Main Road
Mattituck, New York 11952
.
2
i
I'
I
I
The JS.44 ci~il cover s'heet and (he information contained herein neither replace nor supplement the fifing and service 01
pleadif\gs or other papers 3S required bV law, elcept as provided by lacal rules of court. This form, approved by the Judicial
Conference ollhe United Statas in September 1974, is reqdired for the use of the Clerk of Court lor the purpose 01 initiating
the civil docket sheet: {For mare detailed instructions. see separate instruction sheet.)
PLAINTIFFS I DEFENDANTS
. SUFFOL!{ COUNl'Y, PATRIO< HALPIN, in his capacity
SOOTHOLD ..DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION I as SUffolk County Exec., TIJCMAS BOYLE, in his"
a/k/a BLUE LAGOON RESORTS, jcapacity as SUffolk County Atty., JOAN SaIERB,
Debtor-in-Possession . in her capacity as Conn. of Real Est. Dept.,
I ROBERT PIKE, GREOORY BLASS, JOHN WICKHN1, 'I1Jf-1
I WICKHAM, ROBINS ISLAND PRESERVATION FUND, INC.,
! THE NATURE CONSERVANCY, INC., NORTH FORK BlINK
I and TRUST CO., lM.[GHl' HOIBROOK, et al.
COUNTY OF RESIDENCE OF FIRST LISTED PLAINTIFF -Suffulk COUNTY OF RESIDENCE OF FIRST LISTED DEFENDANT
(EXCEPT IN U.S. PLAINTIFF CASES) (IN U.S. PLAINTIFF CASES ONLY)
NOTE: IN LAND CONDEMNATION CASES, USE THE LOCATION OF THE
TRACT OF LAND INVOLVED
I ~.
.
:;.
CIVIL COVER SHEET
ATTORNEYS '(FlAM NAME, ADDRESS, AND TELEPHONE NUMBER) ATTORNEYS (IF KNOWN)
MeTtzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Wolf,. P.C.
190 Willis Avenue
Mineola, New York 11501
RKEN[D
J! ~ /!;tf{.
~d
?~t1lhnlrlT-"~~
(PLACE AN EI IN ONE BOX ONLY)
o 1 U.S. PLAINTIFF 0 2 U.S. DEFENDANT
BASIS OF JURISDICTION IF DIVERSITY, INDICATE
K1x3 FEDERAL QUESTION 0 4 DIVERSITY CITIZENSHIP ON REVERSE.
(u.s. NOT A PARTY) (28 USC 1332, 1441)
CAUSE OF ACTION (CITE THE U.S. CIVIL STATUTE UNDER WHICH YOU ARE FILING AND WRITE A BRIEF STATEMENT OF CAUSE)
42 U.S.C. 1983 a violation of the- Plaintiff's civil.rights to engage
in its lawful business.
NATURE OF SUIT
(PLACE AN (;] IN ONE BOX ONLY)
.
CONTRACT TORTS ACTIONS UNDER STATUES .
CIVllIl.IGHT$ FORFEITURE PENALTY BANKRUPTCY T OTHER SWUTES Coal
UO INSURANCE PERSONAL INJURY 0 .420 TRUSTEE o 450 COMMERCE Ice
120 MARINE 0 310 AIRPlANE 0 "1 VOTING 0 610 AGRICULTURE 0 421 TRANSFER (S15b) I RATES. ETC.
130 MillER ACT 0 315 AIRPlANE. 0 4.42 JOBS 0 62G FOOD & DRUG 0 422 APPEAL (BOll ,0 460 OEPORTATlO~
140 NEGOTIABLE 1- PRODUCT 0 443 ACCOMMODATIONS 0 6311 llOUOR lAWS 1 10 al0 SELECTIVE
lN~TRII14Ff<,lr LIABILITY S : ~;~;~":E.~~, n 6AtI R R. &. TRUr:K I PROPfRTY RIGHT~ -; ;iERVICE.
, ~... or,..n..c.."....~ " , ';2... .~:"l";".~ '.'0"';' l~ '50 !l;Rl....U:::S R:GZ .. M~f1 ~l:lIl.ull~S :". - .
, fl fI.~n r.npvplr..,i . -
o
o
o
o
'-
....WCn......'....CIYIC)
ENFORCEMENT
Of JUDGMENT
o 151 MEDICARE ACT
o 152 RECOVERY OF
DEFAULTED
STUDENT LOANS
o 153 RECOVERY OF
OVERPAYMENT
OF VETERANS
BENEFITS
o 150 STOCKHOLDERS
SUITS
o 190 OTHER
CONTRACT
o 195 CONTRACT
PRODUCT
LIABILITY
REAL PROPERTY
210 CONDEMNATION
22'0 FORfCLO~URF
(:!'l QC:OJT IC~,\!" ~
EJECTMeNT
u 240 fORTS TO LAND
o 2.c5 TORT PRODUCT
lIABIUTY
o 290 ALL OtHER REAL
PROPERTY
Er
o
,--,
c.:. ~LANl1l:k
330 FEDERAL
EMPLOYERS
UABIlITY
340 MARINE
345 MARINE PRODUCT
UABIUTY
350 MOTOR VEHICLE
355 MOTOR VEHICLE
PRODUCT LIABILITY
360 OTHER PERSONAL
INJURY.
362 PERSONAL
INJURY-MEO.
MALPRACTICE
o 365 PERSONAl INJURY
PRODUCT UABIlITY
I ;=:; I. \"UMMUt)ltlC~
I L...J 00l1oi r.u.:;... I EXCHA"GE
SAFETY/HEALTH 0 4' TRADE '.
o 690 OTHER t 8 MARK ! 0 891 AGRICULTURAL
t-- ACTS
SOi:IAl SECURITY -1' 0 892 ECONOMIC
! 0 861 HIK(1395t11 SiABIUIATlON
J 0 862 BLACK LUNG t9231 o. ACT
o 863 DIWC (405 (g)) 893 ENVIRONMENTAL
o 863 01\\'W (405 (gJ) MAnERS
o 864 SSIO Tille XVI 0 894 ENERGy
o 65 RS I ... ALLOCATION ACT
~ I 8 I (405 (91 _ I 0 895 FREEDOM OF
r--------rAX"SUlTS ! INfORMATlO~! ACT
t--------~ 0 900 APPEAL OF FEE
'1 0 870 TAXES DETERMINATION
'I~ 0 871 IRS-THIRD I: UNDER (QUAL
PARTY 26 USC ACCESS TO
I .~ 7609 JUSTICE
II 0 875 CUSTOMER I 0 95D CONSTITUTIONALITY
CHALLENGE 12 Of STATE STATUTES
use J..ll0 0 890 OJHER SlATUlORY
J ,lCT10Ill5
'--CTHEft.ST!I.!!Hf~~ c*: Town Board
I~
I w 'w'"'' I Town Attorney
REAPPORTIONMENT . f f .
o 41' <NTH RUST Chle 0 Pollee
o 4JO BANKS ANO Supt. of Highways
8.4.NKING Wm 1= MIIII,:.n Jr.
G ri ffi no & Sou thw ick
Appejl 10 0151rlCI
o 7 Judge from
Maoistrate
'_'_.'_"''''41
IU
10
iB
-10
o
PfUSONER PETlTJONS
0 S1!J VACATE 0
SENTENCE
(2255) 0
0 530 HABEAS
CORPUS 0
0 S4Q MANDAMUS &
OTHER
0 550 CIVIL RIGHTS 0
10
I
IW
LABOR
110 FAIR lABOR
STANDARDS
720 tABOR/MGMT
RELATIONS
730 tA80R/M~MT
'REPORTING &
OISCLOSURE Acr
74-0 RAilWAY
LABOR ACT
790 OTHtR LA~uit
UTlG':';::;~
791 tM~, kl.l.ll'l";.
SECURlTV ACT
PERSONAL PROPERTY
o 370 OTHER FRAUD
o 371 TRUTH IN
lENOlNG
i 1.J 3SU ulHER PEii<;ONAI. I
I PROPERTY 1
o 385 PROPERTY DAMAGE
PRODUCT
lIABIlITV
ORIGIN
(PLACE AN (;] IN ONE BOX ONLY)
>fX 1 Or;~;n;rl [1 2 Removed ltom rJ 3 Rp.malld~d from
:":'1:'';:;;::;;:9 ~t.i;G CviJi1 ,".:;:.:-.:t.::;: ~::::!1
04 Reinstaled or
P.C':J::le~ed
Translerred from
o 5 anolner (hSlricl
!~~;j~'l
!.itic,~ji{ln
1"r1~f"""" .
o 6 Mullidislricl
UNIl t:.u $'11"\1 t:.::t DISl AIel cOLircT
(Continued on Reverse Side)
(Revised 8187)
,
JI':!
CITIZENSHIP OF P~INCIPAL PA~TIES
(IF DIVERSITY)
CITIZEN OF THIS STATE
INCORPORATED THIS STATE
PTF DEF
01 01
02 02
FheCklFiII in if demanded in complaint _
o CHECK IF THIS IS A CLASS ACTiON
UNDER F.R.C.P. 23
DEMAND $
OTHER
FOREIGN CORPORATION-PRINCIPAL
PLACE OF BUSINESS IN __ 03 03
STATE
RELATED CASE(S) IF ANY
IN RE: SOUTHOLD DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
UOGE WEXLER DOCKET NUMBER CV
'cIVIL CASES ARE DEEMED RELATED IF PENDING CASE IN VOL VED
91-201.
OTHER NON-GITIZEN
OF THIS STATE
04 04
o 1. PROPERTY INCLUDED IN AN EARLIER NUMBERED PENDING SUIT
o 2. SAME ISSUE OF FACT OR GROWS OUT OF THE SAME TRANSACTION .
o 3. VALIDITY OR INFRIN3EMENTOF THE SAME PATENT COPYRIGHT OR TRADEMARK
Check YES only if demanded in complaint:
JURY DEMAND: 0 Yes ia No
ARBITRATION CERTlACATlON
I, John Nesterman, ,counsel for
Southold Development Corp., a/k/a Rlne Lagoon Re,;ort-,;, Tn,., doherebycertify
pursuant to the Local Arbitration Rule Section 3(c): that to the best of my knowledge and belief the damages
recoverable in the above captioned civil action exceed the sum of $75,000.00 exclusive of interest and ccsts.
Relief other than monetary damages is sought.
DISCLOSURE OF INTERESTED PARTIES-LOCAL RULE 9
Identify any corporate parents, subsidiaries or affiliates of named corporate parties:
None
. Did the cause of action arise in Nassau or Suffolk County? Ve,;
If you answered y.es, please indicate which county.
Snffolk
.....- "~'.. ...~ ".,.:;;j'-'fmr.p'",r :-,j:a!r:'l,t.I,{~~~~...,
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.
(2) _
(3)
Others .____..h
County of residence of defendant(s)
(1)
~llrfnl k
(2)___
(3)
Others
I am currently a member in good standing of the bar of this Court.
YES
vv
NO
Date: ._n JQi1S/31__
Signature of Attorney of Record:
/1/ PI/ ~
! /J'l.4 .[ N;;w'
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"'''Lt.''.. to,;.. "t..H"O......~..C..T
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MELTZER. LIPPE & GOLDSTEIN. P.C. 1913
LITIGATION DISBURSEMENTS
ATTORNEYS AT LAW . .
190 WILLIS AVE. flL ~
MINEOLA. NY ?1 _ d~ 1.s-19-Z! '.1481260
m~~~Fi%~:; ilJ {Jci;?~yt aJt:I-J.~,v,I $/~~~..
~EGISTEnEQ ','" '-).""', I", II I ,;" .1111', ""\
. 8-:N-4-O-9-1-8-~ -ruJt' .1,.1 t.. I.. "I IlClI1 ()It'
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~.A R5t 199 Second St.
;El'QiI Mlnoola, NY 11501
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,,\0440 (n.elf. 5/85J Summons in. a Civil Action
;.
2linth~b ~tat.es JB tstrtJ:t QIaurt
UNITED srATES DISTRIcr COURl' EASI'ERN DISTRICT OF .. NEW YORK
SOUTHOLD DEVEIDPMENT CORPORATION
a/k/a BWE IAGCXlN RESORTS,
Debtor-in-Possession
PIAINTIFF ,
SUMMONS IN A CIVIL ACTION
v.
~LK COUNTY, PATRICK HALPIN, in his
official cpacity as Suffolk Cmmty Executive,
'TIiOMASBOYLE, in his official capacity as
Suffolk County Attorney, JOAN SCHERB, in her
official capacity as Carmissioner of the Suffolk
. . County Real Estate Department, ROBER!' PIKE,
GREG::lRY l3I.ASS, JOHN WIO<H1\M, TOM WIO<H1\M, ROBINS
ISLAND PRESERVATION FUND, INC., THE NATURE
<DNSERVANCY, INC., NORI'H FORK BANK and TRUST
ffi'lPANY, DWIGHT HOLBRlXJK, THE TCM'N OF
SOUTHOrn, ABlGAlL WICKHAM.
CASE NUMBER:
'lD: SEE A'ITACHED LIsr
YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED and required to file with the Clerk of this Court and serve upon
PLAI~TlFF'S ATTORNEY (name and address)
MELTZER, LIPPE, GOLDSTEIN & OOLF, P.C.
190 Willis Avenue
Mineola, New York 11501
.
an answer to the complaint which is herewith served upon you, within twenty (20l days after service of
this summons upon you, exclusive of the day of service. If you fail to do so, judgment by default will be taken
against you for the relief demanded in the complaint.
.
CLERK
DATE
~v n~p, ITY r.I ~RK
,:,"',.. .'
AQ 44{J (Rev ~rfJ5) $:...p!":lOns In a Civil Action
-
. RETURN OF SERVICE
DATE
Service of the Summons and Complaint was made by me1
NAME OF SERVER TITLE
-.- --- .
r f:::;~.:Jc Une ~c;;., lx.low to indicate a;;~';,c;:Jrii1ie method of sen1(:e
o Served personally upon the defendant. Place ~here served:
o Left copies thereof at the defendant1s dwelling house or usual place of abode with a person of suitable age and
discretion then residi n9 therei n.
Name at person with whom the summons and complaint were left:
o Returned unexecuted: ..
o Other (specify):
STATEMENT OF SERVICE FEES
TRAVEL f SERVICES ITOTAL
DECLARATION OF SERVER
I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States at America that the foregoing information
contained in the Return of ' Service and Statement of Service Fees is true and correct.
Executed on
.- " ~; .~, f~ - - .
'-'I,.
!!"... ('ftn ...,..""fV.
I.
Address of Server
. ,
1] As to .....ho m./ly serve a Summons s_ Rule 4 ot the FedofH.l1 Rules 01 Civil PrO<;C1dure.
LIST OF DEFENDANTS
Suffolk county
county Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Patrick Halpin
County Center
Riverhead, New York 1901
Thomas Boyle
county Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Joan Scherb
county Center
Riverhead, New York 11901
Robert Pike
138 Ostrander Avenue
River~ead, New York 11901
Gregory Blass
peconic Bay Blvd.
Jamesport, New York 11947
,John wickham
Private Road
Cutchogue, New York 11395
Thomas Wickham
Private Road
~'~t-t;'!ho~"~.;; .~f'l:w..;-..;tQ~r:'(.... .....~1...~,~5,
.
Robins Island Preservation
Post Office Box 928
cutchogue, New York 11935
Fund, Inc.
The Nature Conservancy .
250 Lawrence Hill Road
Cold spring Harbor, New York 11743
North Fork Bank and Trust Company
9025 Route 25
Hattituck, New York 11952
Dwight Holbrook
Eret!zy Dr:i.,ve
Noyack, New York
I
"
...
"
Town of Southold
Main Road
Southold, New York 11971
Abigail Wickham
Main Road
Mattituck, New York 11952
.
2
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
~
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
-x
SOUTHOLD DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
ajkja BLUE LAGOON RESORTS, INC.,
Debtor-in-Possession,
:
Plairitiff,
:
COMPLAINT
-against~
:
civil Action No.
SUFFOLK COUNTY, PATRICK HALPIN, in :
his official capacity as Suffolk
County Executive, THOMAS BOYLE, :
in his official capacity as
Suffolk county Attorney,
JOAN SCHERB, in her official
capacity as commissioner :
of the Suffolk County Real Estate
Department, ROBERT PIKE,
GREGORY BLASS, JOHN WICKHAM,
,TOM WICKHAM, ROBINS ISLAND
. PRESERVATION FUND, INC., THE
'; NATURE CONSERVANCY, INC., THE :
: NORTH FORK BANK and TRUST
:: COMPANY, DWIGHT HOLBROOK, TOWN
OF SOUTHOLD, and ABIGAIL WICKHAM,
Defendants.
.,
II -
iJ
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- -x
Plaintiff, SOUTHOLD DEVELOPMENT CORP., ajkja Blue Lagoon
: \ .t<.etiOi i.:~:t:, I:'-iC. I Deb~o=,-.j.n-r.=-:;~~=::-s~cn DY. ~l.~:3.:. u.t.-::.=,::-::~~."'~'" ~~!:;~ "'O'r"
,Lippe, Goldstein & Wolf, P.C., Inc., complains of the above-named
:[Defendants and respectfully shows the Honorable Court and alleges
as follows:
.
JURISDICTION AND VENUE
1. This Court has subject matter jurisdi,ction to
entertain this action under 28 U.S.C. 9 1343, in that the acts
',,-,"..~.'._~-' ~~.-~.- --~. ..- ~-.~:. - -::.-
-1-
hereinafter complained of constitute a violation of 42 U.S.C. ~
1983.
2. All of the above-named Defendants either reside or
are doing business within the Judicial District of the Eastern
District of New York, and the claims asserted herein arose within
said Judicial District. Accordingly, the venue of this action is
properly within the Judicial District of the Eastern District of
New York.
PARTIES
3. Southold Development Corporation ("Plaintiff"), also
;1 known as Blue Lagoon Resorts, Inc., Debtor-in-Possession, said name
: change having been made by proper amendment to the certificate of
: Incorporation filed with the secretary of state of the state of New
. York and granted on May 28, 1991, effective May 29, 1991, isa
'; corporation duly organized under and existing by virtue of the Laws
.i
"of the state of New York, conducting business within the state of
,New York with its principal place of business care of Post Office
: Box Z, Shelter Island Heights, New York
11965.
At a.U t~me
relevant to this Complaint, Claus Mittermayer was Plaintiff's duly
: authorized corporate' representative in all matters hereinafter
alleged.
4. Plaintiff was formed" in 1979 to own, manage and
;imarket real estate holdings throughout this and foreign countries.
5.
Plaintiff's sole assets are three parcels of real
.: properLy J:oc.:Cit€;d. irr ~~1.C; To.wn ~f SCi...-;:thold.";- Ccunty ..of- suff,01k, Stai;e-
of New York. One of the parcels of real estate is known as Robins
-2-
Island, consisting of 435 acres, more or less, more specifically
described on the Suffolk County Tax Map as District 1000, Section
134, Block 3, Lot 5. The other two parcels of real estate are two
vacant lots located in New Suffolk, Town of Southold, County of
Suffolk, State of New York, more specifically described on the
Suffolk County Tax Map as District 1000, Section 117, Block 8, Lots
19 and 20.
(Collectively, these three parcels are referred to as
"Robins Island" or "The Island.")
6. The Island was acquired by Plaintiff in July 1979,
;i by warranty deed, from one Mackay and the possession of The Island
H has been continuously held by plaintiff since said acquisition.
7. The primary business of Plaintiff, since 1979, has
i been the ownership management, upkeep, and marketing of The Island,
/
V
,i and the time, effort, and money expended by plaintiff in preserving
f ~
,--
!i its interest The Island.
; t r....
ii
8.
Defendant County of Suffolk
(the "county")
is a
,!
:i municipal corporation, of perpetual duration, with the power to sue
.
:, and be sued, and is organized "under and exist:s vy v.i."'l.."'''' VL ...,,'"
laws of the State of New York, with its principal office located at
County Center, Riverhead, New York.
9. Defendant The Nature Conservancy (the "conservancy")
!i is a not-for-profit corporation, organized. under the laws of The
"
H District of Columbia, operating within the jurisdiction of the U.S.
ii District Court for the Eastern District of New York since it is
:
.:.; doi.nq "business ~itb.iTI the Count:,' and.ma,intain"i.a,! office, among
others, located at 250 Lawrence Hill Road, Cold spring Harbor, New
-3-
York 11743. At all time relevant to the Complaint, John Kap.~~ was
a Trustee of the Long Island Chapter of the Conservancy.
10. Defendant Patrick G. Halpin as County Executive of
Suffolk County, is the Executive of the County having assumed such
office on or about January 1, 1988.
11. Defendant Thomas Boyle as Suffolk County Attorney,
is the_Attorney of the County and has held such office during all
, time relevant to this complaint.
i;
12. Defendant Robert Pike is, upon information and
':belief, an attorney licensed to practice law before the Courts of
'1 the State of New York who, at all time relevant to this Complaint,
'i represented groups and individuals that aligned themselves with the i
:j County to unlawfully deprive Plaintiff of its right to develop,
ii refinance or sell all or any part of The Island to parties
oJ
ii interested in developing The Island.
ii
I'
" 13. Defendant Joan B. ~cherb as commissioner of the
"
!!
:! Suffolk County Real Estate Department was the duly appointed
,;
:icommissioner of the Suffolk County Real Estate Department ana neLu
'that position at all time relevant to this Complaint.
"
1\
14. Defendant John Wickham at all relevant time has been
; involved in the development plans for the east end of Long Island
Ii in that for twenty-four (24) years he served as the Chairman of the
';
iisouthold Planning Board, and upon leaving that position he joined
'ithe Suffolk Cqunty Planning commission. At all time relevant to
. -:":his .Co"1Dplctl.-:"t, DE::~~IH:1ant, Joh~ ~~ickbana__~Gted ion corice.r:t 'Y'"ith ot,hpr-:
Defendants and assisted in organizing their assertion of a baseless
-4-
claim commoli~y known as the wickh2~ Claim, which was manifested in
the institution of a wrongful and unlawful lawsuit brought in the
name of the Robins Island Preservation Fund, Inc., against
Plaintiff before the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of New York designated as civil Action No. CV-89-1299 (the
"Wickham Claim") which Claim was asserted to assist the County in
preventing the development of The Island.
15. Defendant Thomas Wickham was elected to the Southold
!Town Board in November of 1989; Defendant Thomas Wickham is one of
many alleged heirs of Parker Wickham and participated in the
institution of the "Wickham Claim."
16. Defendant Abigail Wickham is one of many alleged
'heirs of Parker Wickham who instituted the "Wickham Claim" and is
!!
;; the determination
1:
1:
as Robins Island.
of the marketability of title for such properties
(Defendants John,Thomas and Abigail Wickham are
:,
,! sometimes hereafter referred to as the "Wickham Defendants.")
.
17. Defendant Robins _ Island Preservation - Fund, Inc.
" ("RIPF"), is a not-for-profit corporation organized under the laws
,
,
!of the State of Maryland doing business in the County created by
;certain of the alleged heirs of Parker Wickham and their
. . supf'orters '.
RIPF wC'43 the plaintif:: whi~h "-institnted "th.;? \f:ickham
Claim.
-5-
18. At all time relevant to the Complaint Defendant The
North Fork Bank and Trust Company ("NFBT") held mortgages against
The Island. NFBT instituted a foreclosure action against Plaintiff
and, acting in concert with the County, did wrongfully and
unlawfully coerce the Plaintiff into executing an alleged contract
(hereinafter "Suffolk Document") to sell The Island to the County.
At all time relevant to the Complaint, John Kanas was President of
NFBT.
19. Defendant Gregory Blass is an attorney and a former
: Suffolk County Legislator.
Defendant Blass is involved in the
:ienvironmental movement on Long Island to "save" Robins Island and
;' was the sponsor of legislation by the County that made funds
,; available to acquire the "development rights" to a farm owned by
John Wickham.
20.
Defendant Dwight Holbrook wrote an article entitled
,
: t "The Wickham Claim" which was published in book form by the Suffolk
,County Historical society with the aid of funds provided by the
" '
County.
21. Defendant Town of Southold (the "TOwn") is a
'municipal corporation of perpetual duration, with the power to sue
and to be sued. The Town is organized under the laws of-New York,
with its principal office located at Main Road, Southold, New York.
j!
BACKGROUND
22. The Island consists of approximately 435 acres of
"land ~,Jc::;.';;cd ir. th~ peconic Bay, Suffolk County. The Island is
- .
,designated as the "jewel" in a crown desperately sought to be worn
-6-
by environmentalists, politicians;' and individuals who share as a
common objective the unalterable goal of keeping The Island
"forever wild".
The determination that these groups share in
realizing this common goal was accurately stated by Suffolk County
Legislator, Steven Englebright, who said:
". . . I am willing to take whatever steps are
necessary to that end (forever wild). If
there is going to be a test of our will, we
will.meet the test".
23. On August 9, 1983, the County joined forces with the
;: well entrenched environmental team seeking to keep the Island
Ii
.' "forever wild." It was on this day that the then Suffolk County
j!
:: Executive signed a Resolution introduced by former Legislator
:: Gregory Blass to commence negotiations for the purchase of The
Island. That resolution appointed the Conservancy as agent to act
. on behalf of the County in the acquisition of The Island. This was
:, the first official step taken by the County to acquire Robins
II
"
'; Island.
j!
:::!-~. :'=::::: ti~", ~:: '::i:::!?,,:,f;ter. _ll,'..:'Just 9, 1983 the County
.' utilized funds provided for a program known as the "Open Space
,Acquisition Program" to induce various holders of the alleged
Wickham Claim to wrongfully and un~awfully assist the County in its
efforts to force a below-market sale of Robins Island to either
'Suffolk County or an environmental organization such as the
.' Conservancy which shared the common 'goal of"preventing Plaintiff
'from developing Robins Island.
-7-
25. By
utilizing
funds
made
available
throua!1
Resolutions, the County made several offers to purchase Robins
Island. Each such offer represented a small fraction of the fair
market value of The Island, and was rejected by Plaintiff.
26. To explain why Suffolk County was proceeding by
attempted negoti~ted sale rather than by condemnation, thus
enabling the County to control the amounts offered for the much
sought after Island, former Suffolk county Legislator Gregory Blass
, admitted:
:;
"Condemnation is completely out of the question.
It's both a political and practical impossibility.
The problem is that the County takes title first
and then settles the price later."
:1
~ :
:'
This quote evidences that the County knew that its offers for The
. Island were far below The Island's fair market value, which is the
: actual measure of compensation. required by condemnation.
This
'.
i!quote also illustrates the fact that if the County were going to
.;acquire The Island for such a small fraction of its fair market
:i
v"dIu.c:" it ~".7!qJl.ire_d t-l1.e -:tssista.nce of other p~:rri~_s~
27. In seeking an ally that shared the common goal of
': preventing the Plaintiff from developing The Island, the County
:i
turned to the Suffolk County ~istorical Society, NFBT, the
Conservancy and the alleged holders of the Wickham Claim for
assistance.
28. In 1986 Suffolk County provided funding to the
Suffolk County Historical Society which published a work by Dwight
Holbrook entitled "'l'ne wicKnaIn claim. ":
.' - -. .~. ...... .'
'Tl11~ wo1.~~ add.:i:25s~~ ~!:c
-8-
" "
1784 seizure of Robins Island by New York State from Parker
wickham. It was the position of this County-funded work that the
200 year old seizure, for which the Wickhams had been compensated
by the British government, was enforceable as a contemporary claim.
The Wickham Claim alleged as its basis an ownership interest in
Robins Island and two parcels assaciated therewith derived fram the
Attainder .of Parker Wickham in 1784.
29. Having created the Wickham Claim as a cloud an the
': title .of The Island with the assistance .of the Suffalk Caunty
:1 Histarical Saciety, the Caunty then turnedta the Canservancy far
Ii additional help.
with the adaptian .of Resalutian Na. 21.44-86
Suffalk County retained the Canservancy as an "agent" for
negatiations with Plaintiff.
In return far acting as an "agent" of
I Suffolk County, by attempting ta buy Rabins Island in the name .of
I the Canservancy, the Caunty pramised ta reimburse the Canservancy
,far the price paid far the parcels,. all expenses invalved in their
: acquisitian, and a "brakers" fee equal to three percent .of the
.
I acquisitian price.
!
;
;: 1.987,
with this relatianship intact an Navember 1.8,
at the instigatian .of the Caunty, the Canservancy made a
i: written prapasal ta Plaintiff ta purchase Rabins Island far six
.
,Millian ($6,000,000) Dallars. This .offer was rejected'by Plaintiff
since it did nat reflect the fair market value .of The Island.
30. Upan the belief that Plaintiff was caming ta terms
.! with anather praspective purchaser .of Rabins Island, the Caunty
turned to the a.'il'eqcu Widcham he:L;:-;; ..todi~~uss Oilr. hope::;. f-or thp'
island and what the future might hald". In furtherance thereaf, a
-9-
.'
~e2ting was held on or about May 11, 1988, and was attended by John
and Thomas Wickham as well as Joan Scherb, Gregory Blass and
others.
The purpose of the meeting was to ascertain the
willingness of the Wickhams to institute a wrongful and unlawful
claim of ownership to Robins Island. The meeting had the impact of
increasing the prevalent understanding that the marketability of
the title held to The Island by Plaintiff was in jeopardy.
31. With the passage of time, due to' the imlawful
activities of the Defendants, the title held by the Plaintiff
" became less marketable. Despite these difficulties, Plaintiff was
'i able to conclude an agreement with The Robis Corporation ("Robis")
on June 30, 1988 for the sale of the Island by Plaintiff to Robis
for the sum of Fifteen Million Two Hundred Thousand ($15,200,000)
,! Dollars (the "Robis Contract"). Realizing the possibility that
:1
i i there may not be sufficient obstacles in place to prevent the
:1 I '. h .
:: c oS1ng of t1tle to The Island'" under t e Rob1s Contract, the
I
:1
; Defendants further enlisted the assistance of the Defendant Town of
.j
.; Southold. On January 10, 1989, Defendant Town of Southold put into
.! . .
'place zoning modifications which up-zoned Robins Island from one !
'i dwelling per two (2) acres to one dwelling for every ten (10)
.
, acres.
As a result of all of the aforementioned conduct, the
; marketability of title was impaired and Plaintiff was unable to
i
'[deliver clear title under the Robis Contract.
In Aprii of 1989 i
:: Robis instituted an action to compel Plaintiff to resolve the title
..: 'r>rot-I em,;; and <.;luse title to :'hz ISlancj und2r the Robis ,Contract.
-10-
I !'
32. On April 24, 1989, the Defendants induced the
wickhams to institute the Wickham Claim through RIPF and to file a
lis pendens against the Island.
This claim was brought for the
sole purpose of creating a further cloud on the title of The Island
so as to interfere with any plans of Plaintiff for The Island such
as refinancing, sale for fair value, and/or development.
33. Several weeks after being persuaded to institute the
Wickham Claim, the purported holders thereof received TWo Hundred'
. and Twenty Thousand ($220,000) Dollars for the "development rights"
,to twelve (12) acres of John Wickham's farm.
At the closing of
,i this "deal" the' County was represented by Patrick G. Halpin, Joan
Scherb, then Town of Southold Supervisor Frank Murphy, and Town of
Southold Councilwoman Ellen Larson.
34. Several weeks after the Defendant RIPF instituted
;.
: ~ the Wickham Claim against Plaintiff, and just hours before NFBT was
;
:i
'1scheduled to conduct a foreclosure sale upon its mortgages against
!j .
;; 0
;rThe Island, Defendants unlawfully coerced and forced Plaintiff to
boo ';-.-:.- -~.". _ o. .-.- - .,.
. I _ .
;: sign the Suffolk Document which is purportedly an agreement: t:o seLL
I.
;/ .
Robins Island for less than two-thirds (2/3) of its fair market
value.
This result was aided, abetted, and facilitated by the
activities of John Kanas, simultaneously acting as a presiqent of
'NFBT and as Trustee of the Conservancy. NFBT which had previously
:;denied any adjournment of the foreclosure sale, granted a
,conditional extension of the foreclosure sale since Plaintiff had
,
"
:~qreed to th~ eandition that it to ~ell The Island to T~~ County
through The Conservancy.
-11-
.'
35. Just as th~ plan of Defendants was about to come
together to prevent Plaintiff from developing Robins Island the
Honorable Judge Doyle on July 13, 1989, granted Robis Corporation
a default judgment compelling the sale of Robins Island to the
Robis Corporation under the Robis Contract. In a last grasp at the
"j ewel" of their dreams, the Suffolk County Attorney, Thomas Boyle,
without the necessary legislative approval instituted an action to
'compel the sale of the Island to the County.
FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION
AGAINST ALL DEFENDANTS
i
,
! allegation contained in paragraphs
;
36.
Plaintiff
repeats
and
realleges
each and every
numbered "1"
through "35" of
,!this Complaint as set forth herein, and makes the same a part of
i;
:i this First Cause of Action.
H .
;1
I 37. Subsequent to the election of Defendant Halpin and
commencing in or about May of 1988 and continuing to the present
time, all of the Defendants did wrongfully and unlawfully pursue,
j- i~. 'c":n1.'::-'e...,:,~:i:_: . w' t):.(.:.... . ;..'";..:::~.". ,......t:h.P:::::~. _.'~ CO",!.1lT1un p.l a.ii.~, ~c;'i'!'ciuc: ~ -" ail~' ~csi"q:1 t.c. I
!!deprive the Plaintiff .of its federal rights to due process of law!
it in engaging in the business of developing The Island in accordance
J!
with applicable laws.
.
38. In furtherance of said wrongful and unlawful plan,
d
:1 scheme and design and under color of state law, the Defendants
~:wrongfully and unlawfully committed acts which resulted in taking
,j Plaintiff's property without notice or an opportunity to be heard,
.; and further acts which were in excess of Defendants I lawful
-12-.
authority, thereby depriving Plaintiff of its property wit:,out due
process of law, all such acts were and are in violation of
Plaintiff's civil rights as guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment
to the Constitution of the United states.
Said wrongful and
unlawful acts included, but were not limited to, the following:
39. Defendants Halpin, Scherb and Boyle did on or about
July 14, 1989, wrongfully aEd unlawfully file or cause to be filed
in the Supreme Court of New'York, Count-yof Suffolk, an action by
,! the County of Suffolk as plaintiff against the Plaintiff and Claus
!! Mittermayer as defendants, Index No. 89-12468, seeking the specific
! i performance of the Suffolk Document and for the recovery of
:i
Ii compensatory
:!
J
and
punitive
damages
arising
from
the
alleged
fraudulent breach of the provision of said Document accompanied by
i
i the filing of a lis pendens on the sole assets of the Plaintiff.
I
i
1/ The institution of said action was in excess of the lawful
II authority of Defendants Halpin, .Scherb and Boyle as County
:! Executive,- Commissioner of Department of Real Estate and County
! I Attorney,
.; Defendants
.
respectiveiy,
of
the
County,
and
was
done
by
said
j!
II interfere with and impede the Plaintiff in engaging in its business
:!
solely to wrongfully and unlawfully hinder,
harass,
of selling and marketing. its properties in accordance with
11 applicable law. Such conduct on the part of said Defendants was
!I
I.
ii committed under color of state law and was aided, abetted and
: I participated in by all of the De,fendants in pursuance of such
"
: ~ common design f scheiM;. iirH::- plan.
-13-
40. Pursuant to said common design, sch0me, and plan to
deprive the Plaintiff of its right to engage in its business of
selling and developing its properties in accordance with applicable
laws, the wrongful and unlawful conduct of the Defendants had the
effect of unlawfully placing a cloud upon the title of the
'properties of the Plaintiff thereby reducing their marketability
and preventing their sale and use as security for financing and
forcing the Plaintiff to seek protection Chapter 11 of the United
':States Bankruptcy Code all to Plaintiff's injury and damage. Said
"misconduct has caused Plaintiff to suffer severe injury and damage
t! in
the sum of Two Hundred Million ($200,000,000) Dollars.
:j
SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION
AGAINST ALL DEFENDANTS
41. Plaintiff repeats and realleges each and every.,
Ii allegation of paragraphs
,I
jComplaint as
,
'Second Cause of Action.
It
numbered
"3611
through
"40"
of
this
if set forth herein and makes the same a part of this
I':~.:'
., '
::!
. - . .::--~ ;..
. ~ ..,
.
,
"
!1
'various offices in the Suffolk County Government took place with
::::: ~~Q ::,;'.,::,.l,:l
"
of
, on...,
......." u, ,
elec~:"=.:1
.....".""'~:::lI;""""'_c::!
--_....- ---;,1.-'.
for th"
':elections being held in November 1987 for terms beginning January
1, 1988. In the race for the Office of County Executive, Defendant
Halpin was elected. On information and belief an integral part of
,! Defendant Halpin I s platform was the expansion of the "O;:>en Space
'. Program" in Suffolk County by the' further acquisition of lands to
be designated by the Commissioner of the Department of Real Estate.
Defendant, Joan B. Scherb, was appointed by DeIenaant haipin 1:.U ue
-14-
surtl Commissioner, and she assumed' her duties on or about April 1,
1988. Defendant Scherb met with Defendants Gregory Blass, John and
Thomas Wickham and others in or about the month of May 1988 for the
purpose of effectuating a common design to wrongfully and
unlawfully importune the Wickham Defendants into participating in
the creation of a cloud upon the title of The Island. The effect
of this common design was to reduce the marketability of The
'Island. Said Defendants knew'at the time of said meeting that the
;! assertion of a claim of a proprietary interest in Plaintiff's
,j
:!property was without foundation in law, frivolous, and devoid of
1:[ 't rth l' , d'd
:! mer1. Neve e ess, sa1d Defendants w1th such knowledge 1
'iwrongfully and unlawfully agree to participate in the assertion of
i' said bogus claim so as to wrongfully and unlawfully hinder, harass,
j;
ii interfere with, and impede the Plaintiff in engaging in its'
:ibusiness of developing its properties.
II
Ii 43. As a result of said meeting in May 1988, the I
ij
'!Plaintiff was unable to deliver a marketable title to the Robis
.
" Corporation as required by the Robis Contract.
44. The Wickham Claim had its origin over two hundred
'J (200) years ago and it was generally known to title abstract
.
companies throughout the U.S. that such claims were not considered
1:
as a cloud upon the title to real property nor did they, in any
'way, impair the marketability of real property. Said stale claim
,- only became an effective cloud upon title to The Island after the
Defenn"nts I wromitul an<.l un:i.a~J[ul cor;duct, ,of _ inoi.ucing tl1e Wickham
Defendants to first publicize their intent to assert said stale
-15-
claim and then pursue such bogus claim by instituting the Wickham
Claim on April 24, 1989, in the united states District Court for
the Eastern District of New York under civil Action No. CV-89-1299.
45. Defendants organized or encouraged the organization
of RIPF as a not-for-profit corporation for the sole purpose of
furnishing a shell entity to institute a lawsuit that would deter
title insurance companies from insuring the marketability of
Plaintiff's title to The Island.
Such refusal to insure was not
': based upon the merits of the "Wickham Claim" to an actual ownership
Ii
" interest in The Island but upon the economic considerations arising
:! from having to defend against potential lawsuits of the many
" alleged Wickham heirs. Not being able to use The Island either for
'; purposes of sale or as security for funds to develop same, the
,i plaintiff, on July 20, 1989, commenced its chapter 11 case thereby
.:
1 i incurring substantial costs, in an attempt to reorganize and ,
i\. salvage any available equity in The Island and to permit it .to I.
i
.li_con::_inue its business of selling and developing real estate.. I
j!
"
46. The Defendant Dwight Holbrook did wrongfully ana
unlawfully solicit assignments to RIPF from alleged Wickham heirs
I
i! of their alleged proprietary interest in The Island in exchange for
.
a discount on the price per copy of the book allegedly authored by
'1 Defendant Holbrook and published by the Suffolk County Historical
!Society, an organization partially supported by The county, which
! publication costs, upon information and belief, amounted to Twenty-
, 'T'1,1n 'l'nnllsana f. $22. OGO) DollaJ:s.
47. All of the acts of the Defendants described in
-16-
paragraphs "41" to "<!6" both inclusive set forth above were
performed under color of state law in that each Defendant, at
divers times and places during the period 1988 through July, 1989,
and within the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for
the Eastern District of New York, did, in concert, wrongfully and
unlawfully participate in a common design, scheme, or plan to
deprive the Plaintiff of its right to engage in its business of
managing, marketing and developing The Island according to
. applicable law.
48. Said wrongful and unlawful misconduct set forth in
:; the paragraphs numbered "40" to "47" both inclusive has caused the
.. Plaintiff to suffer severe injury and damage in the sum of Two
. Hundred Million ($200,000,000) Dollars.
THIRD CAUSE OF ACTION
AGAINST ALL DEFENDANTS
I) 49. Plaintiff repeats and realleges each and every
I: allegation contained in paragraphs numbered "40" through "48" of
!,
I,
;: '~his Cc.:mp1.v.~~'t ;,:'l_~ .lI S~~. ':':0:o;-'r-~h ~-r:-. i ~nn,t.j-!. i-..PTe.ill' ;..i:1j =.:..3:~~ ~~~"'. 3~~~_
j!
ia part of this Third Cause of Action.
50. As a result of the common scheme and design of the
Defendants, the Defendants did,- on or about June 7, 1989,
wrongfully and unlawfully procure by coercion and duress the
.; execution, by the Plaintiff, of the Suffolk Document, purporting to
;!
. sell Robins Island to the Defendant County for the sum of Nine
Million and Two Hundred Thousand ($9,200,00.00) Dollars. Said
-17-.
:
unlawful coercion and duress took place under the fOllo"ing
circumstances:
51. In the period of 1984
June 1987, the Plaintiff
placed mortgages against The Island in the total amount of Two
Million Two Hundred Thousand ($2,200,000) Dollars, in which NFBT
was the mortgagee'of two mortgages, one for One Million One Hundred
Thousand ($1,100,000) Dollars and another for Eight Hundred and
Fifty Thousand ($850,000) Dollars. There was also a mortgage to
:;the Southold Savings Bank against The Island in the amount of Two
,; Hundred and Fifty Thousand ($250,000) Dollars.
The Southold
iisavings Bank was merged into the NFBT which therefore became the
i' holder of all mortgages.
In each instance that a mortgage was
;;
'i placed against Robins Island during said period, title insurance on
; Robins
.,
I
Claim"
Island was duly issued.
The existence of the "Wickham
was no obstacle to the issuance of such insurance. On
August 2, 1988, NFBT filed a foreclosure action because said
~I mortgages were in .default for failure to pay the principal and
"
:; interest due, and June 8, 1989, was designated as the date or
!!
.
'! foreclosure sale for The Island.
:i
52. On April 24, 1989, Defendants John and Thomas
..
WiCkham, together with Defendant Robert D. Pike, participated in
.
'i the filing of the spurious and groundless Wickham Claim as the
:; .
i!basis for disputing with Plaintiff its title to Robins Island. The
!iassertion of the Wickham Claim in said lawsuit fulfilled Defendant
:: BlaBs' punliC'stat",ne~t li,at, "the ~~ickllall!7Claimvdll scare. off. i'..ny
'would-be-developers
of
Robins
Island,"
and
transformed
a
-18-
" ,. "
theretofore purring pussycat into a raging t'_Y'er, beclouding the
title of Robins Island.
53. DlIring that time Plaintiff sought refinancing of The
Island.
The appraised value of Robins Island, at that time, was
Fourteen Million ($14,000,000) Dollars and Plaintiff's indebtedness
to the mortgagees was approximately Two Million Two Hundred
Thousand ($2,200,000.00) Dollars, leaving an available equity that
. was more than adequate to raise Two Million Two. Hundred Two
. ; Thousand
($2,200,000)
Dollars to discharge said mortgages.
'iApplications made by Plaintiff to title insurance companies
!!throughout the united states for title insurance were all denied.
'! The reason given for such denials was uniform; no insurance company
'! was willing to buy a lawsuit.
It was not a good insurance risk
:: inasmuch as the insurer would have to defend each lawsuit brought
i!bY the alleged Wickham ~eirs, and they were many.
, 54. Negotiations between. the County and conservancy on
I ,-";-'.
Hthe one hand and Plaintiff on the other concerning a sale of Robins
I' ,.
1\
;jIsland to the Defendant County were held beginning in May 1989.
"
,
,!
55. At a meeting of the Plaintiff with the Defendant
:;County and Conservancy, Claus Mittermayer was separated from the
.,
<negotiators for the Plaintiff, the County and the Conservancy.
.'
'j
56. At one time, early' in the negotiations, it was
..
I! relayed to Claus Mittermayer that the County was willing to pay
iiTwelve Million ($12,000,000) Dollars for all of the Island, or Ten
I.t Millo'1' ($10".000.000)' C01la,,-s with th<: ?laintlff- retaining t:~.:o lets
on The Island plus the two mainland business zoned parcels, plus
-19-
\
the riparian rights uround Robins Island for aqua-cultural use. In
addition, because the County/Conservancy offer was below the fair
value of Robins Island, Defendant County and Conservancy offered to
provide as a tax deduction for Plaintiff the difference between the
fair market value and the "bargain sales price." It was further a
part of the Conservancy/County offer to provide approximately $4-5
million dollars of_refinancing so that the foreclosure sale could
be prevented and Plaintiff could resolve' some of its pressing
"financial obligations prior to title closing.
57. Claus Mittermayer was further informed that since
'!the Defendant County and Conservancy were instrumental in creating
;; and asserting the Wickham Claim that only they would be able to
; resolve it.
.,
58.
The
following
morning,
Plaintiff . reluctantly
o'
i,
j acquiesced to the Ten Million ($10,000,000) Dollar package. Later
I that day, Claus Mittermayer was informed that the Defendant County
I
lihad changed its mind and was interested in only a complete sale for
"
i!Eight Million and Two Hundred Thousand ($8,200,000.00) Dollars.
I:
.
59. The Defendants were utilizing the passing of each
,iday to increase the pressure on the Plaintiff resulting from the
,impending loss of The .Island to a foreclosure sale in order to
':reduce the acquisition price of The Island.
H
60. The Conservancy stood to make a substantial profit
;:in consummating the sale in that it had a direct financial interest
. .
....; 1rl the acgui~.ititJu ..;f 1.anuti for th~.. Defend3.!1t Cocnty '-s tlCpe~ Spac.:-:
Program. "
Specifically, the Conservancy received a percentage of
-20-
, r",'
the selling price of the land as acquired by the Defendant County
through the aid of The Conservancy, plus all of its expenses
incurred in each such acquisition. The Conservancy was acting as
an acquisition conduit for the County under its "Open Space
Program." The Conservancy would derive further income from those
land acquisitions requiring "management".
61. The Eight Millio~ Two Hundred Thousand ($8,200,000)
'Dollar offer of the County not. being acceptable-, the Plaintiff
; resumed its negotiations with other interested parties to either
"
elsell or refinance The Island in an attempt to prevent the
,
"
!; foreclosure sale. Plaintiff's efforts were fruitless not only
I
'! because of its inability to obtain title insurance on., Robins
~ ;
Ii Island, but also because previously interested investors were
:,
: i warned by the Defendants "to back off" since Robins Island was to
I,
il
Jibe purchased by the County.
!i 62. These activities of, the Plaintiff continued into
11
i! June until Plaintiff met the Aston Group which was willing to
"
'i structure an arrangement to refinance, the mortgages and tnus
,iprevent the foreclosure sale.
These investors required a letter
"
',anyone. This order was temporarily lifted.
- 6';-.' . On: June '7, "1:>89 I . th~. ~~a~_n~i~fJ t~.I.r:::;.;h. ~h~ A-Gton
, Group,
went to Defendant NFBT and offered to pay Defendant NFBT
-21-
r. .
Four Hundred Thousand ($400,000) Dollars in order to adjourn the
auction date for 30 days. If the Plaintiff or the Aston Group did
not satisfy Plaintiff's indebtedness to the Bank within the 30
days, the Defendant NFBT could keep -the Four Hundred Thousand
($400,000) Dollars with no strings attached. NFBT refused such
offer.
65.. At the time of such refusal, Defendant Abigail
'Wickham, of the law firm of Wickham, Wickham & Bressler, was the
'attorney representing NFBT. At that time, .Defendant John Kanas
;iwas the President of said Bank and was a member of the Board of
Ii Trustees of the Long Island Chapter of the Conservancy. Also, at
. that time, Jay Wickham was a Director of said Bank.
66. Later, on the same day, after the refusal of the
adjournment, the Plaintiff was informed it had no alternative but
'i to make a deal to sell Robins Island to the County. Pursuant to
:i .' ",-,. .
'i that information, a conference with ~h~county and conservancy was
\;
;j arranged following the same format as in the prior meeting, i.e.,
,
separate negotiating rooms -- one for the seller and a separate one
for the buyer.
No face-to-face contact between the parties was l
'; permitted although Plaintiff requested such face. to face
negotiations.
67. Claus Mittermayer was informed that the County would
..
" pay Nine Million Two Hundred Thousand ($9,200,000) Dollars and the
; offer was not negotiable. Plaintiff was further informed that NFBT
. WCHJld accept: oiJly a"con;'::t'aC-c. in whiph ::~e Coun.ty was "cae purcha:::er..
With this information in hand, Claus Mittermayer, representing the
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Plaintiff, proceeded to contact the Aston Group through Douglas
Reimer for a meeting. This meeting was arranged and took place in
the lobby of the building where the Defendant County negotiators
were meeting.
68. Thereafter,
Claus
Mittermayer
went
to
his
negotiating room upstairs and then to the Defendant County meeting
room. Ther~, Claus Mittermayer, asPlaintiff1s representative, was
presented with the Suffolk Document and told to sign same.
69. Such duress and coercion deprived Claus Mittermayer,
,of the opportunity to exercise reasonable business jUdgment to
,: lawfully perform a binding corporate act.
70. Therefore, John Kanas, President of NFBT, demanded
: that the Plaintiff pay $30,000 to said Bank's attorney's offices
(Wickham, Wickham and Bressler) by 8:30 a.m. June 8, 1989 in order
:;
lito obtain an adjournment for 30 days of the foreclosure sale.
d
!: 71. It was about 11:00. p.m. on June 7, 1989, that
:i
:! Plaintiff asserted he had no idea where the Thirty Thousand
.
~ ~'Fairweather,
($30,000) Dollars was to be raised; at this time Mrs. Prudence
,
a friend of Mittermayer who had been at these
'-----
:: negotiations, told all present that Claus Mittermayer did not
.
,appear to be mentally or physically sound enough to sign the
: Suffolk Document and further that it'should be signed the next day.
72. Claus Mittermayer was told that Defendant John Kanas
'and Defendant Halpin had already been informed that, "'this is a
done de""l; and that the D~fendal1t' s ,Documept, 'must 'bes;;'qllcd b~f;Jl.'e'
Claus Mittermayer leaves this building."
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. 't".,., ....
73. Plaintiff executed - the docur"eat prepared by
Defendant County at approximately midnight.
74. The remainder of the night was spent in acquiring
the required Thirty Thousand
($30,000)
Dollars which was
accomplished. Arrangements had been made, in Connecticut, for the
money, a check, was obtained and Mittermayer then went at 8:30 a.m.
to the law offices of wickham, wickham and Bressler.
Abigail
Wickham, NFBT's lawyer, arrived at the office at 9:15 a.m. and then
;1
:i proceeded to object to the check and demanded that the $30,000 be
:; accompanied by a wire transfer of the funds, which was done.
it Abigail Wickham then presented a document for execution by
'i Plaintiff agreeing that the Thirty Thousand ($30,000) Dollars was
" not to b~ a credit against the indebtedness, but a fee for the
:i
adjournment.
since the sale was set for 10:30 a.m., said Thirty
i!
'i Thousand ($30,000) release document was executed by Plaintiff.
I. .
11 Abigail Wickham required Claus Mittermayer to produce appropriate
i identification, although she knew Mittermayer, personally, for many
, .
.,
i years before.
75. Said Abigail Wickham left the office for the
:1 Courthouse and at 10:25 a.m. was notified that the $30,000 wire
.
transfer was completed. The foreclosure sale"scheduled for 10:30
:; a.m. was then called off and adjourned to July 6, 1989.
:i
!I
76. All of the foregoing acts of the Defendants were
:! part of an unlawful and wrongful plan, scheme or design whereby
""'. id DAfendants acl:Lnq i,-. c;:,nce.ct with '!3.ch other, did wrongfully !
and unlawfully hinder, harass, impede, and interfere with the
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Plaintiff's right to engage in Its business of marketing and
managing its real properties according to applicable law, thereby
unlawfully depriving the Plaintiff of its civil rights.
77. All of the foregoing acts set forth in the Complaint
at paragraphs "49" to "76", both inclusive, were committed by the
Defendants under color of state law and pursuant to a common
;design,plan, or scheme of the Defendants to deprive the Plaintiff
'of its right to lawfully engage in its business of marketing and
:;
jrmanaging its real properties. said acts of the Defendants had for
"
'; their intent and purpose the deprivation. of Plaintiff's civil
!rights guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States and the
~!Fourteenth Amendment thereto.
;
"
:!
78.
said wrongful and unlawful conduct of the Defendants
"
.
il in depriving the Plaintiff of its civil right to engage in its
I! lawful business has caused the Plaintiff to sustain damages in the
II sum of Two Hundred Million ($200,,000,000) Dollars in that the
,I
,.
:;Plaintiff was forced to file a petition in Bankruptcy to preserve
"
;: its assets and discharge its financial obligations, to l.ncur
!
.
.!
" eno=ous
litigation expense,
to
forego lucrative business
i:
;lopportunities and to endure the stigma of impaired financial
standing.
79. With respect to the non-municipal Defendants,
"Plaintiff demands judgment awarding not only compensatory damages
.as set forth above but also punitive damages in such amount as to
make d.l~1 example of said Defenuc::.nts a.:1U to deter others f~ol1: ~i::1il?r
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.~'\--::' I ...!..
'.
conduct in the future of not less than Two Hundred ~illion
($200,000,000) Dollars.
80. Plaintiff further demands judgment for its attorney
fees and costs incurred in prosecuting this action.
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests a jUdgment
against the above-named Defendants as follows:
1. Upon the First Cause of Action in this Complaint,
'compensatory damages in the amount of ~NO Hundred Million
:1($200,000,000) Dollars against each of the Defendants jointly and
!
. i severally;
"
!i
i j 2. Upon the Second Cause of Action in this Complaint,
j!
.,
[(compensatory damages in the amount of Two Hundred Million
[i ($200,000,000) Dollars against each of the Defendants, jointly and
.,
:1
i i severally;
![
I'
! I 3. Upon the Third Cause of Action in this Complaint,
j'
ilcompensatory damages in the amount. of Two Hundred Million
i 1 --:--
:1($200,000,000) Dollars against each of the. Defendants jointly and
>I
:severally and also punitive damages against the non-municipal
i
,
i
;
. i
;
!Defendants in such amount as to make an example of said Defendants,
land to deter others from similar conduct in the future of not less
,1 r
:[than Two Hundred'Million ($200,000,000) Dollars; together with
;j
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,.
H
.i
II
"
II
"
ii
!i
i/
'I
!
.
,
I
,
I
i
;
,
I
II
:1
II
';
:1
i ~
Ii
"
,
"
"
Dated:
,; 11844._ L
4. Such'other relief as the Court deems just.
Mineola, New York
October 16, 1991
MELTZER, LIPPE, GOLDSTEIN AND
ll)'jO F, P;C.
By:.!/' i,;'1/;4A1~ ID No: 9863
V'"
~torneys for Plaintiff
190 Willis Avenue
Mineola, New York 11501
(516) 747-0300
.
I'
,
!
.
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