Salem Lutheran Church saved by $2.65M sale

The $2.65 million sale of the Salem Lutheran Church, at 450 67th Street between Fourth and Fifth avenues in Bay Ridge, is considered a victory by Bay Ridge preservationists, who are relieved that the building is being saved from demolition. “The first and best option was to keep the church solvent,” said Victoria Hofmo, the founder of the Bay Ridge Conservancy. “The second is for another church to come in.” The new occupant will be St. Matthew’s Church, according to agent Victor Weinberger, of RE/MAX, who brokered the deal. The original asking price was $3 million, Weinberger said, which includes the sanctuary, parsonage, a combined auditorium-gymnasium and a garage. The property is now undergoing renovations. Another local congregations, the Bay Ridge United Methodist Church at the corner of Fourth and Ovington avenues — known as the Green Church — was destroyed in 2008 by the congregation, which sold the property to a developer for $9.75 million at the height of the housing boom. The original plan was to build a luxury condominium there, but the site was later sold to the city, which is building a new public school. [Brooklyn Paper]