Fight Between Members Over The Sale Of The Yonkers Synagogue

YONKERS - Greenburgh Hebrew Center petitions the state Supreme Court for permission to sell the Midchester Jewish Center building, and about 90 percent of Midchester's 144 members joined the Greenburgh Hebrew Center at 515 Broadway in Dobbs Ferry, according to court papers. In its court filing, the Greenburgh Hebrew Center said it would use the $2.2 million in sales proceeds to clear the building, pay severance to former Midchester employees, reduce a bank loan made to the Greenburgh synagogue and create a Midchester endowment that after five years could be used for any purpose.

In letters to the attorney general, some opponents allege that the Greenburgh Hebrew Center improperly approved the proposed use of $2.2 million it will get from Midchester's sale, Midchester's members did not get to approve the sale, none of the sale's proceeds will benefit Yonkers' Jewish community, and former Midchester congregants believed that they could continue using the synagogue for prayer services, which they can't.