by Gayle 23 Replies latest jw friends
http://therealdeal.com/blog/2012/11/12/chetrit-bistricer-pay-81-million-for-brooklyns-bossert-hotel/
That is quite a hit. It had sold a few ago for $100M but that fell through. Now the WTS only got $81M. Such timing.
Where did all that $81M go already the way they are yet always asking for more donations?
Ouch...nothing better than hearing they lost 19m....They still made a lot of money off of the slave labor renovations.
What did they pay for it?
renovations cost but the slave volunteers that did the work wouldn't have cost much.
Oz
thx Besty,, so funny they don't say anything about the $81M on their site,, was also ridiculous how they so enjoyed "caring" for the building for 25 yrs and its history like it gave such 'purpose' or something to them. hahahahha The poor JWs working on it for years, renovations, 'cleaning' etc,,and now it's gone. So purposeless, the whole thing.
From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Bossert
In 1983, the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York began leasing space in the Bossert for use byJehovah's Witnesses. The Society bought the hotel in 1988. It required extensive restoration according to the Landmarks Preservation Commission standards for the historic district. The famed Marine Roof had collapsed, and a new roof had to be built. Also, the lobby was in poor condition, and over 2,500 square feet (230 m 2 ) of the marble had to be replaced. Watchtower went to the original quarry to replace it. [2] That effort garnered praise and awards. [5]
In late January 2008, the Society announced it would sell the building. [1] The sale will be conducted through a private-bidding process, which could take months. [5] One local realtor (Arlene Waye of Awaye Realty) estimated that the building would sell for about $100 million. [2] Judi Stanton, the president of the Brooklyn Heights Association, remarked that “The Witnesses have done an exquisite job in maintaining the building." [5] Timothy King, a senior partner at Massey Knakal Realty Services Brooklyn, agreed calling the hotel "one of the most unique and most well-maintained trophy assets in Brooklyn." He continued, "The Watchtower organization is well known for impeccable maintenance standards and the Bossert reflects this level of care. It will be a challenge for a new owner to run the building with the same level of care and attention to detail." [2]
Late in 2012, the Bossert was sold to David Bistricer of Clipper Equity and the Chetrit Group, who plans to turn it into a boutique hotel with around 300 rooms
Would need a little more research to find out that 1988 purchase price - EDIT - undisclosed purchase price according to the NY Times
I thought that they were restricted from selling any of the property in NY due to the Candice Conti Case
Was this hold released ?
NJY
It will be a challenge for a new owner to run the building with the same level of care and attention to detail." [2]
Yep, without free labor it will be a challenge. Why sell for $81 mil? Is no one buying? If I had something in my garage that I had to sell because I needed some cash, any cash quickly, then I would take a loss. Otherwise I would take it off the market until I get the price I want. Only desperation would make me sell something for less than what I should be able to get out of it. If my wife is yelling at me to make room in the garage, or the water-heater died and I need the cash then I may take a loss. So why is the WT taking a loss? ( If you want to think of it that way, they are just not profitting as much) Is the market that bad, or are they deperate for cash? I am starting to beleive that the passage of time and all the unfulfilled prophecies and scandals, and doctrinal changes are all pointing to one thing. They need to re-group before our generation dies off. They are banking on Warwick to the beginning of a new era. Why else would you choose to sell something like Bossert instead of holding out for your price, especially when you have free labor to maintain it?
Keep in mind it costs $$$ to maintain the building. Electricty, water, sewer, gas, routine maintance projects. Sure, they use free labor to do the work, but the fixed costs are likely not cheap to keep that building up and running. So I'm sure its a drag on the bottom line.
They turned a nice profit, yeah they're not selling at the top of the market but buyers for these sorts of buildings don't come along every day. I'd probably sell it if I were them because while not as big of a profit as they once thought it was, it's still likely 3 to 4 times what they paid for it.
The sale of the Brooklyn properties has really heated up this year. They certainly have gotten an influx of cash this year.
I'd feel like a complete idiot if I did volunteer labor for that building and then heard the news of them flipping it for $81 million. We need a tee shirt that says, "I did volunteer work on a building that was sold for $81 million and all I got was an advance copy of the new 15 page Watchtower."
