The interior of the Duggal Greenhouse main building is seen...

The interior of the Duggal Greenhouse main building is seen in this photo. Credit: Duggal Greenhouse

The Democratic debate on Thursday will take place in a converted warehouse at the Brooklyn Navy Yard that hosts corporate events and has been rented by clients including Beyoncé.

The Duggal Greenhouse, with 70-foot ceilings, was once used in the construction of naval ships.

When it reopened in February 2013, its first tenant was Beyoncé, who rented it for a rehearsal space, said Mary Lovci, a vice president for Duggal Greenhouse. It has also been used for events for Cadillac, Heineken, Lady Gaga, IBM and former Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

“This is the highest profile event,” Lovci said of the CNN debate which starts at 9 p.m. Thursday.

The 35,000 square-foot space looks out over the Williamsburg Bridge.

When Duggal Visual Solutions, headed by Baldev Duggal, purchased the building in 2009, it had dirt floors and was filled with asbestos, Lovci said. It was stripped down to the iron beams but retains some of the original windows.

When the space isn’t rented out, it’s part of the print fabrication business of Duggal Visual Solutions, printing art installations and wraps for buildings, stores, shops and stadiums, including the Super Bowl in New York in 2014.

The Brooklyn Navy Yard, which was closed as a federal government shipbuilding yard in 1966 and reopened as an industrial park, currently is under redevelopment.

Latest video

Newsday LogoSUBSCRIBEUnlimited Digital AccessOnly 25¢for 5 months
ACT NOWSALE ENDS SOON | CANCEL ANYTIME