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The Unexpected Closing Of Tito Santana Taqueria By The Landlord
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Tito Santana Taqueria, days after a Dutchess County Board of Health inspection triggered a Beacon Building Department inspection, resulting in findings of structural damage deemed as “Unsafe Conditions” to floor joists in the basement due to wood-boring insects. The restaurant was ordered to cease by the Beacon Building Department until this violation was remedied by the property owner, Joseph Donovan and his wife, both of Lindley Todd, LLC,. After Tito’s fixed 5 violations that were there responsibility, and before the work to the floor joists started, the landlord Terminated Tito Santana’s lease with a 7 day order to vacate. a “For Lease” sign was up soon after asking for almost double the rent and showed the space to prospective new tenants.
Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth
When news first came in to A Little Beacon Blog about the unexpected closing of Tito Santana Taqueria, it began as a percolation. Multiple readers wrote in to ask if the rumors were true.
Readers had many questions: if Tito’s had closed; was it because of a health department violation that the landlord wouldn’t fix; were the employees getting paid; was it an issue with the flooring; did they spend time in court; were they evicted; was it closed forever.
ALBB requested and was granted an interview with Tito Santana’s owner, Milan, outside on a hot day in June over ice cold cans of ginger key lime soda. The meeting included reviewing photos of the property before this situation, the email sent by the landlord’s property manager, Sean Noble, to Tito Santana, terminating the lease, and other documents for a pending lawsuit that Tito Santana’s was serving the landlord Lindley Todd, LLC the following week.
What Happened? In A Nutshell
Damage to the floor joists under 142 Main Street, formerly Tito Santana, from the wood-boring insects. Owned by Lindley Todd, LLC.
Photo Credit: Tito Santana
A routine surprise inspection by a Dutchess County Health Inspector of Tito Santana occurred on May 6, 2025, where the inspector found the fire panel to be not working properly. This finding triggered the City of Beacon Building Department to inspect the property, who cited 7 violations, which included significant structural damage to joists under the kitchen floor, due to wood-boring insects, according to the “Order To Remedy - Cease Operations” document obtained by ALBB via FOIA.
Specifically: “The floor joist, seen from the basement area, show evidence of severe deterioration due to wood-boring insects.” Additionally, the Order stated that a permit would be required to fix it: “An engineer evaluation of the flooring system is required prior to repair. Permit required for this work.”
The City of Beacon’s Building Department, under Beacon’s current Deputy Building Inspector Cory Wirthmann, thereby ordered the Cease Of Operations of the restaurant until the violations were fixed, but did not mandate that the lease be terminated, as the Beacon Building Department does not have the authority to dictate or interfere with the relationship between landlord and tenant. Tito Santana had 1 year remaining on their current lease, and for the past three years, had been in discussions for signing a new 9 year lease at a higher rate of $2,250 (current lease was less than that amount, Milan told ALBB).
Tito Santana had been asking the landlord for the past 3.5 years to fix the issues like flooding in the basement while working to secure the new lease. With promises of a future extended lease and repairs made to the building, Lindley Todd, LLC told Tito's to pay the higher rent amount of $2,250 than the current lease, which Tito’s did.
Flooding in the basement cellar of 142 Main Street, where Tito Santana’s was. The restaurant owner told ALBB that flooding was a regular occurrence, and not fixed by the property owner, Lindley Todd, LLC. The new rent listing boasts of: “significant basement storage.”
Photo Credit: Tito Santana
Flooding at 142 Main Street, formerly Tito Santana, that would include sewage. The restaurant owner told ALBB that his requests of the property owner, Lindley Todd, LLC to fix it were repeatedly not completed.
Photo Credit: Tito Santana
“Tito's had been paying the higher rent amount for the past 3 years with no signed new contract. Just the original contract we are in now that I inherited when I bought the business that has the lower rate written in,” Milan said. “This was advantageous to Lindley Todd, LLC because we were safe in that we had an active lease, but as he tempted me with the new 9 year lease and promises to fix major problems, wanted me to pay the higher rent amount that would be on our future 9 year lease,” Milan confirmed. “But that day never came. He terminated my lease by email one afternoon after the Beacon Building Department and Dutchess County Health Department cited him on violations, 5 of which I remedied, the 6th of which was dependent upon his structural fix. My lease ended swiftly in termination.”
The picture above shows water overflowing in the bucket from a leak. The basement flooding was reoccurring. The video shows water coming out of the wall. Backflows from pipes result in all the buildings sewage coming into the basement, Milan explained.
Suddenly, Tito Santana’s was “Closed For Repairs”
Tito Santana fixed 5 violations that were their responsibility, with the 6th needing to wait until the floor was repaired. That violation - the 7th and largest violation of the floor joists - resided with Lindley Todd, LLC, Milan told ALBB. "Structural repair is the landlord's responsibility in 99% of the commercial leases and so it was in our lease,” he said. “Everything else is tenant's responsibility for the most part."
Regarding the violations: “Six were my violations. He made me fix and spend the money on his property. Telling me that he's going to fix the structural issues, like the constant flooding in the basement, and then I would have a new lease. The 6 violations fall under my responsibility. I fixed 5 of them (for the 6th, I was waiting on the floor to be repaired by him). And then he sent me the termination. He made me spend the money to fix his place, and then took the place away from me. What is the point of the lease anyway?”
The lease termination email was sent on May 21, 2025 by Property Manager Sean Noble, which mentions New York State’s Good Cause Eviction Law. Sean’s email explaining the termination reads as follows:
Milan,
Thanks for your patience as you've been waiting for a time to meet with Joe and me to discuss the repairs needed to clear the violations issued by the City of Beacon. While we had intended to meet to go over next steps, Joe has made the decision to move forward with terminating the lease. This decision was based on the terms outlined in the "Fire/Damage" clause of your lease, which gives the landlord the sole right to determine whether the premises are usable due to fire or other damage. In this case, Joe has determined that the premises are not usable in their current condition and has chosen to exercise his option to terminate the lease rather than proceed with repairs.
Attached to this email, you will find the official Notice of Termination. I know this is disappointing news, especially given your willingness to move forward with resolving the violations.
However, it was the City of Beacon Building Department who ordered that the restaurant cease operations until the structural violation was fixed and reviewed by an engineer, in “Violation 305.1.1 - Unsafe conditions. Code Reference: 2020 Property Maintenance Code of New York State November 2019.” The City of Beacon Building Department had no authority to terminate the lease, and did not order such. All violations are listed below in this article.
Lindley Todd’s representative and family member Nick Page, was seen showing the property days later to potential new tenants in the restaurant industry.
After the termination, the property was listed on the market on LoopNet for $4,000/month, which is 43% higher than what Tito Santana was paying, and without the 7th violation of the wood-boring insect damaged floor joists fixed, or the reason for the constant flooding.
The new property listing boasts of “significant basement storage,” but the basement was still prone to flooding.
“He wanted me out, so I moved out,” Milan said. “He only gave me 7 days to move out. On a restaurant that has been there 15 years. Fast forward a couple weeks, he is trying to lease the space for at least $4,000. Almost twice my rent. I find this baffling.”
The “For Lease” sign up at 142 Main Street, former home of Tito Santana days after Tito Santana was served a termination email on their lease, citing that repairs needed to be made.
After the restaurant closed and people started asking questions, on May 31st 2025, ALBB reached out to the landlord, Joseph Donovan of Lindley Todd, LLC with a list of questions about the types of repairs needed. By June 4th he responded: “Yes, my wife and I are the principals of Lindley Todd, LLC, the property owner. A collection of events led to a detailed inspection of the store and cellar (by the health dept, and bldg. inspector, and ourselves) and the realization that extensive repairs were needed … the scope not feasible with continued occupancy of the retail/restaurant space.”
Tito Santana was started 14 years ago by Kamel Jamal, a restaurateur who has started and owns and co-owns several eateries on Main Street in Beacon. He sold Tito Santana’s to the current owner, Milan, 3.5 years ago in January 2022.
What Were The Violations?
Of the 7 violations, Tito Santana fixed 5 of them that were their responsibility, Milan said. They had already moved necessary items out so that Lindley Todd, LLC could do work on the 7th violation involving the basement and kitchen floor damage from the wood-boring insects, as well as a plumbing issue.
“I moved everything for the kitchen floor. I already took stuff from the kitchen to storage. I would have moved more to storage to fix whatever he needed. We were preparing ourselves for the busy summer season, so had purchased food and drinks. I had to throw away $30,000 worth of food and drinks (cost with receipts, not retail value) when he terminated the lease with 7 days notice and mandated that the space be left in ‘broom clean condition’.”
According to the “Order to Remedy - Cease Operations,” the violations were as follows.
2020 Fire Code of New York State November 2019: "The commercial kitchen exhaust hood and fire suppression system was overdue for the 6 month inspection and cleaning. Expired May 1, 2025"
Power supply: "Behind the front counter there were several multi-plug adapters plugged into each other and not plugged directly into a wall receptacle."
Unapproved conditions: "In the kitchen area there was a 2 gang floor receptacle that was not properly secured to the wall and the cover plate was not secure to the box, exposing the wires on the inside."
Plumbing system hazards: "The DWV vent, an Air Admittance Valve, was located within the umbrella of the kitchen hood at a close proximity to the range top. Physical damage to the pipe has occurred due to radiant heat exposure."
Clearance from ignition sources: "The commercial range located under the Type 1 hood is mounted above a wood dolly cart. The wood dolly is a combustible material that is located too close to an ignition source."
Extension cords: "An extension cord is being used to power a large walk-in cooler outdoors. Extension cord is (1) not protected from physical damage (2) affixed permanently to the building (3) is routed through a door to the outside (4) is plugged into several multi-plug adapters."
This was the largest structural violation that the Beacon Building Department required the property owner, Lindley Todd, LLC to fix:
This violation was identified as "Unsafe Conditions": "The floor joist, seen from the basement area, show evidence of severe deterioration due to wood-boring insects. An engineer evaluation of the flooring system is required prior to repair. Permit required for this work."
Violation: 305.1.1 - Unsafe conditions.Code Reference: 2020 Property Maintenance Code of New York State November 2019
Description: The following conditions shall be determined as unsafe and shall be repaired or replaced to comply with the Building Code of New York State or the Existing Building Code of New York State as required for existing buildings as required for existing buildings, or the Residential Code of New York State as applicable:
1. The nominal strength of any structural member is exceeded by nominal loads, the load effects or the required strength.
2. The anchorage of the floor or roof to walls or columns, and of walls and columns to foundations is not capable of resisting all nominal loads or load effects.
3. Structures or components thereof that have reached their limit state.
4. Structural members are incapable of supporting nominal loads and load effects. 5. Stairs, landings, balconies and all similar walking surfaces, including guards and handrails, are not structurally sound, not properly anchored or are anchored with connections not capable of supporting all nominal loads and resisting all load effects.
6. Foundation systems that are not firmly supported by footings are not plumb and free from open cracks and breaks, are not properly anchored or are not capable of supporting all nominal loads and resisting all load effects.
Exceptions: 1. Where substantiated otherwise by an approved method. 2. Demolition of unsafe conditions shall be permitted where approved by the building official.
Reason For The Lease Termination
The reason Lindley Todd, LLC stated in an email terminating the lease, which was emailed by the property manager Sean Noble to Milan, invoked the “Fire/Damage Clause.” But there was no fire or damage from a fire.
There a faulty fire panel, which triggered this cascade of intervention. But this wasn’t the first time the fire panel didn’t work, Tito Santana told ALBB. Multiple issues had been wrong and gone unrepaired for some time, despite numerous requests to fix, and spoken promises to deliver, Tito Santana told ALBB. Several of those exchanges are in emails between the two.
"It's brutal to do something like this to anybody," Milan told ALBB. He had 6-7 employees who worked in the kitchen and in the front serving customers. “I was willing to move out for him to fix the place. He just handed me a termination.”
A boiler inspection log at 142 Main Street, with the last inspection date being 5/12/2015.
Photo Credit: Tito Santana
Milan hired an attorney who began correspondence with Lindley Todd, LLC to discuss how to move forward without ending the business. “They never responded to us on anything. Just to have a conversation,” Milan said. “Probably this week we will end up in court. We have to file a lawsuit. They are not responding. I can't do anything if they don't say anything to me.”
While these violations existed prior to this situation, and business ran as usual, the fire panel worked during other surprise inspections. This time however: “They got caught,” Tito Santana told ALBB. “The City of Beacon Building Department report says what the Dutchess County Health Department saw. Lindley Todd, LLC was made aware of the fire panel issues and other issues in the building for 3 years and never fixed them. They never fix the property.”
There was one fix, however. A Beacon Police Officer Affdecrin Oscar Vargas fell on the stairs that zig-zag up the side of the building when responding to a call. Officer Vargas brought a lawsuit against Lindley Todd, LLC in November 2020 that ended in a settlement on March 22, 2022.
After the lawsuit settlement, on May 19th, 2022, Michael Schreiber, Chief Financial Officer of Hudson River Housing, the company who manages the affordable housing of the properties, emailed Milan to let him know of planned work to the stairs that Officer Vargas fell on. “Regarding the staircase,” Michael wrote, “I just want to let you know, that we will be doing something to patch the top, that is getting worse. We are afraid that it is deteriorating much quicker now, so will be doing something after the weekend to address it.”
Milan went to look for any permit on that exterior work done. “I did a FOIA request for any permits received for the property since 2016. No permits were produced in that FOIA request, indicating they never got permits.”
Background On Property On This West End Of Town
Joseph Donovan owns multiple properties on that west end of town under different business names, including the buildings that contain Bank Square Coffeehouse, Mountain Tops, Colorant, and Beacon Creamery. Under one of their other business names, Hudson Todd, LLC, they are currently building the large commercial/residential building at 2 Cross Street where the sidewalk on Main Street has been extended with the jersey barriers to accommodate the construction.
Most of the properties are not newly renovated. With the exception of Colorant, which was renovated years ago after Joe Donovan required then tenant Miss Vickie’s Music to vacate her Main Street studio while they renovated that property so that a new storefront could move in. Colorant is there now.
Miss Vickie’s Music studio had been the tenant for years, all the way back to when the Piccone family owned most of that property. The Donovan family then purchased most of that property. The companies of Joe Donovan completed in one of the largest property deals in Beacon around April 2017.
When Donovan’s company wanted Miss Vickie out, they moved her down Main Street a few blocks in the then worn down apartments behind Mr. Bell’s Salon, until Mr. Bell’s salon completely burned down near the time that one of Joe Donovan’s companies was selling that property to the current owners, 201-211 Main Street, LLC in July 2023. The fire happened in between the time of their transaction.
The new owners then evicted Mr. Bell and the shoe cobbler John’s Shoe Repair with a 3 days to vacate, citing the Fire Damage clause in their lease. Those new owners posted a notice on the plywood boards titled “Three Day Notice To Cancel Lease,” signed by Lendita Mavraj, Manager of 201-211 Main Street, LLC. After those new owners renovated those storefronts, other beauty salons moved in. B Hair Studio is there now.
Miss Vickie was again evicted, as the new owners cited smoke damage to those apartments in the back. All of Miss Vickie’s neighbors, who included an elderly Veteran, were evicted. That entire property has since been renovated and rent increased. Joe Donovan absorbed his old cobbler tenant into the apartment complex behind Colorant, who remains there to this day.
If you don’t know Miss Vickie, she can be seen outside of the Towne Crier sweeping the sidewalk, shoveling the sidewalk, working the sound board inside, and other duties.
Donovan’s Sales Tax and Mortgage Tax Exemptions For 2 Cross Street
THe Piccone Family sold the Joe Donovan family several properties in 2017. Ronald “Jamie” Piccone is on the Dutchess County Industrial Development Agency board who awarded Donovan’s company Hudson ToDD $249,745 in a Sales Tax and Mortgage Tax Exemption for 2 Cross Street new construction. During this application review, no Conflicts of Interest were stated when asked.
Back at the new construction for the large building at 2 Cross Street, another one of Joe Donovan’s companies, Hudson Todd, LLC, applied for and was awarded $249,745 in Sales and Use Tax Exemption and Mortgage Tax Exemption for an approximately $10,384,302 project for the construction of a 24,000 square foot mixed-use commercial facility with affordable residential housing from Dutchess County Industrial Development Agency (DCIDA).
On that board is a Piccone family member, Rondald “Jamie” Piccone II. The Piccone family is who sold Donovan the property where Tito Santana’s and Miss Vickie’s were located.
During the Conflict of Interest portion of the DCIDA application review meeting that ALBB reviewed the document of, no Conflict of Interests were stated: “Chairman Dean asked board members if they had any potential conflicts with any items on the agenda. No potential conflict was noted,” the notes stated.
2 Cross Street has vacillated between the number of affordable units it is offering, as state funding shifted (March 2023), (May 2024), and (June 2024).
Next Steps For Tito Santana
As of 3:35pm on July 7, 2025, Joe Donovan’s property manager, Sean Noble of Lindley Todd, LLC was served with a lawsuit from Tito Santana alleging a Breach of Lease Agreement, Negligence, and Unjust Enrichment.
City of Beacon Permit for 142 Main Street dated 6/20/2025 - 6/20/2027 after the May 2nd violation notice from the City of Beacon Building Department.
Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth
On July 10, 2025, ALBB reached out to Joe Donovan of Lindley Todd, LLC for comment on the lawsuit, and his thoughts on why his decision to “exercise his option to terminate the lease rather than proceed with repairs” made sense, when his company was showing the property to interested new tenants in the restaurant industry just days later at a 43% rent increase.
A new permit is up in the window now, and ALBB asked what the repairs were for, if the landlord’s termination email stated that he would “rather terminate than proceed with repairs.”
Editorial Update 4:45pm 7/11/2025: After this article published, Joe responded: “We looked for ways to perform all of the required work without displacing the tenant, but it just wasn’t feasible. A lot of complexities. Happy to discuss in person if you’d like. There is paper up on the windows but none on the door. If you take a look at what’s going on inside you’ll understand why the space could not be occupied during the required ‘repairs’.”
ALBB responded: “Thank you. Ceasing operation of the restaurant tenant was required by the Order to Remedy. What question remains unanswered is the need for the termination of the lease during the required "repairs.” And the following swift search for a new tenant during "repairs." Any comment as to that?”
How far will this lawsuit go? “Justice costs money,” Milan told ALBB. “But I'm not going to go bankrupt.”
Tito Santana has started a GoFundMe, and is selling their equipment. “If anyone is looking to open a new restaurant - we would be happy to support them. Or if anyone wants to buy for their current operations.”
Milan concluded: “I just want it out there. Anyone who rents will know. That is my mission. To let everyone know that this is what this person does. I don't tell anyone what to do. These are the facts. You make the decision.”
