'Starting over is always daunting': Parents lament closure of Jewish summer camp

Parents who sent their children to a Jewish summer camp in Brookville said they are devastated by its closure as a result of a village lawsuit.

In August the village sued the Sid Jacobson Community Center, seeking a court order to block its operation of Camp Jacobson after 13 years hosting campers. The lawsuit alleges that the camp violates the village’s zoning code because its programs are neither religious enough nor educational enough to qualify for an exemption used for decades by its predecessor on the site.

“I just don’t understand why people would want to take away a summer camp from children of the community,” said Stephanie Small, of Old Westbury. “… starting over is always daunting.”

The JCC purchased the property, which had been a school and summer camp called Robinhood for about 50 years under the previous owner, in 2008 and opened it as Camp Jacobson in 2009, according to court documents. The camp provided activities like swimming, arts and crafts, archery, basketball, science and technology while offering a kosher menu in a “nurturing environment based on Jewish values and ideals,” according to its website.

The camp’s problems began in 2014 when it sought to widen the passage that leads to the camp from Wheatley Road over safety concerns that only one-way traffic could fit, said JCC board president David Levy. He said the village kept asking for additional plans and information and that camp officials eventually created a master plan that included expansions of existing facilities. After years of hearings, the village zoning board of appeals denied the permit in 2017 and declared that the camp violated zoning codes.

“We did everything we could to appease them,” Levy said of concerns raised by neighbors and the village. Levy said he told Mayor Daniel Serota, “I’m willing to do whatever you want us to do … to get the camp open.” Levy said he did not get a response.

Serota responded to queries through village attorney John Chase, who emailed a statement Wednesday.

“The JCC has continued to operate the summer camp in violation of the Village’s zoning regulations, leaving the Village with no alternative but to now seek injunctive relief from the Court,” Chase wrote. “The Village is compelled to enforce its zoning regulations in order to protect the health, safety and welfare of its residents.”

The JCC sued in state court to try to overturn the ZBA’s decision, but in 2017 Judge James McCormack upheld the decision that the property was not entitled to special consideration because it wasn’t sufficiently religious or educational.

“While that camp may seek to instill Jewish morals and a Jewish way of life into the campers, the campers will still spend most of their time doing nonreligious recreation activities,” McCormack wrote in his decision. The ruling was upheld on appeal.

Levy said the JCC is considering its options and has let campers’ parents know that the camp may not reopen.