Slave Theater eyed by bevy of developers

Would-be buyers have expressed interest in the famed Slave Theater in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, the New York Daily News reported. This news comes on the heels of reports last week that the theater’s foreclosure auction last had been canceled; there were rumors that a new purchaser had been found. There are a total of five interested parties being considered, sources said.

Although the Daily News does not name names, the paper says one developer wants to spend $74 million to bring a Red Roof Inn as well as another theater to the site. Other interested parties reportedly include a clothing retailer and a condominium developer who has worked on condo conversions and new construction in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Carroll Gardens, Clinton Hill and Prospect Park South.

“We have to escape the guillotine,” Rev. Samuel Boykin, the property’s current owner, told the Daily News. Not only does the Slave Theater face court action to pay off nearly $200,000 in liens, but it also has $3.4 million in unpaid tax bills for the Slave Theater and two other properties. “The buyer who can show they can close on this sale … is the buyer we want.”

As previously reported, another interested party is the New Brooklyn Theater, who aims to make the theater a center for Brooklyn arts through a Kickstarter campaign. — Zachary Kussin