The 30-year-old pop star Katy Perry is in a legal battle with the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary over the pending sale of their former convent in Los Feliz. Perry made a closing deal of $14.5 million property with Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez so she can turn the property into her abode — and the nuns are trying everything in their power to make sure that doesn’t happen.
The still-living nuns had their own sale pending on the building and land, selling it two weeks prior to a local restauranteur Dana Hollister. She offered $15.5 million to turn the property into a boutique hotel. They now are in a legal battle — with the Los Angeles Times reporting that legal briefs were already filed on June 26 — over who will be sold the property.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the diocese says that the archbishop is the only one allowed to sell the property, but Perry has been trying to make the extra step in assuring the property will be sold to her. She went to visit the nuns at the convent, sang to them and even showed them her Jesus tattoo. Not knowing who she was previous to this incident, the sisters looked her up on the Internet and were not any happier about what they found — her halftime performance at the past Superbowl, her music videos and her song lyrics overall.
The property they’re arguing over is a villa-style hilltop spread that sits upon several acres of land, the building has great architectural history and offers an breathtaking view of downtown L.A. and the San Gabriel Mountains.
The even trickier part is restauranteur Hollister has already moved into the property. And while the nuns went through with the real estate transaction, Gomez has the sole right to sell the property and wants to sell it to Perry. The paperwork for the sale to Perry is being completed and she has agreed to pay the $14.5 million offer in cash
The L.A. Times has also reported that the diocese sued Hollister in hopes to void her purchase and a court order order allowed for Perry to visit the property with her architect where she came into contact with the sisters.
When the convent was in full use years ago, there were 52 nuns who lived on the property, but the diocese moved them to other locations in 2011 against their will one of the nuns said.
Sources:
http://hollywoodlife.com/2015/06/29/katy-perry-nuns-fight-convent-buying-home-la/
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-06-28-lopez-nuntoohappy-20150628-column.html
