Callicoon, N.Y. — Villa Roma Resort in Callicoon has temporarily closed following an interruption of electrical service, according to resort management.

The Sullivan County resort said its ownership and management teams are working directly with NYSEG to restore electrical service and return the property to normal operations.

According to Villa Roma management, the Villa Roma owed NYSEG $400,000 for six months of service.

“We wanted to pay them half last week and half on Monday. But they [NYSEG] wanted the entire payment,” Sandeep Wadhwa, Chairman of Fay Hospitality Catskills LLC, owner of the Villa Roma, told the Sullivan County Democrat. “We couldn’t pay the entire thing at once.

“We will be making a payment in full on Monday, September 28,” Wadhwa said. “Our financial condition is fine, there’s nothing to worry about.”

NYSEG officials said, “Service disconnection for non-payment is always a last resort. Over an extended period, we have worked with this customer through multiple outreach efforts, payment arrangements, deadline extensions and other opportunities to resolve the outstanding balance. Despite those efforts, the account remains unresolved. While it is unfortunate that this situation has reached this point, NYSEG must apply its collection policies consistently and fairly to all customers. We remain willing to work with the customer on a resolution and to restore service once the account has been brought current.”

Wadhwa said the entire staff was paid on time but “we needed working capital.”

Wadhwa said he spoke with the president of NYSEG but could not reach an agreement before the electric was shut off.

The Villa Roma was purchased by Fay Entertainment on Sept. 6, 2024, for $17.15 million from owners Marty Passante and Paul Carlucci, who had owned the resort for 54 years.

In a statement, Villa Roma apologized to hotel guests, timeshare owners, employees and the wider Villa Roma community for the disruption.

“We sincerely apologize to our hotel guests, timeshare owners, employees and the wider Villa Roma community for the serious inconvenience caused by the interruption of electrical service at the resort,” management said.

The resort is currently scheduled to reopen Tuesday, Sept. 29, according to Villa Roma’s website.

“We look forward to welcoming our guests, timeshare owners and community back to Villa Roma on Tuesday,” the resort said.

Villa Roma is located on Villa Roma Road in Callicoon. Radio Castkill has reached out to resort management for additional details about the electrical service interruption or whether the reopening schedule could change. They have not responded to our request for comment.

Editor’s Note: this story was updated on September 25 with statements from Sandeep Wadhwa, Chairman of Fay Hospitality Catskills LLC, owner of the Villa Roma, to the Sullivan County Democrat.