Grant Without Waiver was Our Fault, says Preservation Company

Editor’s Note: This article has been modified from its original version to clarify Mayor Frank Catalina’s comments.

A Peekskill nonprofit that gives grants to Peekskill residents seeking help for home upkeep has issued a statement that clarifies some facts in a current city controversy -- and also takes a stand on it.

What the furor is about: The Journal News questioned a $14,968.32 grant given to the son of Deputy Mayor Drew Claxton seven years ago to help fix up his house at 110 Fremont St.

Some Peekskill Republicans have since called for investigations and for Drew Claxton’s resignation.

Mayor Frank Catalina did not call for her resignation.

The Peekskill Post reported: “I think this is only the beginning, I think there is going to be more coming out,” Catalina said. “I hope this doesn’t become a distraction but these are indictable offenses. These grants are all signed under the penalty of perjury … The phone call I got from someone at The Preservation Company who would not give me their name was, ‘You’re going to be shocked when you see the people that have taken money.’”

A report of a break-in at the city’s building department stirred up more rumors about files on the Fremont Street house -- and the subsequent suspension of the city’s building maintenance supervisor.

Now The Preservation Company has issued a statement giving details about the Claxton grant and taking full responsibility for the fact that a waiver was not sought or given -- though the rules require one in the case of family members of a public official.

First, said Alen Steiner, a member of the board of directors, the Claxtons were not informed in contracts or communications that there were eligibility restrictions.

Second, contrary to allegations that Drew Claxton took and used the money for other purposes, grants administered as part of the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation’s home improvement program are not made to the homeowners, but instead to contractors, whose work is monitored and approved, prior to payment.

Third, the nonprofit apologized, publicly, to Frederick Claxton and Peekskill Deputy Mayor Drew Claxton,

“What we will not do, is be party to local politics that seek to sully and publicly malign members of our community who have spent their entire lives, selflessly working to help those most in need,” Steiner said.

Here’s the full statement from Steiner “regarding grants that were administered to Frederick and Sabina Claxton of Peekskill, NY.”

The Preservation Company, Inc. of Peekskill is a not for profit organization dedicated to helping local residents afford upkeep on their homes, ensuring that families can live in safe and well-kept housing. After applying to our program, Frederick and Sabina Claxton of Peekskill, New York were informed that they qualified for grant support, administered by our organization, in 2007.

A grant of approximately $14,968.32 was awarded to the Claxtons and paid to various contractors through the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation’s home improvement program, to execute rehabilitation work at 110 Fremont Street, Peekskill, NY. The grants administered as part of the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation’s home improvement program were not made to the homeowners, but instead to contractors, whose work is monitored and approved, prior to payment.

The Preservation Company had signed a contract with the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation that had eligibility restrictions requiring it to seek a waiver if a local elected official or their family members applied for the funding. This contract was executed exclusively between The Preservation Company and the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation.

In an oversight on our part, the contracts that were drafted between the Claxtons and the contractors who were to execute the work at 110 Fremont Street, included no language, nor did any communications or correspondence between The Preservation Company and the Claxtons, that would have made the applicants aware of the eligibility restrictions that the Preservation Company was subject to, because of our independent contract with the New York State Affordable Housing Corporation.

We deeply regret this oversight. When the oversight was brought to our attention by the Journal News, we immediately contacted, on January 06, 2016, the New York State Homes & Community Renewal office to alert them to the situation and seek guidance on how we should proceed to rectify the matter. We have been working with them to create a corrective plan of action and we have provided them with all documents they requested related to this grant, the work that occurred, and contracts between the contractors and the Claxton family.

We have also proactively reached out to the Westchester County District Attorney’s office to let them know we are prepared to provide them with any and all information or documents they might request to help cut through the noise and get to the facts. We will cooperate in any and all fashion with the proper authorities.

What we will not do, is be party to local politics that seek to sully and publicly malign members of our community who have spent their entire lives, selflessly working to help those most in need.

We want to also publicly apologize to Frederick Claxton and Peekskill Deputy Mayor Drew Claxton, who at no time were informed, in any contract or correspondence with the Preservation Company, that they were not eligible to receive this grant, without a waiver. In fact, they would have had no reason to believe, based on the documents they signed, that they were not eligible to receive the grant without a waiver. That notification and disclosure was the responsibility of the Preservation Company. They qualified for the grant, like all of our applicants, based on need, determined in part, by household income.

We regret the confusion this oversight has caused, we take full responsibility, and are working diligently to rectify the matter.