Owners of Port Jefferson diner condemned by village move to demolish it

The family that owns a dilapidated Port Jefferson diner condemned by village officials has promised to demolish the abandoned structure.

An attorney for Jose Ramos and his son John said the family plans to tear down the building in the village's Upper Port section as soon as they secure a demolition permit. The attorney, Timothy J. Mattimore of Islip, said he had applied for a permit and was awaiting final approvals, which he estimated may take a week.

"We feel the building is unsafe," Mattimore said during a Port Jefferson Village Board meeting on Monday. "It is a terrible eyesore."

After Mattimore spoke, the village board voted unanimously to authorize village crews to tear down the diner in 60 days. That would give the Ramos family enough time to do it themselves -- saving the village thousands of dollars in demolition costs.

The Ramos family, which owns several bakeries in Suffolk County, had faced a Nov. 17 deadline to obtain a demolition permit after village inspectors in September deemed the diner unsafe.

Mattimore said he was seeking permission to shut off utilities such as gas, sewage and electrical power in order to complete the requirements for a demolition permit.

The Ramos family recently erected a fence to prevent vandals from entering the building.

"We're really on the same page. . . . We want to get this building down as quickly as possible," Mattimore said. "If we can get this building down in the next week or two, we would like to."

Village officials said the diner, which has been vacant for at least eight years, was structurally unsound and posed a safety threat to passersby. Inspectors found the building had numerous safety hazards, including fire damage, inadequate light and air due to boards placed over windows, structural attachments that could fall and injure passersby, fire-code violations and broken emergency shutoff valves, Port Jefferson officials said.

Two earlier attempts by the village to tear down the diner were postponed in 2007 and 2008 when a previous owner announced plans to rehabilitate it, officials said.

Port Jefferson officials earlier this year streamlined their procedure for authorizing demolitions. Those decisions are approved by the village board rather than by a state judge, as had been the case under the old system. Village officials have targeted the Upper Port neighborhood for economic revitalization efforts.

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.