“An evil man will burn his own nation to the ground to rule over the ashes.” — Sun Tzu

Historic Kingston street scene — downtown main street with classic architecture

Neil Bender, will you please…

Stop Suing Our City

Since purchasing properties in Uptown Kingston, billionaire developer Neil Bender and his firm William Gottlieb Real Estate (WGRE) have filed dozens of lawsuits against the City of Kingston. Not because they've been wronged. Not because the law is on their side. Why?

Pure petulance and spite.

Neil's strategy is obvious: siege lawfare. He'll sit on historic properties and leave them abandoned or neglected until they fall into disrepair (and maybe collect a little depreciation tax credit along the way). Meanwhile, his lawyers attempt to overwhelm the city's legal team with floods of frivolous lawsuits and FOIA requests. Once the city's legal resources are drained and the property values have tanked, it'll be game over.

And the corporate structure tells the story. Bender operates through at least eight separate LLCs for what are essentially contiguous Wall Street properties. That's not normal. These LLCs are essentially litigation architecture designed for more complexity, more legal surface area, and more burden on the city to respond.

This is happening right now with the Pike Plan.

Neil Bender and WGRE have filed seven lawsuits to halt the city's Pike Plan. They claim to be invested in "the preservation and restoration of historic properties." But the crumbling Pike Plan canopies they're so passionately defending were installed in the 1970s. The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation called the Pike Plan a "non-contributing or non-historic" feature of the National Register-listed Stockade Historic District and recommended "to demolish the Pike Plan and to restore the historic storefronts rather than extend the life of the non-historic feature."

Preservation of history is a noble pursuit.

What Neil Bender is doing is something else.

It's pathetic.

We need to make sure Neil can hear us from his Manhattan penthouse. So we're organizing a mass mailing event. Make your voice heard at the Kingston Farmer's Market on July XX, 2026.

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Tell Neil Bender:

Stop Suing Our City.

Postcard front — historic Kingston street scene
Postcard back — addressed to Neil Bender

Make your voice heard.

Sign Up

Who We Are

We are Kingston residents who believe our city deserves better than legal harassment from a billionaire developer. Kingston has held strong for centuries — founded in 1658, we've seen our share of challenges. This campaign is about making the cost of siege lawfare visible and giving our community a voice.

Stop Suing Our City is a grassroots civic campaign. We're not an organization with a budget — we're neighbors who care about what kind of city we are. We organize at the Farmer's Market, collect postcards addressed to Neil Bender, and spread the word.

FAQ

Is this legal?
Yes. Organizing, collecting signatures, and mailing postcards to a public figure is fully protected speech. We are not defaming anyone — we are stating facts and asking Neil Bender to stop suing our city.
Who is Neil Bender?
Neil Bender is a billionaire real estate developer who, through his firm William Gottlieb Real Estate (WGRE), has purchased properties in Uptown Kingston and filed dozens of lawsuits against the City of Kingston. His strategy has been described as siege lawfare: overwhelming the city with litigation while letting properties fall into disrepair.
What does signing the postcard do?
Signing the physical postcard at our Farmer's Market event adds your name to a mass mailing addressed directly to Neil Bender. It shows him that the community is paying attention and that his legal harassment has a cost. Your signature is a statement of support — not a legal commitment.
What does signing up for email updates do?
Signing up means you'll receive campaign updates and event reminders — including when we'll be at the Kingston Farmer's Market for the mass mailing. You can unsubscribe at any time. We only collect your email; we don't sell or share it.
Where and when is the mass mailing event?
We'll be at the Kingston Farmer's Market on July XX, 2026. Sign up for email updates to get the exact date, time, and location once confirmed.