Tilles Center Breaks Ground on Major Renovation

Brookville, NY, March 26, 2004 – C.W. Post’s Tilles Center for the Performing Arts broke ground today on a sweeping $15 million renovation that will result in greatly enhanced public spaces. Jack Bransfield, the chairman of Tilles Center’s Council of Overseers, said, "We are very proud of our reputation as Long Island’s premier performing arts center. Now, with the help of our donors and patrons, we will offer a facility commensurate with the caliber of programming we present."

This renovation, the first since the center opened in 1981, will give an entirely fresh and modern look to Long Island’s premier cultural showplace. The renovation will include an atrium, outdoor plazas, an elegant entry as well as improved access to and from parking areas, especially for handicapped patrons. The renovation project has been designed by Mitchell/Giurgola Architects.

At the groundbreaking, Bransfield announced that beginning with the 2004/05 season, Tilles Center’s main theater will be named North Fork Hall in recognition of the bank’s $3 million leadership gift to the capital campaign, one of the largest single donations to a cultural institution on Long Island. John Adam Kanas, Chairman, President and CEO of North Fork Bank, said "We are honored to make this affiliation to help support one of Long Island’s most important cultural venues. We view this relationship as both meaningful and permanent and look forward, along with all Long Islanders, to many enjoyable evenings in the new North Fork Hall." Kanas is an alumnus of Southampton College, one of the campuses of Long Island University.

Upon completion, in November 2004, the 200,000 annual visitors and patrons of Tilles Center will arrive at the Center’s two venues, North Fork Hall and the Hillwood Recital Hall, through a majestic entrance that will feature a beautiful outdoor plaza and grand staircase to the lobby. Access for the handicapped will be improved with an elevator that connects the new entry with Tilles Center’s main floor level. The 10,000 square foot lobby and atrium, designed with glass, stone and steel, will be an elegant reception area for pre-event functions and will provide an arena for mingling during intermission. A state-of-the-art box office, additional renovated restrooms and modernized patron lounges are also included in the plans.

Roger Tilles, the chairman of Long Island University’s Board of Trustees, said "The renovation of Tilles Center will greatly enhance the arts experience for our diverse constituencies – from students within the University and beyond, to new and long-time Tilles Center patrons. As an educational institution, bringing the arts to the greater community is an important part of our mission."

To date, Tilles Center’s capital campaign has received more than $10 million in gifts and pledges. In addition to North Fork Bank, major donors to the campaign include the Tilles Family, Chris and Jack Bransfield, Frank and Rita Castagna, Abe and Julienne Krasnoff, Donald and Judith Rechler and Reckson Associates, and Gerald Monter and Audrey Balog.

(From left) Elliott Sroka, Executive Director, Tilles Center for the Performing Arts; John Kanas, Chairman, President and CEO of North Fork Bank; Rose Tilles; Jack Bransfield, Chairman of Tilles Center’s Council of Overseers; Roger Tilles, Chair, Board of Trustees, Long Island University; David Steinberg, President, Long Island University.

(From left) Jack Bransfield, Chairman of Tilles Center’s Council of Overseers; George Lindsay, General Manager of Tilles Center; Elliott Sroka, Executive Director of Tilles Center; Dr. Joseph Shenker, Provost, C.W. Post Campus; David J. Steinberg, President of Long Island University; Paul Broches, Partner-in-Charge; Peter Tymus, Associate Vice President for Capital Projects; Amy Shakespeare, Project Architect; Mitchell/Giurgola Architects, LLP; Joe Chiarelli, Project Executive, Sullivan and Nickel.

(From left) Roger Tilles, Chair, Board of Trustees, Long Island University, Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli, David J. Steinberg, President of Long Island University, Assemblywoman Donna Ferrara, Congressman Gary Ackerman, New York Senator John J. Flanagan.

(From left) Brian Land, C.W. Post class of 1986, and Peter Tilles (third from left) with Sullivan and Nickel Contractors Joe Napodano, Project Engineer; John McCort, Project Supervisor; Joe Chiarelli, Project Executive. Also pictured (at right) is Peter Tymus, Associate Vice President for Capital Projects, Long Island University