Roger Ailes Withdraws Money for Putnam Senior Center

Roger Ailes, the former head of Fox News who lives in Garrison, will not be donating $500,000 for the senior center in Philipstown, according to news reports.

The Roger Ailes Senior Center at the old Butterfield Hospital was meant to be a friendship and nutrition center run by the Putnam County Office for Senior Resources. The wish was to offer more space and services to the aging population on the western side of the county than where services are currently being held, Putnam County officials had said.

The senior center looked to many to be a done deal. The groundbreaking ceremony was July 8.

“I’m very proud to say that we did fulfill our promise, that we would bring services here to Putnam County here on the western part of the county,” County Executive MaryEllen Odell said at the time of the groundbreaking, according to an article on the county website. “You have been sorely underserved for so long but, the future is bright. I want to thank Roger and Beth Ailes, Paul Guillaro, Leg. Barbara Scuccimara, the senior citizens, our beloved veterans and all the residents who supported such an important project, which will position us for the future.”

The Butterfield property is being repurposed by Paul Guillaro, a private developer, into a mixed use complex that, in addition to hosting the senior center, will offer retail, office space and senior housing.

The senior center was to have been built by Ailes' nonprofit acting as general contractor.

But things were going wrong, not only with the project, but in Ailes' professional life.

Ailes resigned his position as chairman and acting CEO of Fox News July 21, following claims he sexually harassed female anchors, including Gretchen Carlson, who filed a lawsuit that said he made sexual advances toward her and didn't renew her contract after she refused them. His resignation ended his reign as one of the most powerful and influential figures in the news media.

Closer to home, criticism of the details of the senior center deal was mounting.

Writing in the Putnam County News and Recorder, reporter Eric Gross described a series of meetings, moves and protests as residents who don't like Ailes and his wife Elizabeth (owner and publisher of the PCNR) took aim at the Aileses and at politicians who have supported the senior center project.

Writing in The Journal News, columnist David McKay Wilson described a "secret" deal including no-bid contracts and circumvention of prevailing wage laws.

The Putnam County Legislature, which had recently reversed its rule against naming county buildings after living people to allow the senior center to be named after Ailes, voted Tuesday to delay accepting the plan, including the half-million-dollar donation and having Ailes oversee the construction, according to the Putnam Daily Voice.

Gross reported this response from the Aileses: "The government approvals to make the senior center in Philipstown a reality took longer than World War II. They indicated several charities had reached out to them about the half million dollars. The family said they had hoped to help the senior citizens in Philipstown but it is clear for political reasons their funding is not welcome. Therefore they are withdrawing the money, cancelling the contribution agreement and assigning the money to another one of their charities who can put it to use immediately. They wish all seniors, even those who came out against them, the very best."

Photo Caption: Roger Ailes, Elizabeth “Beth” Ailes, Assemblywoman Sandy Galef, State Senator Sue Serino, County Executive MaryEllen Odell, Sheriff Don Smith and Paul Guillaro put the shovels in the ground during the celebratory groundbreaking ceremony July 7/ Putnam County