{"id":145695,"date":"2026-02-26T04:29:18","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T04:29:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/145695\/"},"modified":"2026-02-26T04:29:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T04:29:18","slug":"ag-oks-sale-of-bed-stuys-contested-dangler-mansion-site","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/145695\/","title":{"rendered":"AG OKs Sale of Bed Stuy’s Contested Dangler Mansion Site"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new buyer and a new sale price have been OK\u2019d for the site where the historic Jacob Dangler Mansion was controversially demolished.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"chain\"chain <\/p>\n

The empty lot in 2025. Photo by Susan De Vries<\/p>\n

In a new turn for the much-disputed property at 441 Willoughby Avenue in Bed Stuy, the New York State attorney general has approved its sale 16 months after blocking its purchase by another developer in court.<\/p>\n

The approval notice<\/a> from February 10 shows 441 Garden LLC with developer Mendel Fleischman as principal will pay $5.9 million for the lot on the corner of Willoughby and Nostrand avenues, formerly home to the more than 120-year-old Jacob Dangler Mansion<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The news comes after the attorney general\u2019s office blocked the sale<\/a> of the site in September 2024 to developer Tomer Erlich, who controversially demolished<\/a> the historic French Gothic Revival structure in 2022 while it was in the Landmarks review process.<\/p>\n

\"brickThe Dangler Mansion in 2022. Photo by Susan De Vries<\/p>\n

In his decision, Judge Aaron Maslow said he had serious concerns about the deal, including that the $4.3 million price offered was too low, the failure of the nonprofit owner United Grand Chapter Order of the Eastern Star to manage its assets, and that a so-called member had \u201cabsconded with a portion of them,\u201d among other things. The AG\u2019s office had argued that the $4.3 million offered, minus $2.098 million in mortgage debt and hundreds of thousands less for other alleged debts, was far less than what the property was worth, and should be rejected.<\/p>\n

The recent approval notice shows that of the new $5.9 million sale price, the nonprofit will pay $3,684,049.62 towards its outstanding mortgage and interest, and $76,929.82 will go to lawyer\u2019s fees stemming from the foreclosure case and auction.<\/p>\n

The nonprofit will also pay $354,000 in brokerage fees, $38,350 in transfer taxes, $106,695.18 in outstanding real estate taxes, and $27,866.50 in other legal and processing fees. United Grand Chapter Order of the Eastern Star will end up with $1,614,295.73 in proceeds, which will be held in an escrow account that cannot be accessed without the approval of the attorney general or the State Supreme Court. The attorney general must also approve any changes in the parties included in the agreement. The nonprofit did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

\"groupLocals gathered in 2023 to fight for community preservation. Photo by Susan De Vries
\n\"projectionPhoto by Susan De Vries<\/p>\n

The history of the site is one with many twists and turns. In 2021, whispers of its sale led to fears amongst locals that the more than 120-year-old Jacob Dangler Mansion would be lost. Justice for 441 Willoughby<\/a> was formed, and quickly held rallies<\/a> and organized to get the building landmarked.<\/p>\n

Thanks to a communication glitch<\/a> between the Landmarks Preservation Commission and the Department of Buildings, demolition permits were issued during the Landmarks review process, and Erlich quickly razed the mansion.<\/p>\n

Despite the loss, Justice for 441 Willoughby has continued to organize for local preservation, and in 2024 the group\u2019s work paid off when the LPC voted to approve<\/a> the new Willoughby-Hart Historic District.<\/p>\n

The group has also continued to organize around the future of 441 Willoughby Avenue, working alongside GrowHouse<\/a> and the BLAC Land Trust to remove the property from the tax lien sale last year and to explore whether it could become a community land trust site.<\/p>\n

Justice for 441 Willoughby said in a statement on the approval of the sale: \u201cIt\u2019s disheartening that after many years of advocating for the preservation, protection, and future of this site, we lost it seemingly overnight to a private developer with multiple violations to his name. All the work we did could not compete with the private market. The situation at 441 Willoughby Avenue is not an anomaly, we can name others \u2013 375 Stuyvesant comes immediately to mind. They both are clear case studies demonstrating why a proactive, city- or state-level acquisition tool is urgently needed. But we aren\u2019t giving up yet. The fight isn\u2019t over, not on Willoughby Avenue and not in Bed Stuy at large.\u201d<\/p>\n

Member Becca Abellera said the situation was an example of how \u201ccommunity slips through the cracks of development\u201d adding \u201ccommunity is the price we pay for a \u2018build at all cost,\u2019 capitalist model like City of Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Molly Salas, another longtime organizer with the group, said \u201cas our neighbors are being displaced throughout Bed Stuy, 441 Willoughby is an example of why meaningful proactive measures are needed for vulnerable sites, and we need our elected officials to advocate for us and intervene alongside us.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is needed is a fund \u201cthat would allow a community land trust to move at the speed of the market after removing property such as this one from a tax lien sale. Because in the end, the result was still one that we did not want \u2013 the property being free for a speculative buyer to come in and capture it,\u201d said Shanna Sabio of GrowHouse and the BLAC Land Trust.<\/p>\n

\"441The demolition of the Dangler Mansion at 441 Willoughby in 2022. Photo by Anna Bradley-Smith
\n\"theThe site weeks after the demolition. Photo by Susan De Vries<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Erlich is still in court fighting the nonprofit both over the sale to 441 Garden LLC and the money he says he\u2019s owed due to the prior sale falling through. Curiously, when the sale to a new buyer goes through, Erlich, who did not respond to a request for comment, may also receive the money owed by the nonprofit on the mortgage. In 2023, the mortgage was reassigned<\/a> from Advill Capital LLC to a corporation named E&SD Management that has a Florida address linked with Erlich.<\/p>\n

The firm 441 Garden LLC is yet to file an application for a new building permit. Fleischman, who is linked to firms Garden Group and Berkowits Realty LLC and could not be reached for comment, is tied to a number of other Brooklyn new developments and properties, including 234 Quincy Street in Bed Stuy and 202 North 4th Street in Williamsburg, city records show.<\/p>\n

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