Business Profile: Crystal Hall at Somers Community Center, Somers
Somers resident Donna Martone and her family saw an abandoned building on Hillandale Drive and felt it had great potential.
The Martone family own and operate Crystal Hall at Somers Community Center, which was purchased in January 2012, and following extensive renovations, opened in August. The building was closed for about four years when the Martone family purchased it. The facility was a clubhouse operated by the United Owners Association of Shenorock.
“It’s a nice sized building. We wanted to give back to the community. It was abandoned, so it was just going to sit here and rot,” Martone said last week during an interview conducted at her facility.
She said if nothing was done to fix up the building, property values in the neighborhood, which includes her house, would plummet.
“We thought it would be a nice investment and something nice to do to bring the community back together,” Martone said. The building previously was used for a variety of program, including dance classes, senior citizen programs and Scouting events.
“We totally renovated the whole building,” Martone explained. “It was ready to fall down and collapse.”
Somers Supervisor Mary Beth Murphy had no problem with the name Crystal Hall at Somers Community Center, which has no connection to town government, Martone noted.
There have been a wide range of uses for the renovated building including holding business meetings for the Martone family. The building has also hosted Zumba, yoga and other exercise classes that are offered for $5 to 10 per class with no membership requirements, every day of the week. Children’s dance classes have also been brought back to the building.
The Martone family is looking to expand the uses for the building to include wedding receptions, Bar Mitzvahs, Boy Scout and additional Girl Scout meetings, as well as more parties.
The facility includes a side sitting room, a kitchen and three flat screen televisions. One hundred and thirty people can be seated without a dance floor or 80 with a dance floor.
A Community Day has been scheduled for Crystal Hall on May 19 from noon to 4 p.m. “We are looking for vendors to come and promote their businesses,” Martone said. Tables are available for rental for $50. There will be music, dancing and activities for children, including face painting and a bouncy castle.
“I’d love to have it rented out for parties every weekend and to have more community events,” Martone said. The rental fee is $400 for a four-hour party, but “you basically have it for the whole day,” she said, noting that the party can be set up and after the party the renter is responsible for cleaning up.
Crystal Hall is not the first business owned by the Martone family. They also own the She by SOCAP USA in Mahopac Falls.
In conjunction with their hair extension business, the family runs the Hair for Hope Foundation, which donates hair extensions to salons, which are each sold for $10. The proceeds are used by the organization for a variety of charitable efforts. Last week, the foundation provided a $120,000 check to the American Cancer Society, Martone noted. Since 2007, the foundation has donated over $2.5 million to the American Cancer Society and the National Breast Cancer Foundation, she said.
St. Luke’s Church’s stored items for their food drive last year. Her family wants to use Crystal Hall for other charitable functions, Martone said.
Crystal Hall at Somers Community Center is located at 34 Hillandale Drive. For more information, call Donna Martone at (914) 523-2893 or visit www.somerscc.org.
