Haitian Powerhouse: The political link in the parade suit | Part 3 of 3

BROOKLYN—Before moving into a co-working space at Brooklyn Commons over the summer, Little Haiti BK was headquartered at 1407 Flatbush Avenue. The office was part of a sprawling 3,900-square foot space rented to Glenda Y. Elie and Jensen Desrosiers for their business, Anba Tonel Lounge & Restaurant, also known as “Bon Bonbon.”

The corner property at Flatbush Avenue and Rogers Avenue – across the street from Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn’s and Councilmember Farah Louis’s district offices – came to life around 2022. The building’s freshly renovated exterior and restaurant’s tropics-inspired motif, with a green and yellow color palette and palm fronds on the walls, conveys a lush Haitian countryside vibe

Since its opening, the centrally located eatery has seen a hub of activity, including planning for the 2023 Haitian Heritage Parade. Desrosiers has welcomed local elected officials and visiting dignitaries to the restaurant as part of his activities related to the Haitian Powerhouse, described as “the gathering place of Haitian Political Power [that] seeks to build community engagement through education and awareness of civic and social matters. In October, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul paid a visit that was posted on the group’s Facebook page.

Meanwhile, the restaurant has become a defendant in two lawsuits related to contracts, indicating some disorganization in its dealings. One is the suit Lionel Lamarre brought over the 2023 parade permit and reimbursement funds. The other is Anba Tonel’s landlord breach of contract suit, alleging that the business owed $200,922.46 in back rent and fees. While the parade case goes through discovery, last month, a judge granted a default judgment in the back rent case, raising the question of what happens next for the restaurant.

Elie, the sole guarantor on the lease and sole defendant in that suit, declined to comment on the default judgment and potential impact to Anba Tonel. Via email, she told The Haitian Times that the default judgment was not its concern and to instead investigate deed theft in the community and the additional difficulties Haitian establishments seem to have in obtaining liquor licenses.

As for Lamarre‘s allegations and him calling her, Desrosiers, Haitian Powerhouse and their entourages “a cancer” in the community, Elie said in the email that Lamarre’s claims are part of a “smear campaign” against them.

“Unfortunately,” Elie wrote, “Haitian Powerhouse has become a victim to members of the community who request assistance on projects, drains the group of their time, effort and resources, only to take all of the advice and then run off to hold the very successful events due to the support and efforts of Haitian Powerhouse and taking all the credit.”

Elie went on to describe a version of the 2023 parade fallout that includes new accusations against Lamarre, his girlfriend Mahadya Mary and Garry Pierre-Pierre, founder of The Haitian Times. Both Elie’s and Lamarre’s versions, though disparate, do have one thing in common: The numerous links among Haitian-led organizations, businesses, prominent personalities and elected officials at the highest levels of government.

Anba Tonel and Haitian Powerhouse’s roles, according to Lamarre 

According to Lamarre, he and Desrosiers have been close friends since their heyday with Phantoms – a 1990s era konpa djazz, or band, that Lamarre managed and for which Desrosiers was a drummer. Lamarre said he was even the best man at Desrosiers’ wedding, they were so close. 

Around 2022, Desrosiers asked him to invest in the new eatery he was establishing. Lamarre said he told Desrosiers he would rather focus on making his long-held dream of a Haitian parade come true. Desrosiers said he could help and began collaborating through the Haitian Day Parade committee Lamarre formed.

Prior to that committee forming, Lamarre said he had met in 2018 with Eric Adams, when Adams was Brooklyn Borough President, to lobby for the parade in that borough. When Adams ascended to Gracie Mansion as Mayor of New York City in 2021, Lamarre’s parade committee met with Adams’ then top aide, Ingrid Lewis-Martin. From there, they committed to hold the parade in Manhattan.

Around then, Lamarre and Desrosiers agreed for Lamarre to use part of the Anba Tonel space as the parade event office, according to Lamarre’s complaint. Lamarre included as an exhibit a 2-page rental agreement signed by him and Desrosiers agreeing to sublease part of the property for $1,500 monthly from Sept. 2022 to June 2023.

But, Lamarre said, Desrosiers refused to honor the agreement. Desperate for space, Lamarre said, he resorted to renting the office that served as the Little Haiti BK headquarters. Allegedly, Lamarre said, he paid the fees to the nonprofit’s leader at the time, Jackson Rockingster. 

Designers worked from that location to complete the costumes, floats and other productions in time for the June 2023 extravaganza in Manhattan.

Desrosiers and Little Haiti BK, via their lawsuit answer, deny Lamarre’s claims. Reached in early December, Desrosiers declined to comment. However, Elie responded to a subsequent Haitian Times email with detailed questions sent to both him and Elie.

Elie’s view of Desrosiers and his entities’ roles

In their legal answers filed with the court, Desrosiers and Elie admitted only that parade meetings took place in Desrosiers’ office. They denied the rental agreement allegations Lamarre made regarding Little Haiti BK. However, Elie said in her email to The Haitian Times, she and Desrosiers rent space to numerous groups in the community, not only Little Haiti BK, that she says are not welcomed elsewhere in the community.

In that email response, Elie described Desrosiers as “a leading member of the community who has gone above and beyond to help others achieve their goals.” She said he launched the Haitian Powerhouse in Miami during the 2020 presidential campaign, supporting Democratic Party efforts there to turn out votes for Joe Biden, and helps numerous groups organize events.

With the 2023 Haitian parade, Lionel Lamarre and a partner came to the Haitian Powerhouse for assistance, Elie said. As the planning progressed, Lamarre sidelined the partner, and then tried to do the same to Elie, Desrosiers and Stephanie Pierre, a third defendant.

It is the Haitian Powerhouse that presented the parade idea to elected officials in New York and at a National  Haitian American Elected Officials Network (NHAEON) conference in Arizona, held in 2022, then secured the meeting with the mayor’s office. Elie said she carried out the logistical work and correspondence with the city agencies, while Desrosiers brought in partners, like Pierre for marketing. 

“It is both ridiculous and audacious of him [Lamarre] to claim that after he spent nearly a decade, if not more, in trying to get a parade in Manhattan, Jensen accomplished it in mere months,” Elie wrote. “Not only does Jensen have the expertise, but he has the connections to get things done.”

“To be blunt, Haitian Powerhouse, led by Jensen Desrosiers, is the reason there was a parade,” Elie said.

Elie went on to accuse Lamarre and Mary of actions that The Haitian Times could not corroborate as of this writing. She also said The Haitian Times failed to report on Lamarre and Mary as much as on the parade suit’s defendants. For the record, The Haitian Times reached out to the defendants or their attorneys prior to publishing previous articles, but they chose not to comment.

“We stayed silent because of the lawsuit, but, as they say, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH [sic]. We are going to pursue this to the fullest extent,” Elie said.

Default judgment against Anba Tonel remains open question 

Soon after the June 2023 parade took place, receiving wide acclaim, the dispute over funds began. Both sides began accusing the other of conspiring to receive the money that Bichotte Hermelyn allegedly promised would be reimbursed to the organizers. Accusations flew over the phone, text messages, WhatsApp groups and other interactions, parties from both sides allege.

That summer, in August 2023, Anba Tonel stopped paying its $20,850 monthly rent, according to the suit brought in Kings Supreme Court in March 2024 by Gutman Weiss, P.C.  The alleged failure to pay $170,569.46 in rent, at that point, was a breach of the 10-year lease effective in September 2021. By June 2024, with no response from the defendant, the amount in arrears and legal fees had increased the demand to $200,922.46, according to court records.

Neither Elie nor Desrosiers appear to have filed an answer with the court or even acknowledged receipt of being served.

In September 2024, the landlord’s attorney asked the U.S. military if Elie was on active duty since there was no answer from her. The military confirmed she was not deployed, and the attorney then asked for the default judgment.

On Nov. 25, Judge Saul Stein granted the default judgment.

In response to what might happen next with Anba Tonel, Elie deflected, pointing the finger again at Pierre-Pierre.

“We understand that our haters, including Garry Pierre Pierre would love to see us shut down,” she wrote. “If you all really cared about small business owners, instead of circulating personal business information, why don’t you instead try to support the businesses by holding an event with them or purchasing their services? Not here though, we don’t want Garry’s business.”

In the parade case, the parties were due to meet in December, but that was postponed, according to Elie and Lamarre. The court files show March 13 as the next scheduled appearance. Other dates may be added as the plaintiff and defendants as the discovery continues.

The post Haitian Powerhouse: The political link in the parade suit | Part 3 of 3 appeared first on The Haitian Times.