Rosie Sells finally sells home to Saddle River Investors LLC, Michael Kasparian
Rosie O’Donnell finally did it and sold her 9,000 sf home in Saddle River to an infamous developer, who will convert the property into 60 townhouse units in the middle of town and cause major havoc on the residents for years.
Back in 2013, actress and comedienne, Rosie O’Donnell purchased a six-bedroom mansion along Allendale Road in Saddle River for $6.375 million. Built-in the style of an English country manor, the home spans over 9,000 square feet and is situated on about five acres of land accessed via a long private driveway right in the middle of the idyllic Saddle River. And right next to the highly-ranked Wandell School.
O’Donnell initially listed the home for $7 million in 2015 just two years after purchasing it but lowered the price to $6.495 million the following year. The asking amount was sliced even further in September 2018 to $6 million and O’Donnell recently agreed to part with the property for $5.3 million in a sale that was finalized on March 17, 2021.
The buyer, Saddle River Investors LLC, who has only one name – Michael Kasparian – is an intervener in an ongoing affordable housing legal challenge brought against Saddle River by the Fair Share Housing Center. A Bergen County judge ruled in January last year that Saddle River needs to create over 244 units to fulfill its affordable housing obligations under state regulations, but the lack of developable land in the borough permitted a settlement to be reached that will see 112 affordable units built.
Saddle River Investors LLC then came in as a ‘white knight’ to the Fair Share Housing Center and said they would buy the Rosie O’Donnell property and build low-income housing on the property.
As part of a fair housing settlement between the borough of Saddle River and the Fair Share Housing Center of NJ, the 5-acre lot that Rosie’s property is located on is now going to be converted into 60 units, 20% of which will be used for affordable housing or in this case only 8 units. A great deal for only Saddle River Investors, LLC, who stands to make a huge profit on those townhouses in Saddle River.
Rosie’s property being in the middle of town would add incredible costs of building on the town – infrasturce for 60 more homes would dramatically alter the budgets, taxes, costs, and capabilities of the town. Rosie seems not to care since she left the town years ago for one of her numerous other properties, not realizing her sale to the Saddle River Investors LLC would bring such turmoil and angst with her previous neighbors.
Stay tuned to Saddle River News to hear more news about the affordable housing issue in Saddle River.