St. John's University in New York has agreed to sell its campus located at 101 Murray Street in lower Manhattan to a consortium of developers including famous builder, Steven Witkoff and real estate firm, Fisher Brothers, for an amount that is expected to exceed $200 million. The consortium hopes to replace the building with condominiums, according to several media reports.
The university will use the proceeds from the sale to fund student academic programs and financial aids and also improve the facilities available for scholars. Details of the deal are unclear as it is not official yet. However, the university will not vacate the building immediately. It will continue to occupy the structure until mid 2014, reports The Real Deal.
Around two weeks earlier, the University had announced in a press release that it was looking to sell off the building. It hoped to take full advantage of the growing strength in Manhattan's property market.
"The University has been continually assessing the value of this asset in terms of space usage and market value. With Manhattan's real estate market now at an all-time historic high, we have determined that it is in the best interest of the University of seek a buyer for the property at this time," the university said in the release.
Developers are also quite excited about the sale. They claim that the property not only has a great location but also has 'significant development opportunities', reports The New York Observer. They also stated that the university building had utilized 'only about one-third of its potential capacity'.
Now that the building is sold, the site is all set to become a major residential area.
About the St. John's University Building
The St. John's University building is a 14,500 square feet structure that was built in 1984. The 10-floor building is a prize winning structure that has high tech computer labs and classrooms. The campus features wireless internet access throughout and also has great dining and athletic facilities.
So, once the building is sold, where will the students move to? Probably, to the campus in Queens.
In fact, this is the second time that the students are being displaced from the campus. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy took its toll on the campus. It remained closed for the latter half of the last semester. Students were outraged by the way the relocation was handled by the university authorities then.
Now, once again, they are being asked to prepare for a permanent relocation. However, no official word on where the students will be relocated is out yet.
