Brookhaven Town demolishes its 250th abandoned house

The Brookhaven Town demolished its 250th abandoned house on Tuesday.

The house, on Southaven Avenue in Medford, had been severely damaged by a fire in December 2016, town officials said in a news release. The costs of razing the structure and removing debris will be added to the owners’ property tax bill, officials said.

Brookhaven five years ago began cracking down on vacant houses that engineers found were structurally unsafe and a health hazard to occupants or neighbors. Some of those homes are known as “zombie houses,” if they are both vacant and in the midst of foreclosure proceedings.

Town officials previously have estimated Brookhaven has as many as 2,000 abandoned structures.

By Carl MacGowan

carl.macgowan@newsday.comCarlMacGowan

Carl MacGowan is a Long Island native who covers Brookhaven Town after having previously covered Smithtown, Suffolk County courts and numerous spot news and feature stories over his 20-plus year career at Newsday.