Queens church to sell Brookville lot where debris was dumped, village says

A Queens-based church entered negotiations to sell a 2-acre lot it owns  in the Village of Brookville  where, village officials said, it illegally dumped debris including furniture, old toys and construction material.

Living Water Victory Church, based in Flushing, purchased the property in 2019. It has used the site, where there is a single-family home, as "a junkyard," the village's lawsuit stated.

On the property were multiple boats, old appliances and dirt that created "hazardous" and "unsafe" conditions, according to court documents. Village officials had asked the church to remove the debris in late 2019 and began issuing violations in late 2020. 

The Village of Brookville issued more than 100 violations for alleged infractions between late 2020 and spring 2021, Newsday reported in January. The code violations include illegally storing vehicles and not properly maintaining the property. 

Tip Henderson, an attorney for the village, said in a recent state court filing the church had "entered a contract to sell the property" at 29 Tappentown Lane. The village plans to drop the lawsuit once the property is sold, Henderson said.

The church retained Lance Yoon, a Manhasset-based lawyer, to handle the sale, court documents show. Yoon did not immediately respond to a phone call and email seeking comment. The documents do not identify a prospective buyer.

In September 2021, a village court justice found two individuals guilty of violating the code: Chih Pyng Ho, a church pastor, and Min Chi Ho Pi, a trustee. After an appeal, the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, except for one violation, and sent the case back to village justice court. 

Ho and Pi, who are a couple, according to court documents, were fined $120,000 each.

Since the decision was rendered, no one from the church has cleaned up the property and no fines were ever paid, court documents state. 

Brookville Mayor Daniel Serota said the sale has not been finalized. The fines are still in effect, he said.

“They violated every ordinance and every code in our village ordinances, and the place was used as a garbage dump,” Serota said in a phone interview. “It was a nightmare, an absolute nightmare.”

In the September court filing, Henderson asked the court to adjourn for two months “when we will hopefully be in a position to remove this matter from the Court’s calendar.”

CORRECTION: An earlier version of the story misstated the street where the church property is located. 

By Joseph Ostapiuk

joseph.ostapiuk@newsday.com@OstapiukJ