UPDATED, 6:48 p.m., March 7: Elected officials in Brooklyn are steamed over the possibility that a home for seniors in Park Slope could soon be shuttered and converted into a condominium.
Councilman Brad Lander, along with assembly members Joan Millman and James Brennan, issued a joint statement Thursday opposing a plan to close Prospect Park Residence, a nine-story assisted living facility at 1 Prospect Park West in Park Slope.
The owner, Haysha Deitsch, has kept the reason for the closure under wraps. But he likely intends to turn the center into condos, a source close to the situation told The Real Deal.
Local officials called for Deitsch to reconsider closing the facility, a move that would displace its more than 100 elderly residents.
“There is already a shortage of senior housing in our city—where does he expect them to go?” the officials said in a press release. Deitsch, who purchased the 153,067-square-foot building for more than $40 million in 2006, according to city records, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Prospect Park Residence Executive Director David Pomerantz attributed the facility’s closure to escalating costs in a statement issued March 5.
“Since 2009, Prospect Park Residence’s ownership and management have taken extraordinary steps to ensure a stable and predictable environment for its residents and staff by absorbing escalating costs,” Pomerantz said in the statement. “However, five years later, the economic recovery remains sluggish and the company’s tax obligation has sky-rocketed – increasing by nearly $1 million. Today, despite its best efforts, Prospect Park Residence is no longer viable.”
The residence was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging the facility was operating as an unlicensed assisted living facility in 2012, according to previous reports. A spokesperson for Prospect Park Residence told The Real Deal that the facility is currently a licensed Assisted Living community, and has been licensed since November 2012 “and is in good standing.”