Brooklyn Heights’ iconic Hotel Bossert sells for $100M, to become apartments
Streetview of 98 Montague Street, Map data © 2019 Google
A historic Brooklyn Heights hotel once dubbed the “Waldorf-Astoria of Brooklyn” has sold for $100 million, with plans to convert the storied property into residences. The iconic Hotel Bossert, located at 98 Montague Street, was acquired by real estate investment and development firm SomeraRoad, according to city records registered Wednesday and first reported by Crain’s. In a statement to the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, the firm said it “plans to honor the property’s rich history and to restore and reopen the building as residences.”
The property was previously owned by the Chetrit family, a prominent real estate group that also once owned—and lost—the iconic Chelsea Hotel. In February, the family lost the Hotel Bossert to foreclosure, and the property was sold at a judicial auction to Beach Point Capital, which owned the debt on the building, as reported by Crain’s.
At the time of the foreclosure auction, bidders would have needed to pay $122 million to cover Beach Point’s loan, including fees and interest. However, no one stepped forward. The Chetrit family had faced a $177 million judgment for loan defaults related to the property, for which they paid $81 million in 2012.
Beach Point Capital quickly flipped the property, formally closing on the hotel for just over $1 million on April 22. Less than a month later, the firm went into contract to sell it on May 15 and closed the deal on May 23, according to city property records.
Earlier this year, the family owed the Department of Buildings $460,000 in civil penalties for 56 active violations at the hotel, which also faced a stop-work order. These issues still have yet to be resolved. The building has been veiled in scaffolding since 2020.
Constructed in 1909 by Brooklyn lumber magnate Louis Bossert, the Hotel Bossert originally offered long-term accommodations with hotel-style amenities. At its peak, the hotel boasted double-filtered drinking water, a nail salon, and its famous Marine Roof—a two-story rooftop restaurant and bar designed to resemble the promenade deck of a ship, remembered for its live-music broadcasts and sweeping views of Manhattan, as reported by Curbed.
In the 1980s, when the Jehovah’s Witnesses were based in Brooklyn Heights, the organization began leasing rooms for staff before purchasing the property in 1988 and converting it into dormitory-style housing with over 200 rooms. Under their ownership, the building received much-needed repairs, including a restored lobby, replacement of rotting window frames, and the replastering and hand-painting of ceilings.
In 2012, the Jehovah’s Witnesses sold the building to the Chetrit family and David Bistricer for $81 million. Just a year earlier, Joseph Chetrit had also purchased the Chelsea Hotel, with plans to renovate and reopen both properties as boutique luxury hotels. He later sold Chelsea to Ed Scheetz just a few years later.
The property was also home to a few rent-stabilized tenants since the mid-20th century, but it’s unclear if any of them still live there, according to Crain’s. As of April, there was one tenant remaining. In recent years, the Chetrits reportedly planned to open a location of the IHG-owned Kimpton hotel chain at the property, according to court filings.
Founded in 2016 by Brooklyn resident Ian Ross, SomeraRoad also owns another New York City architectural gem: a landmarked brownstone at 1 Hanover Square in the Financial District. In 2022, the firm purchased the building’s upper floors, which once housed the members-only India House club.
The firm has prior experience in leading “thoughtful adaptive reuse” projects across the nation, and told the Eagle it intends to “apply this same attention to detail and appreciation for design, architecture, and community to this treasured New York City landmark.”
More detailed plans for the hotel are expected during the next month.
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