Petition Challenging Chap Train Station Lease Filed With Town

One of the proprietors passed over for a lease to operate a restaurant at the Chappaqua train station submitted a petition to New Castle officials last week that could trigger a referendum to determine whether the agreement should be rescinded.

Erin and Peter Chase, owners of BPC, a company that operates restaurants and bars across the United States and abroad, including some in well-known hotels, submitted the petition containing 520 signatures to the town on June 18.

They contended that the New Castle Town Board conducted a highly flawed Request for Proposal (RFP) process that lacked transparency and fairness. The board last month selected Leslie Lampert to open Love at 10514, which would be a bistro with similarities to her take-out establishment Ladle of Love in Mount Kisco. Lampert, who also owns and operates Cafe of Love in Mount Kisco, agreed to a 10-year lease with a five-year option starting with a monthly rent of $3,300.

“There’s a process that should be followed that makes an RFP fair and equitable,” said Peter Chase. “There’s no question in our minds that it wasn’t followed. There’s no question in our minds that we were told something that wasn’t true.”

The couple was one of three parties in contention to provide food service at the more than century-old town-owned building. Also considered was Carla Gambescia, owner of Via Vanti! in Mount Kisco. Gambescia believed last year she would be the food operator at the Chappaqua train station, but the prior town board never finalized the agreement. In February, a spat between her and the new board over public access to the bathrooms contributed to scuttling a deal and the town initiating the RFP process.

The Chases, Chappaqua residents for about a year-and-a-half, said they have been involved with many RFP processes in their careers but none were as irregular as the one conducted by the town. The three hopefuls were invited to make presentations to the board before a formal RFP was released, they said. Once the RFP was circulated, the town accepted proposals for only eight days, which failed to attract additional candidates.

The RFP didn’t include some basic information, such as the exact size of the space or a timeframe for a decision.

Erin and Peter Chase also said they were told by Councilman Adam Brodsky that he would support them but later told them they weren’t a known entity in town. The night of the vote, Supervisor Robert Greenstein said the decision was influenced by their conclusion that a sit-down restaurant was not the right choice for the depot.

They said their presentation outlined a market-style concept with that only had waiter service in the evenings.

Typically, when a decision is made, all parties are formally notified by the entity before the selection is made public, Peter Chase said.

“We can’t sit idly by and allow something like this to happen to us,” he said. “If this is happening at our level, what is happening with some of the larger issues (in town)?”

Greenstein and Town Administrator Jill Simon Shapiro said the petition has been turned over to counsel.

“We’re reviewing the petition with our attorneys and considering our options,” Greenstein said.

According to the Chases, town officials have five business days from the time the petition was submitted to acknowledge its receipt. Provided there are the requisite number of valid signatures, the town board could agree on its own to rescind the resolution that granted the lease or schedule a referendum within 60 days.

In this case, 347 signatures were needed, Erin Chase said. She said countless hours were spent carefully verifying that people who signed lived in town.

Brodsky denied that the RFP process was flawed or conducted haphazardly, saying a majority of the board decided to move ahead with the operator that best meets New Castle’s needs.

“The board has the prerogative to choose the operator we believe would serve the community best,” he said.

At the June 10 town board meeting, while the Chases were still gathering petitions, Greenstein and Brodsky each issued statements regarding the controversy.

“I concluded that Leslie’s proposal offers the best overall value to the town and was the best fit for the train station space,” Brodsky said. “It’s that simple.”

Lampert had hoped to open this summer; however, Brodsky estimated a permissive referendum would take four to six months for a new operator to move into the space.

Greenstein lauded Lampert for being a civic-minded community member for donating food large quantities of food following Superstorm Sandy and the Sandy Hook tragedy in Connecticut.

“Leslie is the definition of community and we’re sorry she’s caught in the middle of this,” Greenstein said.

Peter Chase said their decision to force the board to rescind or a referendum is not meant as a slap to Lampert.

“This absolutely is not about Ms. Lampert by any stretch,” he said. “We’ve eaten in her restaurant. This is about the process. We can’t be clearer about that. We’d be happy not being the ones going in there as long as the process is fair and hopefully that fair process would get the best candidate.”

While officials were reluctant to estimate the cost to hold a referendum, Shapiro said the last time a special election was held in town with the old lever machines, it cost about $5,000. The new machines will cost significantly more than that, she said.