Rabbi wants to turn Gadhafi's U.S. land to Jewish center
Rabbi Boteach told Record of Bergen County that he wants to raise up to $6 million to buy the property.
By The Associated Press Tags: Libya Israel newsA rabbi who lives next door to the New Jersey mansion where Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi sought to stay during his first U.S. visit wants to buy the site and turn it into a Jewish learning center.
Libya has owned the 4-acre Englewood property since 1983, and Gadhafi wanted to stay there while visiting the United Nations last September.
But that plan was scrapped when it drew widespread outrage and legal challenges in New Jersey, which lost dozens of residents in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, that was widely believed to have been the work of Libyan intelligence.
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach told The Record of Bergen County that he wants to raise up to $6 million to buy the property. But there's no indication that Libya wants to sell, and a call to the Libyan mission was not immediately returned Saturday.
Boteach also has a pending civil lawsuit against the mission, seeking compensation for part of his fence and some trees which he claims Libyan workers tore down without consulting him.
The estate in the upscale community, which is about 12 miles (19 kilometers) north of Manhattan, has been the center of controversy for decades, in part because Libya was exempted from local property taxes after winning a court battle in 1985.
Englewood officials estimate that the estate would have generated more than $1 million in property taxes by now, and they have formally requested that Libyan authorities issue a payment in lieu of property taxes.
Mohamed Shalgham, Libya's U.N. ambassador, recently moved into the mansion with his family, but they apparently only plan to live there temporarily while their Manhattan home is renovated.
This is an affront to the New Jersey residents who died in Lockerbie, and the person living there now is Gadhafi's right-hand man, Boteach said.
The attack over Lockerbie, Scotland, killed all 259 people on board the flight. Among them were nearly three dozen New Jerseyans, including some whose families live near the Libyan mansion.
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So go ahead, purchase that lot, Mr. Rabbi!
Gadhafy looks like a "Super Fly Snuka" clone. Therefore, the mansion should be converted into a Wrestling arena.
{In 2001, Bollier spent five days in the witness box at the Lockerbie trial at Camp Zeist in the Netherlands. 'I was a defence witness, but the trial was so skewed to prove Libyan involvement that the details of what I had to say was ignored. A photograph of the fragments was produced in court and I asked to see the pieces again. When they were brought to me, they were practically carbonised. They had been tampered with since I had seen them in Dumfries.'] MMMMMMMMMMMM..!! Few people apart from conspiracy theorists and investigative journalists working on the case were prepared to believe Bollier until the end of last month, when Lumpert, one of his former employees, walked into a Zurich police station and asked to swear an affidavit before a notary. Wasn't it Iran..that did it....?? Or would that be a "state secret" Only the bush would know..??
just like the palestinian practise, the libyans may sell the property, take the 6 million dollar and never leave the property.They will then claim that this rabbi stole their land and even sell it again to Saudis
I'll make you a deal-let me put your family up in a plane, and then blow it out of the sky killing all your loved ones, along with dozens of people on the ground-and then, let me offer you some money to compensate you for your loss-I guess, if you would consider this a valid deal, I would understand how you would consider the deal closed-money is compensation for accidents, not for deliberate mass homicide-the deal is not closed, and I am hoping that Quadaffi and all his sick co-horts die horrible, painful deaths, and if you are a fan of Quadafi, this mass killer, then you deserve the same fate.
I think the Rabi should be ashamed of himself. Libya has paid milions to compensate the victims and the case has been close by courts. Or is it not that this Rabi is interested in making easy money instead of focusing on his job as a man of God
Why not raise the $6 million to build homes for the many Israelis and immigrants to Israel? This will help create jobs in Israel, will help the economy, and the immigration to Israel.
No more Jewish Centers or Holocaust Museums of other bleeding heart buikldings in my country.
What a petty man
It would be a whole lot cheaper and in general lead to a quieter neighborhood.
Oh. it is a fashion in USA to speak against Libya while the USA government has resolved the issues with Libya. Why not Arabs should buy it and convert it into a mosque?. Both the Jewish Centre and Islamic Centre will work with similar religious and social objectives.
What is the point?????
# 2 potobac. You seem to push your way with your elbows, & poke your Nose everywhere !
The state may rezone the property or make use of its power of eminent domain and take it for a good public purpose. The liberal Supreme Court has ruled that a good public purpose is redevelopment as commercial property or other residential property that would result in more tax revenues (see cases in Florida). Before you get on your property value high horse, remember that property rights are given, defined and limited by the state government.
The State of NJ should make sure that the area is properly maintained for such a high personage. Access roads need to be immediately rebuilt. Start construction now, especially in from of the access points to the property. Dig up the street in front of all access points at the same time so as not to cause delay. Water and sewers must also be replaced. May take some time, but get started now. Also, need to make sure that the sewer pipes that cross into the yard aren't obstructed by roots. No charge, that's what the tax money Libya doesn't pay covers. And as for the Rabbi who claimed it was his trees that were taken down, it might have been that the roots were trespassing on Libyan property. Need to dig on the Libyan property to make sure. And by the way, do the walls contain the proper firewall protection? Need to get the fire marshall out to check. Do it before there is a problem. Wouldn't want the Libyans to feel unwelcome.
As much as I would like to give Gadhafi a punch in the nose, he is the rightful owner of the land. Until the New Jersey municipality can find a way legally to push him out, the man has his right of ownership.
It's their property,and they have every right to live there if they choose. Please note thats if the publicity hog rabbi were to buy it for a Jewish center it would similarly be immune from local taxes. I seriously doubt he would pay the community any more than the current owners.
..if its not for sale..its not for sale..why all thye hoopla?