Crime & Safety

Partial Collapse of Roof Not a Surprise, Business Owner Says

Parts of the roof at Brownstone Cleaners on Monmouth Street collapsed Tuesday morning causing significant water damage to the business.

Youssef Bahket stood in front of a bank of dryers at his Monmouth Street Laundromat and watched as the clothes spun around. He put his hand on the glass window and shook his head.

“No heat,” he said. “Still broken.”

The roof of partially collapsed early Tuesday morning causing significant leaks that damaged customer clothing and many of the dry cleaners machines, including several washers and dryers.

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Early in the afternoon with floors still slick – the remains of more than two inches of water that covered it this morning – Bahket, who goes by the name “Joe” swapped out motors on his machines and took calls as water continued to drip from overhead ceiling panels.

How much of his equipment is damaged, and exactly how much it’s going to cost him, Bahket’s not sure of. What he is sure of, he said, is that this recent incident wasn’t completely unexpected.

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“The roof has always leaked,” Bahket, who has been a tenant in the building for nearly five years, said. “It’s been like that as long as I’ve moved in here.”

It’s believed that snow build up and the consistent rainfall Tuesday morning caused the roof to collapse in spots.

Bahket moved long the building, into corridors and behind machines, to point out damage that’s been done. All over the business are signs of water leaks, both new and old. The most significant damage Tuesday may have been done to his industrial dry cleaning machine. Water gushed down and into the large machine’s engine.

He hasn’t tried to turn it back on yet, he said, as the Red Bank Volunteer Fire Department cautioned him against it.

Though he’s hopeful insurance will cover his losses, Bahket said this should have never happened. For years he said he’s been asking his landlord, identified in borough records as Little Silver resident Doris Baldridge, owner of DeeZee Inc., to fix problems, but they haven’t.

“It’s a hassle,” he said. “I don’t need this. I just want to work, pay my bills, and pay my rent. Somebody has to do something. I know I’m a nobody, but maybe I have rights here.”

In July, 2010, a sagging floor in the middle of the business caused borough code officials to prohibit use of a central room, according to code enforcement records obtained at borough hall. Permits were applied for, but it appears as though repairs were never made.

Less than two years ago DeeZee Inc. performed repairs on the roof of the building to repair water-damaged sections that were leaking, records show. The new roof was supposed to aid in draining, an architect’s report stated.

Signs of previous damage to the building were all over. On the Monmouth Street side of the building a major drain area leading from the roof is completely destroyed. Water poured out of it Tuesday afternoon.

This problem is one that could have been addressed before it created such a mess, Bahket said. Representatives from DeeZee Inc. could not be reached for comment Tuesday afternoon.


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