A Landmark Brooklyn Church Goes on the Market as a 181,000-Square-Foot Development Site

• St Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church in Crown Heights has been listed for development
• The site at 1227-1231 Pacific Street carries 181,317 sq ft of as-of-right space
• The church is a landmark; the rectory and parish hall are not
• Ariel Property Advisors is marketing the site; no price was disclosed

A landmarked church complex on the border of Crown Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn has been put on the market as a major development opportunity, Brownstoner reported on 29 April 2026. St Bartholomew’s Protestant Episcopal Church stands at 1227-1231 Pacific Street.

According to the listing, the site carries 181,317 square feet of buildable floor area as of right, a figure boosted by the Atlantic Avenue Mixed Use Plan rezoning. Ariel Property Advisors is handling the sale, and no asking price was disclosed. The marketing describes the property as “a unique and architecturally significant development opportunity at the nexus of Bed Stuy and Crown Heights.”

The church itself was designated an individual New York City landmark in 1974 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. That protection does not extend to the rectory and parish hall, which are not landmarked, leaving them more exposed to redevelopment.

Brownstoner columnist Suzanne Spellen argued for keeping the complex intact: “The complex shouldn’t be replaced by a soulless glass and steel apartment building.” The article placed the listing within a wider pattern across New York, where dwindling congregations are pushing churches to sell land in neighbourhoods where development values have climbed sharply.

The case shows how a rezoning can transform a church’s balance sheet overnight. Land that once mattered only as the ground under a sanctuary suddenly carries the value of a large apartment site, bringing both opportunity and pressure to sell.

For diaspora congregations in Brooklyn and for church boards in Jamaica, the lesson is to understand what zoning changes mean for church land before a buyer does. Knowing what can be built, which parts of a property are protected, and what the land is worth puts a congregation in a far stronger position, whether it decides to sell, partner with a developer or stay put.

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