Demolition of Doris Duke's N.J. mansion resumes Tuesday

The New Jersey Supreme Court refused to reinstate a stay on the razing of the mansion.

HILLSBOROUGH -- The contractor hired to tear down the historic Doris Duke mansion has returned to the property and demolition work is expected to resume Tuesday, Michael Catania, executive director of the Duke Farms Foundation, confirmed Monday.

Crews, which had to stop work on March 6 after an Appellate Division judge's issued an emergency stay on the demolition, are setting up and preparing to resume razing the mansion after New Jersey Supreme Court Justice Lee Solomon ruled March 21 against the emergency stay.

"The demolition contractor has returned to Duke Farms and the demolition will resume in an orderly fashion," said Catania.

Catania said he expects demolition on the remaining structure to resume on Tuesday. Rain on Monday delayed site work. Prior to the emergency stay about half of the mansion, a portion known as the Hollywood wing, had been demolished.

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David Brook, an attorney for a citizens group call DORIS (Demolition of Residence is Senseless), had been seeking to stop the demolition until the Appellate Division hears his appeal on a vote by the township's Historical Preservation Commission that approved razing of the structure, which was built in 1893.

Brook wasn't immediately available for comment.

Duke Farms has become internationally-known for its focus on sustainable land stewardship. The foundation was formed in 1998 to manage the estate after Doris Duke died in 1993. In 2012, Duke Farms was opened to the public, featuring walking and biking trails, a large community garden and featuring several large buildings that had been restored.

The foundation has previously stated the mansion was too far gone to be preserved, and the 50 acres surrounding it will be opened up to additional walking and biking trails once the demolition is complete.

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Appellate Division Judge Allison Accurso on March 6 issued an emergency stay, which immediately halted the demolition of the structure that had begun the previous day after Somerset County Superior Court Judge Yolanda Ciccone denied an injunction on a permit that approved the demolition.

On March 18, a two-judge Appellate Division panel lifted that emergency stay because of a "failure to demonstrate a reasonable probability of ultimate success on the merits." Brook then took the matter to the state Supreme Court.

Brook has previously said if the mansion is demolished and he wins a court decision, he would demand that it be rebuilt to its original state.

"We're not concerned about that at all," said Catania. "There is no precedent of something like that happening. We're demolishing the structure legally. It's just silly to think it can be restored."