The Harlem-based developer looking to remake the former Prospect Park Residence nursing home into high-end rentals may be rethinking its plan. No, Sugar Hill Capital isn’t trying to make good on the site’s sordid history of late—instead, The Real Deal reports that the developer might be looking to bring condos, rather than high-end rentals as previously reported, to the northwest corner of Prospect Park.
Sugar Hill Capital filed a “test-the-market” application with the Attorney General last week, indicating that it’s considering developing 66 condos at 1 Prospect Park West. The developer filed plans with the Department of Buildings in September to convert the 198-unit senior home into 67 rentals with amenities like a pet spa and a wine vault.
As TRD explains, the new filing doesn’t constitute an offering plan, but allows the developer to gauge interest in a condo at the site by putting out basic marketing materials.
Sugar Hill purchased the mostly empty building from Haysha Deitsch in 2016 for $84 million. Leading up to the building’s sale, Deitsch faced several accusations of neglect and lawsuits alleging that he served rotten food to seniors and cut off their air conditioning.
Family members also claim Deitsch’s move to evict the building’s elderly tenants contributed to the deaths of seven residents. Deitsch has paid a $3.4 million settlement to settle eviction claims, and still faces various wrongful death suits.