Breaking: Brooklyn Heights Cinema Building Is for Sale or Lease

The landlord of the building that houses Brooklyn Heights Cinema, Tom Caruana, has begun marketing the property for sale or lease because he’s increasingly frustrated with trying to get his development plans approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission, according to cinema owner Kenn Lowy. Massey Knakal is marketing the building at 70 Henry Street for $7,500,000 or for lease for $30,000 a month.

Their setup includes the most recent rendering and notes that it could accommodate a 10,000-square-foot residential build. When we last checked in on 70 Henry Street, the LPC didn’t vote and sent Gerner Kronick + Valcarcel Architects back to the drawing board with their red-brick colored design.

However, Lowy says, Caruana hasn’t given up on his development plans or the cinema, and the movie theater is still part of those plans if the LPC approves them. The longtime cinema owner has no plans to close the theater and continues searching for a temporary space in Dumbo or Brooklyn Heights. But Caruana could ask the theater to leave permanently, depending on what happens. The marketing for the site says Lowy has a month to month lease and the property “may be delivered vacant.”

We’ve reached out to Caruana, but we haven’t heard back yet. Click through to the jump to see a message Lowy said he plans to post on the cinema door soon.

“To all our supporters:

The short version —
We’re not going anywhere yet!

The longer version —
The landlord has become increasingly frustrated because he cannot get his planned development approved by the city’s Landmark Preservation Commission. This is a plan that we wholeheartedly support. The plan includes the cinema.

Because of this he has decided to leave all of his options open, which includes selling the building and possibly leasing it to someone else at four times the rent we are paying. He has not given up trying to get a plan approved by the Landmark Preservation Commission (all options open). And we are still in that plan.

So the bottom line is that we are still here. But we can only continue with your support. If the landlord sees that the cinema is no longer viable, he could ask us to leave. He has told us we can stay until he is ready to move forward. It is important for everyone to understand that our landlord has been very supportive of the cinema.

Thanks for your continued support!”

70 Henry Street [Massey Knakal]
No LPC Vote, But Finally, a Rendering for Brooklyn Heights Cinema Building [Brownstoner]
Architects Show Plans for Brooklyn Heights Cinema at Community Board Meeting [Brownstoner]