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New York

Happy Living to convert Prospect Heights rectory into 88-unit resi complex

The planned five-story building will be built on the grounds of the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph

832 Pacific Street in Brooklyn
832 Pacific Street in Brooklyn

Happy Living Development is looking to convert a Prospect Heights rectory into a residential complex.

The firm, headed by Levi Balkany, pre-filed permits for a five-story mixed-use building at 834 Pacific Street. Plans call for a 90,000-square-foot property with 69,000 square feet of residential space divided between 88 apartments. The building will also contain 20,000 square feet of community facility space. Planned amenities include a tenant gym and a storage area. It will also have a doctor’s office at the basement.

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The proposed structure will replace a three-story building that sits within the grounds of Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph. The property was previously the subject of a legal dispute between the Catholic Church and developer Mike Kohn.  The church terminated Kohn’s 99-year leasehold interest in the property in 2017. This resulted in a lawsuit, with Kohn attempting to prevent the church from nullifying the agreement. The church filed a termination of lease in April.

This is not the first time that Happy Living will convert a place of worship into a secular structure. In 2016, the firm filed permits to turn the former home of the Morning Star Pentecostal Church in Harlem into an 11-story building with 46 apartments.

Happy Living also recently acquired a distressed Harlem asset that once belonged to Hans Futterman.  The property, at 300 West 122nd Street, was for years the planned site of 12-story, 127-unit residential complex.  Happy Living bought the property from RWN Real Estate Partners for around $70 million.