Rising Ground Puts 32-Acre Yonkers Campus on Market for Sale; Broker Expects Sale Price ‘North of $60 Million’

YONKERS—Human services organization Rising Ground announced plans today to offer for sale its Leake & Watts campus in Yonkers, a property the organization has owned for more than 130 years.

Matt Del Percio, president of the Rising Ground Board of Directors, said the 32-acre property at 463 Hawthorne Ave., overlooking the Hudson River, was recently listed with Transwestern Real Estate Services.

There is no asking price for the property, however, a spokesman for Transwestern said the brokerage firm expects the campus to sell “north of $60 million.”

The campus currently houses the Ames Early Childhood Learning Center; the Biondi Education Center; the Residential Treatment Center; Passage of Hope; and five residences for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Del Percio noted that it is Rising Ground’s intention to relocate those programs to other sites in New York City and Westchester. No further details on that reorganization program were released. Rising Ground supports more than 25,000 children, adults, and families in need each year.

“The sale of the property will enable us to maximize the use of our charitable assets to further our mission, which is to help children, adults, and families rise above adversity by providing caring support and proven paths to positive change,” Del Percio added.

Rising Ground, which was originally founded in 1831 in Manhattan as the Leake & Watts Orphan House, moved to the Yonkers site in 1890. For decades, the nonprofit organization focused on child welfare, and all of its work took place on the Yonkers campus. Beginning in 1979, the organization grew to provide a wide range of human services for children, adults, and families in need. Today, the majority of its 55 programs are sited in New York City. Last year, Rising Ground moved its main administration office from its Yonkers campus to Brooklyn to be closer to its New York City-based programs and to its government and community partners.

“The sale of the Yonkers campus is another step forward in Rising Ground’s evolution,” said Alan Mucatel, CEO of Rising Ground. “We have made many major changes to meet the realities of the day throughout our 190-year history. All indications indicate that this is a change for the better, long term.” He added that the organization will use the proceeds from the sale “to enhance our long-term financial viability and position us well into the future.”

The award-winning organization’s services include: foster care; family stabilization; early childhood centers; special education; support for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities; a sanctuary for unaccompanied migrant children; support for survivors of intimate partner violence; transitional shelters for runaway and homeless youth; juvenile justice residences; community schools; and community health initiatives.

According to its website, in addition to its administrative offices in Yonkers and Brooklyn, Rising Ground also operates multiple facilities in the Bronx and Manhattan.