A Hamptons Property Fight Over a Black Whaler’s Homestead
By Dan Bacher
June 19, 2018 at 11:02 am
The story of a black whaler’s homestead at a New York oceanfront property has sparked a major battle between its owner and the longtime property manager.
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Written by Dan Bacher
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The story of a black whaler’s homestead at a New York oceanfront property has sparked a major battle between its owner and the longtime property manager.
The dispute centers on the long-time caretaker of the property, whose management has become so erratic that the owner says he was “trying to kill” him.
The dispute began over a property deed dating back to the late 1970s, which provided for the long-term care of its owner, Domingo Carranza, who is African-American.
But after nearly 30 years of care, as the property owner has aged, he has become physically weak and unable to care for himself and his property anymore. In his senior years, the owner, who did not want his full name used, is trying to arrange a care provider to take care of him and his property for the next few years while he waits in a nursing home.
The owner and his elderly caretaker are both Spanish speakers, and the owner’s mother, who still lives in the house, has made the property her home.
A resident of the house has long since stopped speaking to him, according to his caretaker, who is white. After a year and a half of being unable to communicate with the owner, the caretaker filed a breach of contract lawsuit against the owner and the long-term care facility.
But the caretaker’s lawyer, Robert Koval, says the judge did not rule on the case. Koval also says the owner is asking the judge to remove the caretaker from the