By COLlive reporter
The sought-after home at 760 Eastern Parkway, 2 doors down from 770 Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn, was sold to Lubavitch World Headquarters, Monday morning.
It will be annexed to the Library of Agudas Chassidei Chabad, one of the largest private Jewish libraries in the world, possessing more than 250,000 individual volumes and tens of thousands of manuscripts.
After Agudas Chassidei Chabad purchased 770 Eastern Parkway in 1940, the 6th Lubavitcher Rebbe and 7th Lubavitcher Rebbe used it as a home, shul and center of operations.
The adjacent building at 766 Eastern Parkway was purchased in 1967 for the library which holds priceless manuscripts and handwritten notations by the Lubavitcher Rebbes, including the siddur of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of the Chassidic movement.
The same year, R’ Meir and Sima Itkin, a Lubavitcher couple that escaped from the Soviet Union via France during the Second World War, purchased the next house at 760 Eastern Parkway.
The couple lived in the 5,850 square-foot two family home until R’ Meir’s passing in 2007 at the age of 96 and his heirs decided to sell the 100-year-old home.
The asking price for the property was going for anywhere between $800,000 and $2.4 million. COLlive has learned that the house was sold on Monday for under $2.4 million.
Lubavitch World Headquarters said “the new purchase will allow the library to further grow its collection, which has become an important resource for scholars and historians worldwide.”
For sure Reb Meir and his extraordinary aizer k’negdo Sima, aleihem hashalom, are deriving much nachas from this sale. The house is already permeated with chassidishkeit. What a zchus for the family!
they say the bricks of that house have been marinating for years!
nice news!
To expand 770 to the whole world!
So glad I merited to meet the Itkis, they were such holy people. I would always watch Mrs Itkin read tehillim. No doubt they would have wanted their home to be part of 770 mamish!
I am in awe of the itkins who handled all of it with class and dignity. All of the kids -.geisinskys, teichtels , rapoports, and itkins are role models
Thank you !
This is a true nachos to the rebbe, Thank you rabbi Krinsky for keeping the flame alive. Also as the rebbetzin said during her deposition before hey teves, something to the effect, “my father (the frierdieker rebbe) and the library belong to the Chassiddim.” This is a beautiful thing and also a big yasher coach to the family of reb Mayer Itkin, he would be very proud, his neshama should have a “lichtiger gan eden” He always listened to the rebbe and BH now it paid off in a physical sense, L’maan yismau veyirauh” the rebbe does not stay a… Read more »
A tremednous debt of gratitude is owed to you for this incredible news. Not many ppl today posses an old school “derher” on what needs to be done. Fulifilling the Rebbe’s rotzon without fanfare. May you be blessed with continued success in all you endeavors.
Thank You Thank You Thank You!!
Yes meir and Sima Chasha were tzadikim they”re house open for all… you dint find such people very easily these days
that the people who wanted to paint it yellow didnt get it!
and also kept many many many bocherim on the derech!! may the aibishter grant you itkin the strenghth and courage to continue your parents legacy!!!!
May this holy house , that is soaked with Hachnosas orchim , chassidishe farbrengs many many: !!!!be sold to a Holy Library of the Rebbe.!
this house entertained teyereh chassidishe dorois!!!
Private means not government owned or sponsored.
Iirc 788 was about 60k
Yasher koach. If you care about this, give him a thank you.
It is a private library of an organization, namely aguch. As opposed to a public library owned by the govt.
It is not private meaning not owned by an individual.
the question is what took so long? there was a purported deal app. a year ago
Not 2.4.
Either way, for such a house that is a bargain. Glad 770 got it.
The library is not private
BS”D
Thank G-d ! What a worthy addition to 770 and the Rebbe’s legacy !
Rabbi Shalom Levine and Rabbi Zalman Levine and Rabbi Efraim Keller are doing a amazing job for the library it is alway a pleasure to go there for a visit . Keep on your shlichus and your hard work
Does anyone know hard numbers what 770 bought it for?
Deserves a lot of credit for this it is something the Rebbe would be very happy with ( Though not with the high price ) but if we believe the sefarim are coming back then we need the space.
thanks for shraing!!