Town Attorney denies role in booking daughter's wedding
Longtime Hempstead Town Attorney Joe Ra on Thursday said he played no role in booking his daughter's wedding reception at a town-owned catering hall run by a vendor under investigation by state and federal authorities.
Ra, the Franklin Square Republican leader, also said he never talked about his daughter's July reception at the Sands on Lido Beach with Democratic Supervisor Laura Gillen, who held an October news conference attacking vendor Butch Yamali for operating the oceanfront facility without an official town contract.
"I have never discussed it with Laura Gillen. Nobody in that building (Hempstead Town hall) ever discussed it with me," Ra said, in returning a Tuesday request for comment.
At her October news conference, Gillen said Yamali, who heads the Dover Group, had been holding weddings and other events at the Sands through a "verbal or oral" agreement since 2011, including four events in 2019.
“There is nothing in place protecting the town and the town taxpayers from potential liability at this facility should anything occur,” Gillen said.
A Yamali spokesman told reporters that Dover has a valid operating contract for the Sands but declined to provide a copy. Dover also runs the town's Malibu Beach club.
Gillen never mentioned that one of this year's events at the Sands was the wedding reception for Ra's daughter Jillian and her husband Jonathan Duchnowski. The reception cost about $26,550, according to the Sands invoice marked "Paid" on Aug. 2.
Ra said his daughter and her husband had booked the Sands for their reception in 2018 without his knowledge. He said his daughter, a school teacher, had worked in the past for Yamali in a summer day-care facility he operated. Ra said he only learned about the Sands booking after the couple signed the contract.
"I had absolutely positively nothing to do with it," Ra said, adding, "The relationship was all hers."
Days before the couple's July 23 reception, Newsday reported that the town parks commissioner and comptroller in April had given Yamali a five-year extension on his Malibu contract without town board approval. Newsday subsequently reported that Yamali owed seven months rent when the Malibu contract was extended. Yamali countered that Hempstead owed him $2 million for capital improvement he made to the facility.
Federal investigators then subpoenaed the town for records on Dover and Yamali.
Ra pointed out that his daughter and fiance had booked the Sands before any controversy erupted over Yamali.
But Newsday reported on Monday that Gillen had given federal and state investigators years of handwritten notes found in a parks department file that questioned Yamali's operations, including the apparent lack of a contract for the Sands.
It was not clear who wrote the notes but Newsday reported one dated Oct. 17, 2013 appeared under a a letterhead that read "From the Desk of Phillip R. Brookmeyer," who is counsel to the town parks department. One note said the lack of a Sands contract "suggests appearance of conflict of interest/gross incompetence."
Ra said Brookmeyer and the parks department work out of a different building and Ra knew nothing about those notes.
"I had no idea any of that was going on," Ra said.
He denied any kind of deal with Gillen for her not to mention his daughter's wedding at the October news conference. "Absolutely not," Ra said.
Asked if he had any kind of deal with federal investigators, he said, "Absolutely not."
Gillen spokesman Michael Fricchione, when asked why Gillen didn't touch on the Republican town attorney's apparent conflict of interest, said the supervisor "has referred this matter to law enforcement, along with the Town’s outside counsel that the Board hired in order to avoid conflicts of interest."
Gillen lost her bid for re-election to Republican town tax receiver Don Clavin, who takes office Jan. 1.
Ra acknowledged that Gillen is a Democrat, but said he worked with her as the town's attorney. "I got along with her very well," he said. "We were there to govern."
Ra, the Franklin Square Republican leader, also said he never talked about his daughter's July reception at the Sands on Lido Beach with Democratic Supervisor Laura Gillen, who held an October news conference attacking vendor Butch Yamali for operating the oceanfront facility without an official town contract.
"I have never discussed it with Laura Gillen. Nobody in that building (Hempstead Town hall) ever discussed it with me," Ra said, in returning a Tuesday request for comment.
At her October news conference, Gillen said Yamali, who heads the Dover Group, had been holding weddings and other events at the Sands through a "verbal or oral" agreement since 2011, including four events in 2019.
“There is nothing in place protecting the town and the town taxpayers from potential liability at this facility should anything occur,” Gillen said.
A Yamali spokesman told reporters that Dover has a valid operating contract for the Sands but declined to provide a copy. Dover also runs the town's Malibu Beach club.
Gillen never mentioned that one of this year's events at the Sands was the wedding reception for Ra's daughter Jillian and her husband Jonathan Duchnowski. The reception cost about $26,550, according to the Sands invoice marked "Paid" on Aug. 2.
Ra said his daughter and her husband had booked the Sands for their reception in 2018 without his knowledge. He said his daughter, a school teacher, had worked in the past for Yamali in a summer day-care facility he operated. Ra said he only learned about the Sands booking after the couple signed the contract.
"I had absolutely positively nothing to do with it," Ra said, adding, "The relationship was all hers."
Days before the couple's July 23 reception, Newsday reported that the town parks commissioner and comptroller in April had given Yamali a five-year extension on his Malibu contract without town board approval. Newsday subsequently reported that Yamali owed seven months rent when the Malibu contract was extended. Yamali countered that Hempstead owed him $2 million for capital improvement he made to the facility.
Federal investigators then subpoenaed the town for records on Dover and Yamali.
Ra pointed out that his daughter and fiance had booked the Sands before any controversy erupted over Yamali.
But Newsday reported on Monday that Gillen had given federal and state investigators years of handwritten notes found in a parks department file that questioned Yamali's operations, including the apparent lack of a contract for the Sands.
It was not clear who wrote the notes but Newsday reported one dated Oct. 17, 2013 appeared under a a letterhead that read "From the Desk of Phillip R. Brookmeyer," who is counsel to the town parks department. One note said the lack of a Sands contract "suggests appearance of conflict of interest/gross incompetence."
Ra said Brookmeyer and the parks department work out of a different building and Ra knew nothing about those notes.
"I had no idea any of that was going on," Ra said.
He denied any kind of deal with Gillen for her not to mention his daughter's wedding at the October news conference. "Absolutely not," Ra said.
Asked if he had any kind of deal with federal investigators, he said, "Absolutely not."
Gillen spokesman Michael Fricchione, when asked why Gillen didn't touch on the Republican town attorney's apparent conflict of interest, said the supervisor "has referred this matter to law enforcement, along with the Town’s outside counsel that the Board hired in order to avoid conflicts of interest."
Gillen lost her bid for re-election to Republican town tax receiver Don Clavin, who takes office Jan. 1.
Ra acknowledged that Gillen is a Democrat, but said he worked with her as the town's attorney. "I got along with her very well," he said. "We were there to govern."
The plot thickens!!!!!
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