An appeal of a lawsuit by Hampshire Country Club seeking $55 million in damages from the village of Mamaroneck was shot down last week in federal court, reaffirming a previous ruling rendered in March.
The decision is the latest development in a long and contentious saga between the country club and the village which was initially sued in 2014 after ruling against the club’s proposal to build more than 100 condominiums on its 116-acre Orienta Point property.
In the suit, Hampshire alleged that the village’s decision to deny a zoning change to allow for the construction of several residential units on the property was unduly influenced by backlash from residents in the surrounding area.
However, Mamaroneck Mayor Norman Rosenblum, a Republican, feels justified in the federal court’s decision to uphold the village’s denial of the zoning change.
“The village is not required to rezone something or consider it just because someone disagrees,” he said.
The $55 million figure named in the suit, the club said, represented revenue lost as a result of the club’s inability to construct those units.
The court’s move to uphold the decision comes after a number of amended proposals from Hampshire Country Club that sought to make the addition of dozens of residential units more zoning compliant.
A separate lawsuit filed by the club against the village that alleges violations in New York state Open Meetings Law is still being reviewed by a state court.
In 2015, the club was the victor of a separate lawsuit filed by Mamaroneck Coastal Environment Coalition, MCEC, a local nonprofit focused on village environmental issues.
The suit centered on the club’s practice of holding events and fundraisers for “non-members,” which members of MCEC claimed violated local zoning laws.
Thomas Nappi, a spokesman for Hampshire, said that the most recent decision comes as a major let down.
“We’re disappointed by the court’s decision,” he said. “We believe that the village made an error in not allowing the zoning change.”
While Nappi said another appeal is not likely forthcoming, he added that the club is still pursing a home development that would add 44 single-family homes and 66 townhouses.
Currently, a Draft Environmental Impact Statement is being carried out by the country club.
