by WorldTribune Staff, October 5, 2026 Non-AI Real World News
Demolition of the 170-year-old South Bushwick Reformed Church at 855 Bushwick Avenue in Brooklyn was carried out by Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Department of Buildings despite preservation efforts by church leaders.
South Bushwick Reformed Church was set ablaze by an arsonist on June 19, authorities said. / Video Image
A three-alarm fire on June 19, which authorities determined was arson, gutted the historic 1850s landmark which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. No occupants were inside the main sanctuary, though one firefighter sustained minor injuries.
The New York City Department of Buildings previously granted brief holds and pauses on demolition—including one in mid-July—to allow church engineers and the community time to submit stabilization plans to save the attached 1881 Greek Revival Fellowship Hall.
Despite efforts by Pastor James Steward and preservationists to lobby for saving the remaining portions, the city ultimately moved forward with razing the remaining structures after stabilization or preservation arrangements did not halt the emergency order.
Federal prosecutors and the NYPD unsealed a criminal complaint on Aug. 5 charging 24-year-old Brooklyn resident John Jones with intentional arson.
Prosecutors said surveillance footage captured Jones purchasing a lighter before setting the church’s exterior on fire. Authorities stated he later confessed during a post-arrest interview and possessed notes referencing additional attacks.
Jones has been charged with federal arson but has not been convicted; a federal judge ordered him held without bail pending trial.
Following the fire, the New York City Department of Buildings issued full vacate and emergency demolition orders, saying that severe structural instability posed an immediate public collapse hazard.
In an Oct. 4 post to LinkedIn, Kyle Reyes, owner of Law Enforcement Today, Blue Lives Matter and The Police Tribune, noted:
CHRISTIANITY UNDER ATTACK: Two Muslim New York officials blocked a rebuild of a 174-year-old Brooklyn church that was INTENTIONALLY TORCHED.
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South Bushwick Reformed Church at 855 Bushwick Avenue was built in 1853. The congregation goes back to the Dutch period, and it is one of eight landmarked wooden houses of worship left in the city.
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The Department of Buildings ordered the damaged portions demolished. That department is run by Ahmed Tigani, an Egyptian-American Muslim appointed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
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On June 19, 2026, a three-alarm fire collapsed the steeple and destroyed the sanctuary. 192 firefighters fought it for more than two hours.
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On August 5, federal prosecutors charged John Jones, 24, with intentionally and maliciously setting that fire. The complaint says video shows him buying a lighter on Broadway and at the church just before the blaze.
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He has not been convicted. The charge carries 5 to 20 years.
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Church leaders asked the city to delay demolition. An independent engineer told them the building was still structurally sound and could be repaired.
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The Department of Buildings classified it as unstable and ordered the damaged portions down. Pastor John Steward said demolition of the remaining structures at 855 Bushwick would start the next day.
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Preservationists said crews bulldozed the cornerstone and interior columns before they could salvage them.
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The congregation is trying to raise $2 million for a temporary worship space and a rebuild. Fellowship Hall, the old Sunday School wing, was the part left standing.
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Steward said, “It is with extremely heavy hearts that the South Bushwick Church reports that, despite its best efforts, we have been informed that demolition of the remaining structures at 855 Bushwick will commence tomorrow.”Are you awake yet, America?
