A Northeast Philadelphia Synagogue is now the owner of a swim club that was once accused of racial discrimination.
The Congregation Beth Solomon bought the Valley Club property for $1.46 million. The Synagogue bought the Huntingdon Valley property at a bankruptcy auction on Thursday. The club filed bankruptcy in November after facing discrimination lawsuits when it revoked club memberships from mostly black and Hispanic children.
Protests broke out all over Philadelphia last summer after the club revoked the memberships from the Creative Steps program. The 56 club memberships were revoked from day campers during their first swim outing. The club says the memberships were canceled because there were too many children and many of them couldn’t swim. The Valley club says race had nothing to do with the decision.
Congregation Beth Solomon attorney, Vlad Tinovsky, says officials will wait until the sale closes within a month to make definite planes on how the property will be used for the Congregation’s 2,000-plus members. The Synagogue plans to use the club as a recreation center for its members, but Tinovsky says he believes, “there will be opportunities for outside groups to use the facility on mutually agreeable terms.”
by Laura D'Alfonso and Joe Osborne
su1002nephilly
The Congregation Beth Solomon bought the Valley Club property for $1.46 million. The Synagogue bought the Huntingdon Valley property at a bankruptcy auction on Thursday. The club filed bankruptcy in November after facing discrimination lawsuits when it revoked club memberships from mostly black and Hispanic children.
Protests broke out all over Philadelphia last summer after the club revoked the memberships from the Creative Steps program. The 56 club memberships were revoked from day campers during their first swim outing. The club says the memberships were canceled because there were too many children and many of them couldn’t swim. The Valley club says race had nothing to do with the decision.
Congregation Beth Solomon attorney, Vlad Tinovsky, says officials will wait until the sale closes within a month to make definite planes on how the property will be used for the Congregation’s 2,000-plus members. The Synagogue plans to use the club as a recreation center for its members, but Tinovsky says he believes, “there will be opportunities for outside groups to use the facility on mutually agreeable terms.”
by Laura D'Alfonso and Joe Osborne
su1002nephilly
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