NEWS

Trump seeks 90 percent tax cut at Westchester golf club

David McKay Wilson
dwilson3@lohud.com

Donald Trump boasts of his business prowess "to get it done" when making the case to become the next president of the United States.

His golf company’s audacious bid to slash its local property taxes by 90 percent at Trump National Golf Club in Briarcliff Manor provides a glimpse of how he operates in the trenches of Westchester’s real-estate world.

If Trump gets it done in Ossining, property taxes on the 140-acre complex on a Briarcliff Manor hilltop will plummet from $471,000 to $47,000, with the exclusive club’s neighbors picking up the $424,000 Trump would save. Trump would save the most in school taxes: the club’s bill would drop from $287,000 to $32,000.

Trump National also pays taxes to the village of Briarcliff Manor, the town of Ossining, and Westchester County.

“He’s going to pass the tax burden on to everybody else,” said Ossining Receiver of Taxes Gloria Fried. “And we still won’t get to play on his golf course.”

Former county Legislator Richard Wishnie, of Briarcliff Manor, says village homeowners are in no mood to pick up the sizable tax burden that Trump National wants to shed.

"It makes no sense to me for any of us to subsidize a billionaire so he can enjoy even more profits at that property," he said.

This is what Trump National's attorney, Jeff Rodner  claims is worth just $1.4 million: the club's 18-hole championship course, 75,000-square foot clubhouse with five overnight suites, and approval to build 71 condominiums overlooking the 9th-hole fairway in one of Westchester's top school districts.

The town of Ossining had valued the 140-acre property at $35 million after Trump spent a reported $45 million to rebuild the former Briar Hall course in the mid-2000s and construct its opulent clubhouse. But in 2008, when the economic downturn soured Westchester real estate and cut discretionary spending for wealthy golf aficionados, the town lowered the value by 55 percent after Trump's legal team pleaded for relief. Today the club is taxed on a value of $13.5 million.

Trump National’s claim that the property is now worth just $1.4 million appears in a June 16 assessment complaint filed by Rodner with the town of Ossining Board of Assessment Review. If the board fails to provide a big enough reduction, he can then file for relief in state Supreme Court.

Rodner did not return several phone messages to ascertain on what basis Trump believes the land he bought for $7.5 million had seen its value drop so precipitously in such a short time.

Trump National general manager Brian Lynch told Tax Watch he was unaware of the club’s aggressive campaign to lower its property taxes.

“How do you go from a value of $13 million to $1.4 million?” wondered Lynch. “I wish I could help you. I’m brand new here. I haven’t gotten my arms around the whole situation yet.”

You wouldn't know about Trump National's dire condition by visiting the website of the club, which is one of 15 Trump courses around the world. There, you'd find a picture of The Donald, teeing off, boasting in a signed note about the “luxury lifestyle” members will enjoy.  Lynch declined to provide information on how many members filled the club's roster, and what it cost to join. A 2001 New York Times story reported that membership deposits were $250,000.

Trump, an avid golfer, takes a personal interest in the details of Briarcliff club's management. He has played golf with local sports writers to show them around. In true Trump fashion, the sumptuous locker room includes lockers with nameplates for such luminaries as former New York City Mayor Rudy Guiliani and television star Regis Philbin. He can also be counted upon in the Westchester golf community to open his course for local amateur tournaments.

“Trump National Golf Club Westchester is among the most highly regarded in the state and the sensational clubhouse provides the ultimate setting for special events, member activities and relaxation,” wrote Trump on the website. “Located just 30 minutes from Manhattan in the heart of Westchester County, award winning services and exceptional facilities are the hallmarks of a club that lends itself to today’s families and to future generations — all sharing a common passion for the game of golf and a love of this scenic countryside. This memorable club provides more than a membership — it’s a true luxury lifestyle.”

Ossining Assessor Fernando Gonzalez is prepared to fight Trump's low-ball grievance. He said there was no way to justify the claim that the Trump complex is worth just $1.4 million.

“It offends anybody who knows anything about Ossining values," he said. "It’s like me claiming that my brand-new truck that cost $45,000 is worth only $4,500. It’s just ridiculous.”

To put Trump's purported value into perspective, a three-bedroom villa built at Trump National’s 16th hole, on a separate tax parcel, is on the market for $2 million — 43 percent more than Trump National says its entire property should be taxed at. A four-bedroom home on Old Briarcliff Road is on the market for $1.4 million. 

The Briarcliff Manor golf club is among several Trump projects across Westchester. He owns the estate of former Washington Post publisher Eugene Meyer's 213-acre expanse in Bedford, North Castle and New Castle, however, his plans to develop it have languished for more than two decades. His 2013 approval for nine building lots in Bedford remains on the shelf. Trump's partnership with developer Louis Cappelli bore fruit in the 2000s, with high-rises bearing his name towering in downtown New Rochelle and White Plains. Sales have gone slower at the Trump Park condos on Barger Street, by the Taconic State Parkway in Yorktown, said Geoff Thompson, of Thompson & Bender, which once represented the company that developed those projects. .

Thompson recalls when Trump came before a Briarcliff Manor board considering approvals for the golf course.

"He found a seat in the middle of the audience, and no one could concentrate," Thompson said. "Finally he got up and spoke. His mere appearance was a mind-blower for people."

Though the Trump golf club is not up for sale, those in the development world were stunned to learn that Trump's attorney has certified in legal documents that Trump's Briarcliff jewel is only worth a mere $1.4 million.

At that price, affordable housing developer Alexander Roberts, executive director of Community Housing Innovations in White Plains, said he’s prepared to buy the entire complex.  With land costs for affordable housing in Westchester pegged at about $60,000 a unit, the land for the 71 condominiums would be worth $4 million. And that’s without considering the clubhouse and the club’s remaining land.

“I’d pay him $2 million, cash,” said Roberts. “And Trump would get a 43 percent premium.”