Jehovah's Witnesses officially sell 161-unit Brooklyn Heights rental

[Guest Nicole]

Clipper Realty has scooped up the 11-story building

Back in February, the newly-public Clipper Realty entered into an agreement to pick up the 11-story Brooklyn Heights rental building at 107 Columbia Heights from the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and, as of yesterday, the deed has been done.

On Tuesday, Clipper closed on the deal, becoming the official new owners of the 154,058-gross-square-foot building, which previously housed members of the Witnesses’ world headquarters staff. Back in February, it was reportedly going for $87.5 million, though a spokesperson for the Jehovah’s Witnesses declined to comment on the final sale price.

“The property served us well for more than 50 years and became one of the focal points of the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood,” David A. Semonian, spokesman for the Witnesses, said in a release announcing the closing. The group is in the process of moving its headquarters to Warwick, New York—and has been selling off much of its Brooklyn real estate (including the iconic Watchtower building) in the process.

Right now, the building has 161 rentals, and Clipper previously stated that they would add a few more of those while spiffing up some of the existing public spaces. Because it’s in the Brooklyn Heights Historic District, it’s unlikely that the building itself will change too much.

The building itself boasts plenty of Brooklyn Heights perks. Besides standing adjacent to the promenade, it features a landscaped garden courtyard with a fountain and a rooftop terrace with views of the Brooklyn Bridge, East River, and Lower Manhattan.

https://ny.curbed.com/2017/5/10/15609714/brooklyn-heights-jehovahs-witnesses-sale