Rockville Centre Diocese headquarters to be transformed into $19M office space

The Diocese of Rockville Centre’s headquarters will soon be transformed into 60,000 square feet of office space as part of a $19 million project.

Philips International Holding Corp., a Great Neck-based real estate company, is planning to remake the property. After the diocese filed for bankruptcy in the wake of facing more than 200 lawsuits from victims of alleged sexual abuse, Synergy Holding Partners LLC purchased the diocese’s Pastoral Center, or chancery, at 50 N. Park Ave., last year, during the bankruptcy proceedings. From there, Rock 50 LLC, an affiliate of Phillips International, bought the building for $9.5 million.

The acquisition included the five-story office building at the corner of North Park Avenue and Sunrise Highway, as well as the adjacent parking lot, which holds about 58 cars. A bankruptcy court approved the sale of the center, and all proceeds are to be used by the diocese to compensate creditors.

Calls to Phillips International requesting comment had not been returned at press time, and a diocese spokesperson referred the Herald to a news release from last March when asked to comment on the deal.

“The sale and our relocation will have no effect on our ministry,” the Rev. Eric Fasano, vicar general for the diocese, stated in the release. “In fact, the operating efficiencies that will result are expected to free resources that can be directed to those with the greatest need.”

The diocese began offering the Pastoral Center for sale in 2018, after determining that the property was no longer cost-effective. At the time of the sale, the diocese was not using all of the building’s available space. The diocese will continue to operate much as it has during much of the coronavirus pandemic, with many employees working remotely, while others will occupy other diocese buildings, according to the release.

Philips International, a developer and landlord that manages more than 250 buildings across the country, plans to renovate the building before businesses move in, but does not yet have potential tenants committed to the project. The lobby, lower level and five upper floors will be renovated, and some of the building’s systems will be replaced.

Fred Parola, executive director of the Town of Hempstead Industrial Development Agency, said that developers have sought a 20-year payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, agreement in which Philips would pay about $300,000 in the first year and more than $800,000 by year 20. Rock 50 was granted preliminary approval by the IDA for more than $2.6 million in benefits last month, but they will not be formally authorized until there is a public hearing and the IDA finishes its review of the project. Rock 50 will also receive more than $2.1 million in property tax discounts over 20 years, and nearly $500,000 in other tax exemptions.

Parola added that the diocese did not have to pay taxes on the building in the past, so the project will generate new revenue while also bringing 223 full-time employees to the village.

“This is a win-win,” Parola said. “It’s a boon for the school district, for the village, the town and the county as well. The addition of 223 workers is going to obviously benefit all jurisdictions, from people buying lunches to being involved in the community there and increasing the number of pedestrians downtown.”