University wins lawsuit

New York State Supreme Court officials ruled in favor of St. Bonaventure University regarding a lawsuit filed against the university by the Paul and Irene Bogoni Foundation, according to an Oct. 14 university press release.

The court granted a summary judgment of $900,000 to the university, the release reported, which represents the amount of money owed to the school by the Paul and Irene Bogoni Foundation.

Gifts to the university included a $2 million investment to create a rare books library addition to the Friedsam Memorial Library, and over $1.5 million toward the creation of the Bogoni Center for Aging Studies, according to a 2008 document released by the university's attorney, Damon and Morey Attorneys at Law.

The Bogonis began their gifts to the school in May 2003, when they donated $10,000 for a feasibility study for the GRACE Project, according to their filed complaint.

The Grace Project, which led to the creation of the Bogoni Center for Aging Studies, is intended to enhance care at the end of life through research, teaching and public outreach as well as scholarships in the area of gerontology, according to the complaint.

In May 2004, the Bogonis pledged a total of $1.5 million for the GRACE Project, which led to disagreement between the family and the university, according to a release by the University's attorney.

The school used $1.4 million toward the GRACE Project, and $100,000 in start-up funding, according to the attorney's release.

Start-up funding is the act or process of setting into operation or motion, according to www.thefreedictionary.com.

In the Bogonis' complaint, they say they never agreed to the start-up funding and that this was a violation of the restrictions and conditions of the endowment gift.

However, according to a 2008 affidavit by Brother Ed Coughlin, O.F.M., who conducted communications between the Bogonis and the university, Mr. Bogoni agreed to support $100,000 worth of start-up funding because the program wouldn't begin until one year after the gift was made. The affidavit read Brother Ed proposed the idea of $100,000 being used as start-up funds, which Mr. Bogoni accepted.

The Bogonis have paid the complete $1.5 million for the GRACE Project, according to the complaint.

The Bogoni Center for Aging Studies progressed over the past few years, according to the university's attorney's release.

James W. Moore, director of the Bogoni Center, said New York State approved a minor in gerontology in 2006 and a major in April 2007, according to an affidavit by James Moore.

Further disagreement came in the creation of the "Paul and Irene Bogoni Library Addition," according to the complaint.

In May 2003, the Bogonis funded another feasibility study for $50,000 for the creation of the "Paul and Irene Bogoni Library Addition," according to the complaint.

The university consulted Canon Design to conduct the library feasibility study, who in turn charged the school $29,500, according to the complaint. The Bogonis claim the remaining $20,500 was used for purposes unrelated to the feasibility study, and that since the money was never returned, the university violated the terms and conditions of the restricted and conditional gift.

The plaintiffs also claimed the feasibility study showed the library addition would only cost $1.5 million, and a "gift commitment" was prepared by the university to be signed by the Bogonis in agreement of the price, according to the complaint.

The plaintiffs believed the gift commitment was restricted and conditioned, according to the complaint. They agreed the library addition would be called "The Paul and Irene Bogoni Library Addition." They alone would finance the project, and if the creation exceeded the limit of $1.5 million, the project would be re-bid so the cost would remain limited to $1.5 million.

The Bogonis agreed to give an additional $500,000 in July 2005 to raise the budget limit to $2 million.

The gift agreements provided to the court showed that none of these conditions were included in the agreement, according to the University's attorney's press release.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the rare books addition took place June 19, 2006.

In September 2006, the Bogonis claimed the school asked for at least another $250,000 for construction of the library addition, according to the complaint. They told the school to find ways to cut costs and stay within the $2 million limit.

Construction bids for the library addition exceeded the limit of $2 million, so the school obtained additional funding for it in January 2007 to the amount of $750,000, according to Sister Margaret's affidavit. The affidavit read that the school notified the Bogonis of the additional funding, which they were pleased to hear about, and the $900,000 would be paid to the university when work commenced in April of the same year.

The Bogonis claimed the $750,000 in funds provided to the school by other donors breached the terms and conditions of the gift commitment, according to the complaint.

According to a press release from his attorney, Paul Bogoni expressed his disbelief in the cost of the project in 2008.

"I just want to see why the project has gone over budgets so dramatically," said Bogoni. "It could have been re-bid and re-designed to say within the budget."

Irene Bogoni expressed similar concerns in the press release.

"I never dreamed that the University would be so careless in this construction project. I only wanted to have a decent place for rare books to be stored," she said. "Instead the project has gone completely out of hand and over budget."

In a 2008 press release to the St. Bonaventure community, Sister Margaret Carney said the Bogonis refused to pay the remaining $900,000 they owed.