Opinion
12-02-2015
In the Matter of MOUNT MANRESA, petitioner-respondent;Committee to Save Mount Manresa, et al., appellants;Savo Brother's, Inc., et al., respondents-respondents.
Mischel & Horn, P.C., New York, N.Y. (Scott T. Horn and Naomi M. Taub of counsel), for appellants. Cullen and Dykman LLP, New York, N.Y. (Cynthia Boyer Okrent of counsel), for petitioner-respondent. Menicucci Villa Cilmi, PLLC, Staten Island, N.Y. (Jeremy Panzella of counsel), for respondents-respondents Savo Brother's, Inc., and Mount Builders, Inc. Eric T. Schneiderman, Attorney General, New York, N.Y. (Steven C. Wu and Judith Vale of counsel), for respondent-respondent New York State.
Mischel & Horn, P.C., New York, N.Y. (Scott T. Horn and Naomi M. Taub of counsel), for appellants.
Cullen and Dykman LLP, New York, N.Y. (Cynthia Boyer Okrent of counsel), for petitioner-respondent.
Menicucci Villa Cilmi, PLLC, Staten Island, N.Y. (Jeremy Panzella of counsel), for respondents-respondents Savo Brother's, Inc., and Mount Builders, Inc.
Eric T. Schneiderman, Attorney General, New York, N.Y. (Steven C. Wu and Judith Vale of counsel), for respondent-respondent New York State.
Opinion
In a proceeding pursuant to Not–For–Profit Corporation Law § 511 for permission to sell certain real property to Mount Builders, LLC, the Committee to Save Mount Manresa, Joseph G. Canepa, Barbara Sanchez, Regina Norkus, Diane Rizzo, Diane Savino, and Nicole Malliotakis appeal from an order of the Supreme Court, Richmond County (Troia, J.), dated January 7, 2014, which granted the petition and authorized the sale.
ORDERED that the order is affirmed, with one bill of costs to the petitioner-respondent and the respondents-respondents appearing separately and filing separate briefs.
In this special proceeding pursuant to Not–For Profit Corporation Law § 511, Mount Manresa petitioned for leave to sell 15.43 acres of property located on Staten Island. The appellants, the Committee to Save Mount Manresa, Joseph G. Canepa, Barbara Sanchez, Regina Norkus, Diane Rizzo, Diane Savino, and Nicole Malliotakis, opposed the petition. The Supreme Court granted the petition and authorized the sale.
Since the appellants are not members of Mount Manresa, they lack standing to oppose the petition (see Congregation Beth Medrosh of Monsey, Inc. v. Rolling Acres Chestnut Ridge, LLC, 101 A.D.3d 797, 800, 956 N.Y.S.2d 95; Congregation Atzei Chaim v. 26 Adar N.B. Corp., 27 A.D.3d 412, 412–413, 811 N.Y.S.2d 749; Matter of Bridge to Spiritual Freedom, 304 A.D.2d 574, 759 N.Y.S.2d 328; Matter of Friends World Coll. v. Nicklin, 249 A.D.2d 393, 671 N.Y.S.2d 489; see also Female Academy of the Sacred Heart v. Doane Stuart School, 91 A.D.3d 1254, 1256, 937 N.Y.S.2d 682). In any event, the evidence established that the terms of the sale were fair and reasonable, and in the furtherance of the petitioner's purpose and the interests of its members (see N–PCL 511[d]; Matter of Prospect Hgts. Hous. Dev. Fund Corp., 91 A.D.3d 956, 956–957, 937 N.Y.S.2d 620; Scher v. Yeshivath Makowa Corp., 54 A.D.3d 839, 864 N.Y.S.2d 113).
RIVERA, J.P., DICKERSON, COHEN and MILLER, JJ., concur.