Manor deals aren’t likely to be closed until August

With at least a few legislators from western Suffolk turning critical of the county’s open space preservation programs, the Town of Shelter Island and the county’s Division of Real Estate are anxious to close two deals to buy the development rights of about 80 acres of Sylvester Manor as soon as possible.

The non-profit foundation that runs Sylvester Manor Educational Farm Inc. needs the $7.25 million to be raised by the sales to create an endowment that will provide income for the farm’s operations.

At one time, the town and county had hoped to close on both deals by early this year. Because of delays, the town and the county are now hoping to close on one of the deals this March and the other in August, Supervisor Jim Dougherty announced at a Town Board work session on Tuesday.

Sylvester Manor was established in the 17th century. Mr. Dougherty noted that an unusual title search extending back more than three centuries to the English Crown had taken longer than expected to complete. Also, family relatives in Pennsylvania, he disclosed, are challenging Eben Ostby’s right to the property. Mr. Ostby, who lives in California, inherited it from his uncle Andrew Fiske.

Mr. Dougherty said there was nothing for the town and county to do but wait for that conflict to be settled so the closings can proceed.

Meanwhile, there were hints of resistance to the county programs that fund open space acquisitions. Discussing a motion to authorize the Sylvester Manor acquisition last month, William J. Lindsay of Holbrook, the presiding officer of the County Legislature, was among several legislators who expressed some skepticism about the deal.

“I’m very concerned about the amount of money that we have going forward,” he said, “and we just continue to buy these huge, huge parcels.”

Even though county staff who favor the deal pointed out that the public has endorsed open space programs by wide margins in eight referenda over the years, he suggested they should be asked to vote again.

“The only thing that I worry about is if that resolution was before the voters today, would they approve it?” he asked. “Because, certainly, the economic climate has changed dramatically. “

Assured the deal did not include the acquisition of the manor house, he said, “Okay. I don’t want any more mansions.”

He voted for the acquisition and the motion passed 15-1 with two legislators absent.

In an email this week, Mr. Ostby wrote that a “family descended from Nathaniel Sylvester has expressed enough concern or interest in the Manor that — apparently — the title insurance company left ‘open’ the possibility of a claim. I, however, don’t know exactly what this family is claiming or what they might want.

“You’d think it would be straightforward to determine who owns a piece of property,” he added, “but these transactions date from two centuries ago.It is our feeling that the purpose of a title search and title insurance is exactly to clear this kind of question up, and we’re expecting that it will get cleared up in due course. I don’t think it will have a major effect on the completion of the sale of development rights.”

Mr. Ostby, a pioneer in digital film animation who helped found Pixar — now a division of Disney — inherited Sylvester Manor and its 243 acres in 1992. He took possession when his uncle’s widow, Alice, died in 2006 and soon began working with his nephew, Bennett Konesni, on a plan to save the property from development and make it relevant to the community. Mr. Ostby endorsed Mr. Konesni’s vision of a sustainable organic farm that would celebrate community agriculture and raise funds through produce sales, educational programs and donations.

The property with its 18th century manor house has been described as the only intact former slave plantation in America north of Virginia. It is a remnant of Nathaniel Sylvester’s original 17th-century holding, which included all of Shelter Island.

Mr. Ostby said in a phone interview in December that the farm was functioning “hand to mouth” and “barely scraping by.” The two pending development rights sales, he added, would “provide enough of a cushion to make it through the next few years.” Despite some concerns, he was not fearful that the effort would fail, he said.

Mr. Ostby in late 2010 announced he would match up to $1 million in donations over four years. His nephew disclosed last month the foundation was “very close” to meeting the goal of $250,000 for 2011.

The first development rights deal — the one for which a closing had been considered possible by the end of 2011 — is for a rectangular field of 24.6 acres off Manhanset Road for about $2.4 million, with the town paying one third, $720,000, using funds derived from its local 2-percent open space preservation tax on real estate transfers.

The second deal, on which the County Legislature only recently signed off, is for a 57.1-acre parcel to the south of the smaller field bordering Manhanset Road. The price is $4.85 million, with the county paying 70 percent and the town 30 percent. That parcel does not include the well-known site of the manor windmill on Manwaring Road, which the manor will retain for its seasonal farm stand operation.

Supervisor Dougherty said Tuesday there was enough cash on hand in the town’s Community Preservation Fund to pay the town’s share of the first deal. A bond issue will be necessary to raise the funds to pay for the second acquisition, he said, adding it might make sense for the town to borrow more than necessary so it can preserve other properties at a time when real estate prices are not soaring.