WPCNR TALK OF MARTINE AVENUE. By John F. Bailey. September 22, 2005: Kylie Cappelli, Co Chair of the White Plains Hospital Gala celebrating the opening of Trump Tower, presented a check for $500,000 to White Plains Hospital Center on behalf of her husband Louis Cappelli and the Louis Cappelli Foundation. Mr. Cappelli's partner in the building, Donald J. Trump purchased the naming rights to a new wing of White Plains Hospital Center for $100,000 to begin and end, respectively, the fundraising auction that highlighted and heralded a new standard in fundraisers – Louis Cappelli style -- at Trump Tower at City Center Wednesday night.
An overwhelmed Jon Schandler, CEO of White Plains Hospital Center, accepting the Cappelis' $500,000 check at the beginning of the live auction last night at Trump Tower at City Center. LtoR: Emcee William O'Shaugnessy, Mr. Schandler, Kylie Travis Cappelli, and Louis Cappelli. Photo by WPCNR News
A Hamptons Garden Party on the Roof of the City Center Garage. The high and the mighty of Westchester schmooze and cruise as the party gets under way at 8. Photo by WPCNR News
Mr. and Mrs. and Ms. Anybody Who Is Anybody In Westchester, 700 citizens many of whom paid $500 each, plus distinguished members of the press, all created a crush to get into easily the best party of the year, many waiting the better part of 40 minutes to go aloft to see the model penthouses and apartments in the posh Trump Tower at City Center. They were there schmoozing and giving to what Mayor Joseph Delfino called the county’s best hospital on a real lawn created on the rooftop of the City Center Garage. All worked the venue in an ingenious party tent complete with orchestra playing big band sounds and mouth watering cuisine from seventeen restaurants.
The Party Tent. Photo by WPCNR News
WVOX’s William O’Shaughnessy emceed the event and introduced luminaries in attendance, who included State Senators Suzi Oppenheimer and Nick Spano, Assemblypersons Adam Bradley, Richard Brodsky, and Amy Paulin, County Executive Andy Spano, Deputy County Executive Larry Schwarz, and Chairman of the Board of Legislators Bill Ryan, Yorktown Supervisor Linda Cooper, District Attorney Jeanine Pirro, plus the distinguished White Plains Common Council and Mayor Joseph Delfino.
Mayor Joseph Delfino, foreground was the first speaker, thanking Mr. Cappelli and Mr. Trump for sharing his vision. Photo by WPCNR News.
The Mayor said: “It is truly humbling for me tonight to be before you. This building, this concept of a renaissance was a dream come true for me. When I took office eight years ago we had a vision for what we wanted in a downtown, residential housing, restaurants, a movie theatre, top notch retail establishments and most of all people, and you know what, in one block we got it all and how did it get started? thanks to Lou Cappelli and Donald Trump. For them, I owe a great thanks. Louis Cappelli and Donald Trump you bought in to our vision of White Plains. We can never thank you enough … I can tell you these two men and this project has truly helped to bring White Plains back to life and a new beginning for us here in White Plains. Let me tell you, this would never have happened without all of us working together.
I tell you, I’ve got my Common Council here tonight. I’m not going to mention them by name but I’m going ask them each to stand because we truly worked together. I can never thank them enough. This table here. Let’s give them a fabulous round of applause.”
The Mayor also called the White Plains Hospital Center “the finest health care facility in this county without a question.” He thanked the doctors of the hospital for their service to the city.”
Mr. O’Shaughnessy, after the Mayor finished speaking, took it upon himself to introduce the Common Council.
Andy Spano, the County Executive said the opening of Trump Tower was the greatest moment in the history of White Plains since the Battle of White Plains, and noted that the county had helped with the building of Trump Tower through its Industrial Development Agency.
Donald J. Trump at the podium, bantering with Louis and Kylie Cappelli. Photo by WPCNR News.
However, the evening belonged to Donald J. Trump and Louis Cappelli, who combined to put on a show. Mr. Cappelli by presenting a series of letters written by first graders about Mr. Trump, creating great laughter and moments of truth, and by Mr. Cappelli’s recounting his own romance with Kylie Cappelli, his wife in which he recounted their courtship and their first meeting in Atlantic City arranged by Mr. Trump. Mr. Cappelli told, how by using a chip replacement system at the roulette table, he managed to convince the future Mrs. Cappelli, he was her “lucky charm,” that evening and wound up dating her for eight years marrying her two years ago.
Mr. Cappelli thanked his many banks for financing the project, and his construction experts who built Trump Tower.
Karen Lennon, Vice President of Public Relations for White Plains Hospital Center, as partiers gathered in the courtyard at 7 PM, told WPCNR the funds raised from the event, expected to top $1 Million were going to the $35 Million fund raising effort being conducted to double the size of Center’s emergency room, expand the Comprehensive Cardiology Center, radiology, endoscopy, neo-natal and maternity and the Nursing Scholarship Endowment Fund. Lennon said, “The real goal is expanding our field into the community. Mr. Cappelli and Mr. Trump give us an opportunity to expand our friends in the community. It’s all good.”
The occasion was preceded by the opportunity to view four luxury apartments in the Trump Tower at City Center that dazzled this reporter with their views and their furnishings. The entire building is sold out according to Marge Schneider, a Cappelli executive, and she also noted that 30% of the 212 residences have been purchased by single persons 25 to 35 years, the balance of the owners-to-be empty nesters and couples in their 30s and 40s. Schneider said the first owners would be moving into the Trump Tower on Monday. She said none of the Trump Tower condominiums had been resold as of yet.
