MYTH: The Rabbinical College of Tartikov is actually a housing project.
FACT: The project is a religious education facility. Housing is a necessary component for this religious use, as it is for a Catholic seminary or secular colleges. Rabbis and their families will not remain residents on college property once their studies have been completed.
MYTH: This is a for-profit venture.
FACT: Funding for the Rabbinical College of Tartikov will come directly from the Congregation as a nonprofit institution and will cover operating costs, teacher’s salaries, utilities, living expenses for students and their families, and other services. The Rabbinical College will not generate income from the project.
MYTH: There is no need for the college to offer a 15-year program of study.
FACT: The Rabbinical College’s affiliated institution has been offering a 15-year program of study in Brooklyn for 25 years. While the College respects the beliefs and practices of other religious organizations, it suggests that, in our constitutional tradition, individuals should be free to believe, practice and learn in a manner they see fit. This is not a judgment to be forced upon it when others do not believe there is such a need.
In order to be certified as a rabbinical judge, rabbis must study all four volumes of the Shulchan Aruch (Jewish law). Given the complex nature of these texts, rabbis must undergo extensive training to be able to settle disputes pertaining to civil disputes, issues of marriage, divorce, burial, cultural certification, religious conversion and other matters.
Similarly, to become an ecclesiastical judge in the Roman Catholic tradition, an individual may spend four years in a high school seminary program, pursue a bachelor’s degree, four years of study at a seminary, and three year program to obtain a license in canon law, for a total of fifteen years.
MYTH: This project will overburden the sewer system.
FACT: Architectural and engineering experts hired by the Rabbinical College have determined that the site in Pomona can environmentally support up to 1,000 housing units. The College is seeking approval for only 250 units, which can be easily supported. The current complaints about Ramapo’s sewer system relate to storm water capacity, which will not be affected by the Rabbinical College project. Preventing the College from being built will not prevent future storms.
MYTH: This project will place a large burden on taxpayers in the Village of Pomona, the Town of Ramapo, and/or Rockland County.
FACT: Such an allegation is both untrue and irrelevant, since the property in question has been tax exempt for many years and most students will be already be local and using governmental services as any other citizen. The Congregation expects to pay for water and sewer services and to provide its own security, and sanitation services. The College also will provide volunteer firemen for the local fire station, ambulance services, and additional equipment as needed. Furthermore, all internal roads on the development will be installed and maintained at the College’s expense.
Children of rabbinical students will attend private Yeshivas in nearby towns and villages. Therefore, enrollment in the East Ramapo School District will be limited to children with special needs.
MYTH: This large construction project will cause permanent and unsightly visual changes to the surrounding semi-rural area.
FACT: Several steps have been taken to minimize the potential visual change that the Rabbinical College would create. In fact, the College will not even be visible from most vantage points around the property.
MYTH: The College could have applied for a variance or for a zoning change instead of suing the Village of Pomona in court.
FACT: A use variance or rezoning application is not legally appropriate in this type of circumstance for various reasons. The Rabbinical College has sought repeatedly to meet with village leaders to discuss this project, to avoid a confrontational process and to spare the taxpayers the need for costly litigation, but was rebuffed each time. It would also be fundamentally unfair and futile to petition the Village to change discriminatory laws it recently passed specifically to prevent the College’s use.