A Florida evangelical pastor who preaches a national Christian revival is claiming online that he is the new owner of the former Green Mountain College campus in Poultney.
Tommie Zito announced his ownership and an intent to convert the property into something called Z University to train up to 1,000 students to preach Christian gospel as part of a national religious awakening. Zito made the claim in a Facebook video recorded while he was at Disneyworld in Orlando, Fla., on the Fourth of July. Zito did not name the school specifically, but described the campus and also posted videos with images of it.
On Monday, he posted a more explicit message, inviting people to join him in Poultney later this month for an “initial campus preview week.”
Seven Days could not immediately confirm Zito’s claim. No deed reflecting any change of ownership has been filed with the Poultney Town Clerk’s office as of Monday morning, according to Town Clerk Betsy Wescott.
The development is the latest twist in a six-year saga since the former college was purchased in 2020 by Raj Bhakta. He’s the founder of WhistlePig Whiskey and left the company after a dispute with its other owners. He was a reality TV contestant on “The Apprentice” under future President Donald Trump and a vocal advocate for conservative GOP politics.
Bhakta, whose spokesman did not respond to a request for comment from Seven Days, initially offered a grand vision for the 115-acre campus as world-class destination hotels, restaurants, luxury condos and a microdistillery with a tasting room. But he failed to attract outside financing for his ambitious plan and to clear state land use requirements. He has been embroiled in contentious legal disputes with town and state officials over his property tax assessment.
In February, Bhakta announced he intended to give away the campus to a religious group, preferably Catholic, with a mission of reviving Western civilization and the United States through faith. He extended his May deadline for a decision while considering what he called many potential offers.
Seven Days has had a standing interview request with Bhakta for several months, but he has not made himself available. Email messages on Sunday and Monday to his spokesman, Andrew Lohse, were not returned.
On July 4, while Zito was recording his video from Disney World, a post went up on Bhakta’s Facebook page for his spirits business. In noting the holiday, it included this: “This year, the celebration is also personal: one last great hurrah on this campus as we have known it, and the first toast to the chapter already beginning.”
Bhakta still faces legal issues with state regulators involving the campus. On March 27, state officials slapped Bhakta and his development company, Regenerative Land Holdings, with a list of alleged Act 250 violations on the campus: creating a private school; operating his Bhakta Spirits distilling, distribution and tasting business; and remodeling the historic house where the college president once lived, which became Bhakta’s home.
The notice from the state Land Use Review Board gave Bhakta 10 days to dispute the allegations or, in the alternative, a May 31 deadline to submit a new Act 250 application. It is not immediately clear what impact, if any, the state’s action might have on Bhakta’s plan to dispose of the property.
Land Use Board Executive Director Peter Gill said the citations are pending as of Monday and no agreement has been reached with Bhakta. He said he was unaware of Zito’s potential acquisition of the property.
Seven Days has an interview request pending with Zito, who founded what he calls The American Awakening based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. When contacted, Zito asked to get questions in writing; Seven Days has submitted several.
A webpage for his organization states its purpose as: “Over the past two decades, The American Awakening has orchestrated over 14,000 revival services, reverberating within the walls of churches, convention centers, and arenas across America and beyond… But our impact doesn’t end there. We are dedicated to equipping and activating believers, empowering them to confidently share their faith with others. The ripple effect of this training has been profound, leaving an indelible mark on cities and churches alike.”
In his Disney World video, Zito credited Pamela Bolton, a South Granville resident involved with a local evangelical church, with making him aware of the Poultney campus. Bolton declined to speak with a Seven Days reporter for this story until Zito had spoken with the reporter first.
Zito, a Floridian, said in his video that he doesn’t plan to move to Vermont to oversee his new project.
Zito told his viewers he has been evangelizing in the Green Mountain State and was drawn to start a religious school here because it’s one of “the least Christian states in the United States … God picked the least churched state in the United States for the third great awakening.”
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