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‘Well worth the fight.’ Preston HS community celebrates $8.5M deal that will keep school open

Alumnae, faculty, parents and community members gathered at Paddy’s on the Bay in Throgs Neck, two months before the high school was set to shutter.

Tim Harfmann

Apr 28, 2025, 1:52 AM

Updated 5 hr ago

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The Preston High School community continued its celebration on Sunday, just days after learning that their beloved Catholic school reached a deal to keep the doors open for decades.
Alumnae, faculty, parents and community members gathered at Paddy’s on the Bay in Throgs Neck, two months before the high school was set to shutter.
The school announced a new agreement on Tuesday. It is a 25-year lease between the Sisters of the Divine Compassion, which owned the school since the 1940s, and the Bally's Foundation, which is bidding for a casino nearby and purchased the property for $8.5 million.
The deal did not come easy after several offers were denied. It took the attorney general to get involved.
Preston graduate Laura Demaria organized Sunday’s gathering and said their effort to save their school was well worth the fight.
“The last two months have been a rollercoaster of a ride with Preston,” said Demaria. “We weren’t sure what was going to happen – but I had faith, and I knew we were going to pull through this, and we did. This week, I said we need to pull the community together and having a little gathering.”
There is another gathering on Monday morning for Preston students who were on spring break when the announcement was made.
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