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Bell Blvd. building to be redone after arson

Bell Blvd. building to be redone after arson
BY Katy Gagnon

Nearly two years after a three-alarm arson fire tore through an 80-year-old building on Bell Boulevard, leaving families homeless and forcing businesses to relocate, the owners of the property are starting to rebuild.

The fire, which began around 1 a.m. Aug. 21, 2006, and was extinguished roughly two hours later, charred the three-story building that stands at the corner of Bell Boulevard and 42nd Avenue and forced out tenants who lived in the four rental units. It shuttered businesses housed on the structure's first floor.

Scaffolding now surrounds the structure and the building's owners have applied for a work permits to refurbish the charred interior, according to documents filed with the city Department of Buildings.

Parker Greenfield, the property's owners, declined to comment on upcoming plans for the building, but one of the building's former tenants, Bruce Davis of Paradise Bedding, Dinettes & Furniture, is eager to move back in — if all the circumstances work out.

“If everything were to fall into place, I would have no problem going back. That was our home,” said Davis, who owns the furniture store. However, Davis said he has not been in recent contact with his former landlord and is not familiar with any plans for the property.

Paradise was forced to move his store down to another spot on Bell Boulevard after the fire destroyed much of the interior and its merchandise.

FDNY officials later determined the fire to have started in a vestibule outside the furniture store and ruled the blaze as intentional. The fire spread from there and soon engulfed the entire building, officials said.

FDNY officials said the investigation into what caused the fire remains open and no arrests have been made.

The tenants of the four apartments, two of which were rent-controlled, were forced to abandon their homes. The Carvel ice cream store, next to Paradise, also was destroyed and the adjoining Gateaux Bakery was damaged.

Nestor Murdocca, who lived in the building, told TimesLedger in 2006 that he was about to watch the TV show “Frasier” just before 1 a.m. when his apartment filled with smoke.

“In about 30 seconds, my room was full, full, full of smoke,” he said.

One woman sprained her ankle when she jumped from a second-story window in an attempt to escape the blaze. In addition, 16 firefighters suffered minor injuries while extinguishing the blaze, according to FDNY officials.

Ruth Lee lived in one of the rental units with her husband, Paul, a pastor at the Gospel Mission Church on 42nd Avenue. After the fire, Lee said she and her husband were forced to vacate the building and had little assistance from the city or from her landlord in finding a new place to live.

Reach reporter Katy Gagnon by e-mail at kgagnon@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300 Ext 174.