Robert Brum

rbrum@lohud.com

After a magazine dubbed him “The Boy Who would be Trump” two decades ago, Billy Procida became a sidekick of the controversial billionaire and eventual GOP presidential front-runner.

After Donald Trump saw the profile about Procida, the budding financier quickly landed in the role of Trump’s apprentice, pre-TV show. Procida witnessed the art of the deal, Trump style, around New York City.

So, what does the Piermont resident think of his former boss’ campaign, and the controversy that swirls around Trump’s rhetoric and bullish (some would say bullying) style?

“The guy is not a bigot," Procida said Tuesday. "He does not have one prejudiced bone in his body. He’d rather hang out with a whole bunch of construction laborers than bankers. As billionaires go, he’s about a common a guy as you get.”

Procida, now 53, recalled his experiences with Trump fondly.

“He was a great mentor for a twenty-something-year-old who grew up a street kid and never went to college,” he said. “He polished me up fast and threw me into the most complicated situations. He expected a lot of me. And I think I gave it to him.”

Procida described The Donald as a “workaholic, decisive, he didn’t put up with any bull... He always wanted everyone’s opinion.”

In 1990, he was hired for a year as a vice president in the Trump empire.

That was the springboard Procida needed: “Four years after I left him I won New York City developer of the year at 32.”

He now runs Procida Funding and Advisors, an Englewood, New Jersey-based commercial real estate lending and advisory firm with projects across the metropolitan area.

Procida’s playing a big role in a couple of high-profile Rockland projects: the TIME Nyack hotel, set to open in April, and the Tallman Beach and Pool Club, which takes the plunge come Memorial Day weekend.

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The swim club project's got an element of the brashness Procida shares with his mentor. The once-popular pool in Tallman Mountain State Park was drained by the state for not pulling in enough cash, and attempts to resuscitate it had come up empty.

In stepped Procida, who lives nearby, to plan, finance and develop a facility he says will have the amenities of a private resort including two pools, full bar and food services.

“What I do today I actually learned at Trump,” he said.

Procida, who describes himself as “a rabid independent,” said given the presidential field today, he would vote for his ex-boss as commander in chief.

For the millions his company pays every year in taxes, he asks: "What do we get for it? Nothing. It’s stolen, it gets given away. I’ve had it. I’d give Trump a whirl.”

What about Trump’s campaign speeches, which have whipped supporters into a frenzy and opponents into a fury?

“Sometime it’s tongue in cheek, sometimes it’s real. He’s not a professional politician," Procida said.

Whether or not his former boss winds up in the White House in 2017, Procida has a message for the next president:

“Everyone should have to resign from their party. The very least you can do while you’re representing me, every politician should have to be an independent while they’re elected to represent all of us.”

Robert Brum is a columnist and editor of The Rockland Angle, a nightly email newsletter exclusively for Rockland County news, features and other essential information. To sign up for The Angle, visit http://lohud.com/newsletters, check the "Rockland Angle" box and submit your email address.

Twitter: @Bee_bob