Ben Wechsler acreage to be auctioned; More than 1,500 acres in Neversink Gorge

Posted 8/21/12

FORESTBURGH, NY —More than 1,500 acres of forested land belonging to the estate of the late Ben Wechsler with some acreage along the Neversink River will be put up for auction on June 30 by Max …

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Ben Wechsler acreage to be auctioned; More than 1,500 acres in Neversink Gorge

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FORESTBURGH, NY —More than 1,500 acres of forested land belonging to the estate of the late Ben Wechsler with some acreage along the Neversink River will be put up for auction on June 30 by Max Spann Real Estate & Auction Co. The auction will be held at the Westchester Marriot, 670 White Plains Rd., Tarrytown. The property is being auctioned in two parcels: a 1,051-acre tract and a 512-acre tract that has been subdivided into seven lots.

The acreage is located next to the Neversink River Unique area, and is called the Turner Brook Reserve and provides what a press release calls “primitive outdoor recreational opportunities, including a remote sport fishery and access to the western trail system from Cold Spring Road.”

Wechsler’s family founded the highly successful Restaurant Associates, which owned 50 eateries at its peak in New York City, including the Four Seasons. The family acquired the lands in the 1930s. When Ben’s father Phillip died, Ben acquired about 4,000 acres and gave it the name Turner Brook Estate.

Wechsler had a long and sometimes contentious relationship with the New York Department of Conservation (DEC), which wanted to acquire some of Wechsler’s acreage and absorb it into the Neversink River Unique area.

In 1990, the New York State Court of Appeals ruled that the DEC had not exceeded its authority in using eminent domain to acuire a 1,067-acre parcel of land owned by Wechsler, as well as the exclusive hunting, fishing and trapping rights he owned to an adjacent 1,800-acre parcel that was then owned by the state.

Wechsler later sold off about 700 acres, and in 2008, he sold some acreage to orchid magnate Stuart Salenger. Salenger had his land incorporated into the Sullivan County Agricultural District and operated an upscale farm on the property, to the dismay of many of his neighbors, including Wechsler.

In 2009, Salenger accused Wechsler’s dog of killing six of his alpacas and one of Salenger’s employees killed the dog. At that point, the two men were deeply locked in legal action against each other.

Wechsler spoke against Salenger at a public hearing in June 2011, but he died the next month, on July 21, 2011 at the age of 81.

Previews of the property for sale are scheduled from 12 noon to 2 p.m. on Thursday, June 18 at the intersection of Cold Spring Road and Branford Road in Forestburgh.

For more information or to attend the auction and bid call 888/299-1438 or visit maxspann.com.

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