The Atlantic Beach board of trustees voted unanimously to provide legal defense for the village’s Board of Zoning Appeals in its case against Chabad of the Beaches.
The zoning board selected Leo Dorfman, of Sokoloff Stern LLP, to represent it in the ongoing Chabad litigation. Dorfman was chosen following a recommendation by Atlantic Beach Village Attorney Jared Kasschau that the board seek separate counsel.
The decision reverses the village’s original stance to have a single attorney represent both the village and the zoning board in the legal dispute with Chabad, which began in 2021, after the Chabad purchased property on Park Street in the village. Atlantic Beach then attempted to acquire the property from the Chabad through a claim of eminent domain in 2022. A federal judge ruled in Chabad’s favor, and it went on to present plans to create a religious community center with an accessory café last August.
Kasschau made the recommendation that the zoning board seek separate counsel at the village’s monthly meeting on Feb. 10, citing a settlement demand by Chabad as the reason.
“I am pleased to report that we have received a settlement demand from the plaintiff’s counsel in relation to the Chabad matter,” Kasschau said. “I then made the determination that it’s appropriate, at this juncture, because the settlement needs to include elements from both the board and the BZA, that the Board of Zoning Appeals and its members have their own individual counsel.”
While the specifics of the settlement demand have not been made public, Kasschau emphasized that it required input from the BZA as well as the village trustees, necessitating separate legal representation to ensure that all interests are adequately addressed.
Atlantic Beach Mayor George Pappas stated in a letter to residents, posted on the village website, that if the village is able to reacquire the Park Street property, it plans to create a year-round community center with outdoor recreational space.
Sokoloff Stern is a municipal defense firm that operates on Long Island and across New York state. Dorfman regularly represents municipalities in cases similar to the lawsuits Chabad has filed against the village and the zoning board.
The village was unable to respond to questions about how much it would cost to hire separate counsel. According to the agenda distributed at the board meeting, Dorfman’s hourly rates are $475 for partners, $425 for associates and $200 for paralegals.
Village Trustee Barry Frohlinger addressed those questions during the meeting, and provided background on the village’s expenditures for the lawsuits to date.
“In November, we reported legal fees from two law firms,” Frohlinger said. “Turns out we are on our fifth law firm, and we’ve also hired a PR agency, a bond-issuing counsel. We have interest, and two of our five lines of insurance, one of which is for officers’ liability, another one for liability for the village, are going up $100,000 a year. So we, the village, have spent $600,000 on costs related to Libbey and Chabad.”
The Libbey Property, at 2035 Park St., is the second property involved in the dispute. The village successfully acquired it through eminent domain proceedings in 2022.
Mitchell Sahn, a former mayor of Hewlett Bay Park, noted his opposition to bringing in separate counsel.
“I was the mayor of Hewlett Bay Park, and I settled a lawsuit very similar to this, and the one thing I would not do as mayor is permit separate counsel for the Board of Zoning Appeals,” Sahn said. “A, it’s divide and conquer. B, the interests are not aligned 100 percent, and we have to have our interests aligned within the house 100 percent.”
Atlantic Beach resident Douglas Garczynski said he agreed with Sahn, and that it seemed like the village and the BZA were “all in this together at this point.”
“I have deep respect for both the board of trustees and the zoning board, but they have to come together for the sake of this village to unanimously get behind the settlement,” Garczynski said. “This idea of two legal firms, as the mayor says here, is contradictory to that spirit, at least.”
Kasschau assured residents that both parties’ interests would be aligned for the benefit of the village, and that the new counsel would only handle litigation.
Pappas did not attend the Feb. 10 meeting. Contacted by the Herald, he said, “I will not comment on pending litigation.”
The next village board meeting is scheduled for March 10, at 7:30 p.m., in Village Hall, 65 the Plaza, Atlantic Beach.
Have an opinion on Atlantic Beach’s decision to pay for separate legal representation? Send a letter to mberman@liherald.com.
