WPCNR ROVING PHOTOGRAPHER. November 17, 2004: Today’s POTD is White Plains today as seen from 2,000 feet looking West, showing the Trump Tower at City Center, City Hall, Westchester One and Eastview.
WHITE PLAINS WEST. By the WPCNR Roving Photographer.
WPCNR ROVING PHOTOGRAPHER. November 16, 2004: Today’s unique photo is of a wonderful thing: a freight yard, recalling the burly days of yesteryear of glamorous freight cars, sleek diesels dripping testosterone, and steel tracks that went to the ends of the earth. The tracks are rusty now, the mighty workhorse engines rest. Freight cars no longer are invitations to the Union Pacific, the Southern, the Pennsy, the Milwaukee Road, the Soo Line, the Illinois Central or the Boston & Maine, the D & H. But you can see them again and get the feel of the old main line at Danbury Railroad Museum. PLAYGROUND FOR TRAINS. Danbury, Connecticut. Photo by The WPCNR Roving Photographer.
WPCNR MONEY TALKS. November 16, 2004: The New York Times reported today that the Fortunoff family has sold its chain of six stores, to Trimaran Capital Partners for $280 Million. The Fortunoff family retains a 25% stake in their business. Reports that Peter J. Solomon Company was shopping the properties last fall (released by the Solomon organization), were denied to WPCNR by the Fortunoff organization. A Fortunoff spokesperson at the time said the company was merely seeking capital for expansion. Yesterday they sold control of the company.
In another apparent windfall for a local player, Cappelli Enterprises has sold its stake in the Concord and Grossinger’s hotel properties in the Catskills, according to a report from Reckson Strategic Venture that crossed the Dow Jones NewsWire Monday. Bruce Berg, President of Cappelli Enterprises, declined comment to WPCNR. Louis Cappelli, the Super Developer, philanthropist, and creator of the Renaissance in White Plains, took WPCNR’s call but has not made an official statement on the reported property sale as of Tuesday morning.
An observer doing a rough analysis of the sketchy figures on Fortunoff sales, notes to WPCNR that, according to the Times published report Fortunoff had $445 Million in sales in the year 2000. Our analyst notes that the purchase price of $280 Million is 62% of the total earnings of the company in 2000. Earnings now could be as high as $550Million to $600 Million, considering Fortunoff did not have its White Plains store in 2000, the year the $445 Million figure was quoted by The Times.
Our analyst this this probably means that Fortunoff is carrying a lot of debt considering the purchase price is little more than half the projected revenues of the company. Fortunoff’s investment bankers are reported as saying the sale will be used to finance new stores in Palm Beach and Miami. The Times also reports the anchor Fortunoff store in Westbury earned $160 Million in sales in 2003, meaning its other five stores earn around $300 Million, or $60 Million per store. It could be the new owner might consider closing some of the satellites.
Cappelli Closes Another Deal?
Meanwhile, Louis Cappelli and his partners in the Concord Hotel and Grossinger’s properties in Sullivan County, have been reported by Dow Jones as having sold their Catskill stake in the two grand old hotels. Mr. Cappelli has not confirmed this to WPCNR.
It appears that when Governor George Pataki closed a deal with the Cayuga Indian Nation, June 11, to build an operate a casino adjacent to Monticello Raceway, that it made Mr. Cappelli’s dream of a $500 Million Resort and Timeshare at the Concord, not as attractive, since it would be competing with a massive casino at Monticello Raceway. Mr. Cappelli had long dreamed of turning the Concord and Grossinger’s properties into a casino (90 miles from New York City).
On the other hand, it may be that Empire Resorts, owers of Monticello Raceway, the reported purchasers of the Concord-Grossinger’s property, (which still stand, despite a much ballyhooed start of demolition in October, 2000) see the now reported former Cappelli-Reckson Strategic Venture property as a better site for their casino, since they are already cleared to operate a 1,800 video slot machine quasi-casino at the Raceway.
No dollar amount was reported, and the report of the sale was aired on WCBS Radio. Mr. Cappelli, partnering with Reckson Strategic Venture, of Uniondale, N.Y., purchased Grossingers for $6 Million, and the Concord for $10.6 Million in 1998.
WPCNR PRESS BOX. By John F. Bailey. November 16, 2004: Mario Scarano, Athletic Director for White Plains Schools for the last six years, who was forced to retire this year by the Board of Education this year due to conflicts in philosophy with Board of Education members, will be honored at a Retirement Dinner Thursday evening, November 18 at the Davenport Club in his hometown of New Rochelle. For reservations call 632-7800. Dr. Laura Boehlert, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources, reports a new Athletic Director is expected to be appointed in December.
So Long, Mr. Scarano. Mario Scarano, in an old familiar scene. No longer the man who was always there in the White Plains High School Athletic Office. Photo, WPCNR News Archive.
Mr. Scarano introduced Fall Winter and Spring Sports Dinners to honor White Plains Athletes, brought a full-time Trainer to the high school athletic program, installed a weight room and training facility, an obstacle course on campus, enhanced the softball, soccer and baseball fields at the high school, pioneered women’s sports, and presided over an athletic program which won 87% of their competions last year.
Nick Panaro, Interim Athletic Director. Photo, WPCNR Sports Archive.
Mr. Scarano has been replaced on an interim basis by Nick Panaro as Interim Athletic Director. Dr. Lenora Boehlert, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources for the School District reports to WPCNR that six candidates for the Athletic Director position and six candidates for the Coordinator of Health position will be presented to the full committee in charge of selecting Mr. Scarano’s successor, within the next two weeks. She said she expected to name a new Athletic Director, and a new Coordinator of Health by the beginning of December.
Sad End to the Scarano Scenario
The “Scarano Scenario” resulting in Mr. Scanaro’s untimely departure (just before the start of the athletic year) had its routes in Mr. Scarano’s desiring to split the position of Athletic Director and Coordinator of Health Programs, and was aggravated by a conflict with a member of the Board of Education involving their child. That member had pushed Mr. Scarano to restore their child to an athletic team when that child was cut. Mr. Scarano refused to do so, making an enemy.
That matter came to a head when Mr. Scarano suggested this year, for the second year in a row that the Board of Education split the position.
Mr. Scarano proposed last year and again in January to the Board of Education that his Athletic Director & Coordinator of Health position be split into two positions because he felt it was too much for one person to handle.
If the position had been split, Mr. Scarano, would have stayed on as Athletic Director. However, the Board of Education delayed the decision to divide the duties of the job, citing passing of the School Budget as an excuse (though White Plains passes the school budget every year by a better than 3 to 1 margin). This left Mr. Scarano no choice but to retire, he felt.
The Split Delayed.
Mr. Scarano advised Mr. Connors in early July he would retire and submitted his papers officially (Mr. Connors had held the papers for about six months, pending the Board of Education decision on splitting the position).
The day after Mr. Scarano officially told Mr. Connors to submit his papers, the Board of Education voted to split the position.
Sorry, You Can’t Come Back.
When Mr. Scarano told Mr. Connors he wanted to come back now that the Board had decided to plit away the Athletic Director position, the Board of Education declined to take action to reinstate him in the position as he wished. They denied taking a vote on his coming back, but by not allowing him to come back they were, in effect, firing him. As Mr. Scarano told WPCNR, “they decided to go in a different direction.”
Persons familiar with the situation say Mr. Scarano had made enemies of certain members of the Board of Education and parents who were out to get him for not submitting to their requests involving the treatment of their children by certain team coaches.