Abandoned clubhouse in North Patchogue set to be torn down

The graffiti-covered former home of a North Patchogue community club could have a date with the wrecking ball later this month after years of neglect, Brookhaven Town officials said.

The Canaan Lake Beach Community Club on Green Avenue has been vacant for years after the club disbanded, officials said. A failed attempt by a local civic group to donate the property to the town has left the site's ownership unclear, they said.

The town board on Oct. 22 voted 7-0 to have the structure torn down in about 30 days unless somebody comes forward to claim the building and repair it.

"It was a community center that was around for decades," said town Councilman Neil Foley, who represents North Patchogue. "The group that was running it folded up, and nobody really stepped up to take care of the building."

Attempts to reach former club members or property owners were unsuccessful.

A Sept. 4 inspection commissioned by the town and conducted by Hauppauge engineering firm Cashin Spinelli and Ferretti found extensive problems at the 3,040-square-foot, one-story building, including a damaged roof, broken gutters and overgrown grass and bushes. The interior, where the club once held meetings and parties, was filled with trash and appeared to have mold, the report said, adding there was graffiti on walls inside and outside.

The club once was a thriving group that made the building available to neighbors for events such as wedding receptions and graduation parties, said Joan Monko, a former North Patchogue resident who lived near the property for 55 years.

But Monko, 80, who moved to Medford three years ago, said she and her late husband, Richard, began calling Brookhaven officials to complain when the club started renting the site out for parties that included loud music. In recent years, she said, the condition of the abandoned property became "terrible."

"Nobody was keeping the upkeep," she said. "Nothing was taken care of."

Brookhaven and Suffolk County officials said a civic group several years ago had tried to donate the land to the town. But they said the plan failed amid questions over who held the title to the property.

Town officials said the county may seize the parcel because property taxes have not been paid in several years. County Comptroller John M. Kennedy Jr. said the property has failed to pay more than $11,000 in back taxes over the past four years. He said he would discuss with Brookhaven officials whether the county will seize the parcel.

Foley said he has received many complaints from neighbors, including reports of vagrants and fires lit at the site. The town plans to leave the property vacant after tearing down the clubhouse, he said.

"Unfortunately, it became a big quality of life issue for the community," Foley said. "We don’t want to demolish anything in the Town of Brookhaven ... [but] we’ll demolish it and there’ll be some vegetation and it will return to nature."

Monko, who said she speaks to her former neighbors, said the community has no sentimental attachment to the building.

"I think the neighbors would all be happy" if the clubhouse is razed, Monko said. "I think if you were to go house to house, no one would care if it’s demolished or not."

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.