Judge Dismisses School Districts' Lawsuit Against Green Acres: IDA

VALLEY STREAM, NY — A Nassau County Supreme Court Justice has dismissed a lawsuit by four Valley Stream school districts seeking to overturn five year extensions of tax breaks to the Green Acres Mall, and an adjacent mall, the Town of Hempstead Industrial Development Agency said.

The suit was filed in August 2024 by the Valley Stream Central High School District and Valley Stream School Districts 30, 24, and 13.

The court found all actions undertaken by IDA were legal and that the school districts lacked standing to challenge IDA PILOTs, or Payments-In-Lieu-of Taxes, as they are not taxpayers.

The school boards’ lawsuit asked the court to declare the IDA’s extension of the PILOTs and lease agreements for the mall and the Green Acres Commons shopping center illegal, the IDA said.

Macerich, which owns the mall and the adjacent Green Acres Commons shopping center, announced in January that it was planning a more than $100 million redevelopment at Green Acres Mall, the IDA said.

The school districts argued that the extension was illegal because Macerich failed to meet job commitments tied to the tax breaks approved by the IDA in 2014 and 2015.

“We’re very pleased that the court agreed with our arguments," said Fred Parola, CEO of the IDA. ”This is a total victory confirming that the IDA has done everything legally in its work to
encourage economic development in the Town of Hempstead. We hope this ends the long-running controversy involving Green Acres.”