Melius: Friend pitched Oheka development to Trump Organization
Gary Melius in his Oheka Castle office in Huntington on Aug. 6, 2014. Credit: Newsday / Thomas A. Ferrara
Oheka Castle owner Gary Melius said Friday that a personal friend of his has pitched a potential development deal for the castle to the Trump Organization.
Melius said the discussions are in a very preliminary stage.
“I don’t think his focus is on me, if you want to know the truth,” Melius said of the Republican presidential candidate. Asked about the status of the proposal, he said, “There’s nothing with Trump at this point.”
The Trump Organization did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
News 12 first reported the proposed partnership Friday morning.
Melius said a Long Island-based personal friend contacted an executive at the Trump Organization a couple of weeks ago to discuss a plan to build condominiums at Oheka Castle. The Trump executive said the organization “would look into it,” Melius said.
Melius declined to identify his friend or the Trump executive, though he said it was not Trump himself.
The pitch came after the collapse of a separate plan to build 190 condominiums and a Jack Nicklaus-branded golf course on the grounds of Oheka and the adjacent Cold Spring Country Club. Last month, Melius said the Nicklaus proposal fell through after he and developer Stan Gale could not agree on terms after nine months of talks.
Melius said he has not spoken with the country club about a potential partnership with Trump. The club’s board president, Marvin Adler, and its attorney, Howard Stein, could not immediately be reached for comment Friday.
A spokeswoman for the club declined to comment.
Maura McDermott covers health care and other business news on Long Island.
