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GAG: Guerillas Against Greed

The new management team, BD Hotels, is universally loathed, and everybody wants Stanley back.  But how do we achieve this goal?  A large number of varied and diverse guerilla activities may – while Coffin1 perhaps not forcing their ouster – at least drive them out of their bloomin’ minds.  Use your creativity – after all, thats what we’re known for around here.  Here are a few suggestions – some of them sent in by readers – to start us all thinking in the right direction.  Let’s make them wish their greedy hides had never been born:

Start on the roof and carry a coffin down the stairs chanting loudly and out the door in a mock funeral for the hotel.

Got some chalk? Write GREED KILLS on the sidewalk outside, or whatever else seems suitable.

Stand behind the desk, and when they ask you to move pretend you are retarded and don’t understand.

Chain yourself to the Harry Truman bust.

No matter where you live, fly a banner from your balcony or window. We know that Mitchell Marks doesn’t mind having banners on the old Y building. Maybe our friend Cindy Gallop can step up to the plate!

In addition to the postcards being sent, buy flowers – they’re not expensive at the Korean grocers and you can sometimes get three small bouquets out of one big cheap one — and stick them in the railings outside the hotel, in the stairwell balustrade, wherever. Deliver them to the desk! Attach a big cheery card addressed to Marlene Krauss and David Elder, to Andre Bal-however you spell his name and Drukier, with the message of your choice.

Whatever protest is done, a banner, a postcards, a bouquet of flowers with a get well card, it should be photographed/videotaped, and posted online. Maybe your friends all tapdance? have them meet in the Hotel Chelsea lobby, and then tap dance out of there. Have a spontaneous art party in the lobby, and if any from the new order complain just explain that you’re waiting for a friend. If they kick you out, make sure it’s on video. Then post the videos on youtube and vimeo (with a link here). Photos can be posted on Google picasa or in the hotel chelsea flickr group

Celebrities: when in New York, stop by to give David Elder a piece of your mind.  Don’t forget to bring a film crew.

If you hear any of the suits say anything stupid or incriminating, report it immediately to the blog.  This will make them even more paranoid.

Send Postcards:
Stanley Bard
Chelsea Hotel
222 West 23rd Street
New York, NY 10011

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46 responses to “GAG: Guerillas Against Greed”

  1. Daily Intelligencer - New York Magazine Avatar
    Daily Intelligencer – New York Magazine

    Mind Your Bike Manners in Williamsburg

    Astoria: They’re taking bets on which store will close next on the area’s Broadway strip. Will it be Broadway Bakery or Radio Shack? [Forest Hills 72…

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  2. sparkle Avatar
    sparkle

    I have an idea but I hesitate posting all these ideas here, as I am sure the new “management” is reading this blog. Some ideas are more valuable when posted here, and some plans are more valuable when conducted in secret, as secretly as they plotted this horrible takeover.

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  3. Former Resident Avatar
    Former Resident

    Call up and make a reservation for G. Corso, or J. Joplin, or Art Miller, etc.

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  4. Cait Avatar
    Cait

    Assign one resident to collect ALL rent checks and hold them until Stanley is back where he belongs. I, for one, will NEVER set foot in the place again if this decision is not reversed.

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  5. secondpost Avatar
    secondpost

    As a former Chelsea Hotel resident, I still wish Stanley, David, and the family well.
    But to the Chelsea tenants – get over yourselves with your stupid protests. Guerillas against Greed? GOOD – pay up all your back rent! How’s about THAT for a start? And let the management raise the below market rate you currently feel you’re ‘entitled’ to just because you’re an ‘artiste’ and your life should be subsidized to full market rate. Then, when you’re paying full market rate like a mature adult AND you pay in timely manner, you can protest against someone else’s greed. Until then, you’re all a bunch of self serving, self rightous, self involved whiners.

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  6. The Ghost of David Elder Avatar
    The Ghost of David Elder

    Is that you, Marlene?
    I thought we explained all this to you in an earlier thread.
    legends.typepad.com/living_with_legends_the_h/2007/06/bard_
    family_top.html#comments
    Greed is a clear culprit here, but I agree with you on one thing, secondpost. I don’t like the name, Guerrillas against Greed. However, I do like the idea of finding ways to get the Bards back and the hotel back the way it was. It was perfectly fine the way it was, and it is sorely needed in this world.

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  7. consider this Avatar
    consider this

    This wasn’t such a “secret” takeover. It was a big court battle. Stanley and David chose not to tell the tenants about this as it was going on (and they had the right not to), though plenty of the tenants knew or suspected.
    How unfortunate for those tenants who don’t have all of the venom and hatred for the new management as some of the posters on this blog have displayed from the start- even before the new management completely took over!
    I certainly hope, for those tenants’ sake, that the new management DOES read this blog and,if they do, they should know that these horrible, nasty, and yes, I believe often absolutely uncalled for statements of hatred, are NOT necessarily felt by ALL tenants. And probably not by MOST.
    Yes, the majority of the residents absolutely do want Stanley and David back, but that doesn’t mean that they feel the new management is as evil as this blog would suggest.
    It’s unfair to those residents if, because of the nasty comments that state all the residents feel the same way, ALL the tenants suffered if management DOES decide to act in a hostile way towards them. They’d only be dishing out what this blog seems to throw at them.
    I believe in the freedom of speech, but speak for yourself or at least only SOME of the residents…not ALL.
    New management hasn’t really done anything bad yet except to ask those who owe back rent to pay their back rent! And how can you blame them? If you live somewhere, no matter what the rent is, you’re supposed to PAY it or move! They have every right to collect their money and I suspect that it’s the people who have fairly LOW rents who owe the most. I don’t know this for sure and it’s surely not ONLY those whose rents are low, but if you live somewhere, you’re expected to pay the rent. What’s so evil about wanting to collect the thousands and thousands of dollars that some people owe?
    What’s wrong with wanting to improve the infrastructure of this building? The upkeep should have been taking place all along as the residents legally are entitled to be provided. What good is this hotel going to be if the inside crumbles to pieces?
    Stanley and David were WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL in the respect that they allowed people to stay here and consider this their home under many “differing” situations, but the fact is, if you owe back rent, you’re responsible for paying it and there’s nothing evil or wrong about the management wanting to collect it. Even Stanley and David tried to collect back rent from people and rightly so!
    Rent stabilization doesn’t mean that if you’re paying next to nothing for a Manhattan apartment they have no right to raise the rent. It’s just a matter of how much they legally can raise it. It’s not 1950 anymore and if they can LEGALLY raise your rent a little bit when you’re paying 1950 rates, I fail to see the evil and greed in this.
    I hope this doesn’t sound too harsh because I DO think that it would be an absolute abomination if the new management tries to kick people out, started doing things that weren’t very cool to try and force residents out, or make life so bad for them that they want to leave…but collecting back rent and fixing up the place….come on?
    Those are the only things the residents seem to know at this point regarding what the new management has in store for them and the hotel. As much as people miss Stanley and David and want them back…it’s more than a bit unfair to make the kind of statements made in this blog when there’s no proof of anything nasty yet. And very unfair to the other tenants who may be punished for a few people’s feelings.

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  8. whatever Avatar
    whatever

    Your anger is severely misdirected, secondpost. I hate to break this to you, but if you think artists are demanding and self-involved, wait until you get a load of the clientele the new managers would like to bring in, or at the new managers themselves, or the vast majority of CEOs in this country. In fact, look in a mirror. The people at the Chelsea hotel are not particularly whiny, demanding or self-involved. They’re spitting mad at the moment.

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  9. Kirby Avatar
    Kirby

    Did a poet break your heart or something? Most residents have paid market or above market rate for years for the privilege of living in the Chelsea Hotel.

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  10. JJ Avatar
    JJ

    Are you an example of the Mature Adult you think everyone should become, with that temper and that chip on your shoulder? You might try counting to ten before you lose you temper in such an, um, childish way.
    You need to calm down. Might I suggest listening to some music, reading a book or watching a movie?

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  11. Current Resident Avatar
    Current Resident

    Below market? Subsidized living? Pay your rent?
    WAKE UP, “Secondpost”
    you may claim to be a ‘former resident’ but you’ve obviously never really lived at the hotel or been any contributing part of it. from your post is pretty clear you’re just one more falling for antique myths and rumors, most of which are aimed at keeping people like you OUT. if you want to buy into the idea that Stanley Bard lets people live here for no rent, so be it. its absurd and so are you. maybe youre that old whining windbag I ran into at the El Quixote last night, trying to incite the staff there, still trying to get the ‘last word’ in, spreading your opinions around like they are marshmallow fluff or something. I guess I should have thrown that bar stool a little harder. Next time.
    Stay off the blog. you belong here as much as david elder et al do. this hotel would have gone under the wrecking ball 40 years ago if not for what the Bard family began to cultivate.
    stupid protests? i’d like to get both of my hands around your neck and we’ll see how much you protest yourself. And thats a bona fide offer

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  12. Cait Avatar
    Cait

    When did the Devil change it’s name to Secondpost?

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  13. Former Resident Avatar
    Former Resident

    Current Resident, are you one of the people who thinks they kicked out the Bards and brought in Balazs and Drukier to fix the plumbing and give the place a fresh coat of paint? You don’t think it was rude to say the least to send the rent letter before any introduction to the residents? And let’s not forget, for some time they have forced Stanley to stop taking any long-term residents.
    Wake up.

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  14. Current Resident Avatar
    Current Resident

    Former Resident – Um, no. did you even read the post before responding? Yeah, we do think it was rude to send demand letters, were the first to say so and continue saying so. They sent letters to all the SROs because they obviously feel that those folks (paying the “least” rent, relatively speaking) must be the most vulnerable if they owe any money at all. Once the SRO rooms are gone, so will a big chapter in the history of the Chelsea Hotel. They will turn them all into suites and rent them nightly. At the end of five years, when they decide to go condominium (thats how long the paperwork takes, ask an architect), it will only be the ultra wealthy that benefit as usual because those are the only tenants who the owners will be forced to pay off. Everybody else will go thru the process, or not like the changes that ARE coming and simply move away. Which leads me to ask, former resident – did you even read the post?

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  15. Former Resident Avatar
    Former Resident

    Are there two Current Residents posting? One is telling everyone to calm down, another threatening to strangle somebody. Therein lies the confusion….
    Perhaps we all need more creative screennames.

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  16. Former Resident Avatar
    Former Resident

    Current Resident, you’re right. I confused you with Consider This. My bad.
    Consider This:
    “New management hasn’t really done anything bad yet except to ask those who owe back rent to pay their back rent!”
    Well, and take hotel management away from Stanley, majority shareholder, after years of pressuring him to extract more money form the place and get rid of longterm residents. Are you one of the people who thinks they kicked out the Bards and brought in Balazs and Drukier to fix the plumbing and give the place a fresh coat of paint? You don’t think it was rude to say the least to send the rent letter before any introduction to the residents? That’s the very first thing they do? And let’s not forget, for some time they have forced Stanley to stop taking any long-term residents. I heard there was a lawsuit, but I’m a’hearin’ there was a lot of plotting preceding and during the lawsuit. Did Stanley know these partners had already made a deal with BD Hotels that was ready-to-go if they won the lawsuit? You want to keep your apartment and that’s fine. I want to see the partners as humans first too. But by what standard can this corporate takeover be considered good for anyone but the two other partners who rarely set foot in the place before this?

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  17. lp Avatar
    lp

    People are angry so things have reached a fever pitch, but the facts are pretty sad all the same. This has been going on for some years now and we’ve seen the increasing pressure of these partners leading up to this. I don’t think David Elder and Marlene Krauss got together with Messieurs Balazcs and Drucker five minutes after they won their lawsuit and said, “Hey, you fellows want to take over the Chelsea in three days?” Secrecy and conspiracy are givens here. Consider This should consider as well that the passionate outcry against this takeover has curbed the new managers and partners. You need look no further than the rent letter to see that they don’t get the Chelsea and its culture. Did they not consider sending a note introducing themselves at the very least, and offering to meet with residents before asking them curtly on day one to pay up? This and other things have made it clear that the residents and staff were not priorities but viewed more as obstacles. How many people have actually met the partners? If they were so interested in the hotel, its physical plant if not its history and culture, wouldn’t they have spent a great deal of time in the building? The only person on this blog who has mentioned meeting them is Viva.
    Yes, legally they are within their rights as corporate shareholders. But only legally. Some things are more important than money.

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  18. sparkle Avatar
    sparkle

    I don’t want to demonize them nor gaslight them. My private suggestion was to videotape everything. I don’t think they’re evil. I think they’re doing what ALMOST everyone else in New York is doing, or would if they had the chance, and it’s pretty much the same anywhere else in the world with an insanely hot real-estate market. It looks like the biggest greed fest since the Reagan 80s. It’s just sad that the Chelsea has weathered the booms of the past only to get sucked down by this one.
    I knew about the lawsuit. (You may have been the person who told me.) I didn’t know everyone else knew too. But much of this fiasco has been a surprise to everybody except the new managers. It probably shouldn’t have been such a shock, because we’ve seen and heard about what the :investors: desired of the hotel for years — It goes far beyond a coat of paint and new copper pipes.
    Don’t worry, though — I don’t think the new management can act in a hostile manner now, thanks to the media coverage and the outcry on this blog and elsewhere.

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  19. Witness Avatar
    Witness

    They will wait until the attention fades, and then they will continue as planned.
    So, it’s important to prevent attention from fading.
    So we keep sending postcards, have meetings, solicit help from powerful allies, and keep calling in the press!
    Who has the longer attention span, the Board or the residents? Who cares more?

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  20. JJ Avatar
    JJ

    Yeah, Witness, they’ll take it piece by piece,
    a little renovation here, a little there, and when
    attention fades, like you said, they’ll finish the job.
    The bad guys here are the partners, and the management
    company are just their rent boys. Let’s not forget that.
    From what I’ve seen and heard, most residents are in
    agreement, aside from one or two who have always
    longed for a trendy yup palace.
    We have the longer attention span.
    We care more, a lot more.

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  21. consider this Avatar
    consider this

    Former Resident:
    I’m saying that ALL THE RESIDENTS KNOW FOR A FACT YET, is that the people who owe rent were asked to pay up!!!! How can you people continually make all these statements about what the new management has planned when the ONLY things they have STATED PUBLICLY is that they want to fix the electrical issues, fix the plumbking and clean the place up!!!
    Do I think they should have introduced themselves politely FIRST, ABSOLUTELY! It wasn’t a very friendly move NOT to do so, and very possibly a sign of future intentions, but nobody knows the things that are being stated FOR A FACT yet. You guys are making this stuff up out of your OWN PERSONAL ASSUMPTIONS AND OPINIONS!!! And you have a right to your OPINION, but you better state that it’s your OPINION.
    Also, I know for a fact that several long-term leases (and long term around here means ANY LEASE AT ALL) have been given over the past few years and people who already lived here and asked for their lease in writing have not been given one though I do believe you’re legally supposed to get one if asked for it in writing. I don’t know all the details of this but leases HAVE been given over the past few years.
    Do I feel that they want to try and get the residents out and make this place a “boutique hotel?” Um, YES, I actually do feel that this may very well be what they have in mind, but they HAVE NOT STATED THIS YET FOR A FACT! They haven’t served ANY eviction notices, they haven’t said they INTEND on kicking people out and it’s quite unfair and possibly damaging to the residents to continually make statements claiming this to be FACTUAL.
    Putting the new management in a defensive, angered situation by calling them greedy scum and saying horrible things about them as people when you don’t know them and are actually SLANDERING them!
    How about they sue YOU for saying what they think when they haven’t stated any such thing. How the hell do you know what Ms. Krauss values in the creative or artistic world? Have you ASKED HER?
    Do I feel the takeover is a good thing for residents? I don’t know yet! I can only make an assumption but this would be a FEELING and not a FACT.
    Do you understand the potential damage you are causing by saying that ALL RESIDENTS feel a certain way when you have NO RIGHT to speak for ALL RESIDENTS??? Guess what, I also never said that I lived at the Chelsea, but yes- I’M A RESIDENT! I LIVE HERE! I’VE LIVED HERE FOR QUITE A NUMBER OF YEARS. Do NOT put thoughts in my mouth and speak for ME.
    I have close, close friends in this building and my ties are VERY strong to Stanley and David- despite good/bad, fair/unfair, etc… things that have been done…they’re like family.
    I don’t think it’s healthy for anyone to be calling new management greedy scum and saying that they think such and such or they’re going to do this or that when you do NOT know any such fact yet!
    This is an infuriating blog to me and a LOT of other residents here (YES, believe it or not, a LOT of other residents DO feel the same way I do and I know this because I HAVE DISCUSSED THIS WITH THEM!!!!)
    Am I worried about what new management has in store for us? You’re damn right I am! And I worry about what new management has in store for the people who owe back rent. But nobody can disagree that if you live somewhere, you’re supposed to pay the rent! What the hell is so wrong with this? If they lived ANYWHERE ELSE the same thing would be expected! And they’d probably have to pay a lot more- if they’re paying below market rate and I do believe that MOST residents are NOT NECESSARILY paying ABOVE market rate, though guess what… I AM. And I am FAR from RICH or wealthy at all!
    Do you think the residents appreciate what people are claiming about them when it’s untrue statements being said? How would YOU like it if we made assumptions about who you are as a person and your personal situation based on the very likely false statements you’re making about others?
    And as far as Stanley and David been pushed out after all these years…yes, NOT COOL. I’m NOT happy about it, despite some frustrations with certain things about they way they ran things, which is normal for ANY PLACE. You can’t be happy with EVERYTHING management does but there are legit complaints, just as there are legit reasons why I love Stanley and David both, like I said, they’re like family.
    This has NOTHING to do with me wanting to “keep my apartment” and you have no idea how I feel about my apartment at ALL. I may love it, I may hate it, I may feel it’s just a place to live and it’s not the end of the world if I have to move out. MY situation is none of YOUR business because you don’t KNOW anything about MY personal life for a fact. And MY opinions about new management and what they plan for the residents, just like YOUR opinion of new management and what they have planned for the residents, is nothing but that- OUR OPINIONS.
    Whatever facts are out there are FACTS and you can state your opinion on them to your heart’s desire. It’s your right to do so, but PLEASE, for the sake of the people who live here and simply for the sake of not knowing the other HUMAN BEINGS you’re speaking so ill of…why don’t you stick to the FACTS at hand.
    If new management happens to turn out to be the way you’re speaking of them and they have no consideration for the people who live here and DO try and evict them all, make life hell, etc, etc… then let your wrath flow! It’ll be deserved… but you are stating things as FACTS when they are merely your OPINION and that isn’t fair to do to ANYONE.
    I totally agree with you that some things are more important than money and if you knew ANYTHING about ME in the LEAST, you’d know for SURE that I LIVE by that sentiment as an ideology. I’ve been told time and time again how asking for money, charging money, collecting money isn’t wrong and it’s earned and deserved, so I do NOT live a greedy life. But that doesn’t mean that I feel that people who don’t pay rent should pe patted on the back and told, “It’s okay, don’t worry about it.” That’s unfair to the people who DO pay rent and pay a lot of rent when they’re NOT well off.
    Nobody is saying life is fair and I’m all for giving people a break (believe ME, I’m close friends with plenty of people who owe money here and DO NOT want to see them evicted because of it), but even they know (as the ones I’ve spoken to about it have told me) that yes, they know that they owe money and that they need to pay it! They want the chance to do it before getting evicted of course, but they don’t claim the management is greedy because they want the rent owed.
    JEEZ!
    It would be nice if new management introduced themselves before sending the rent owed statement (which is why I said the only “NASTY” thing they’ve done so far is ask for people who owe to pay up), and it may be a definite sign of things to come, but the future isn’t here yet. You cannot say they’ve done or they’re planning to do something when this is only your opinion and NOT a fact—YET. IF ever. And I do certainly hope that your horrible statements about them as people are wrong and your thoughts on what they’re planning on doing are wrong (re: doing negative things to the residents) but DO NOT speak for ALL RESIDENTS in such a horrible way when what you’re saying is your OPINION and NOT everyone’s.
    WE DO NOT KNOW ANYTHING MORE THAN WHAT’S BEEN STATED.
    THAT and ONLY THAT is a FACT. Until other such facts are revealed, it’s fine to be ready for the worst if the worst does happen, but you cannot claim such bad thoughts for everyone who lives here. I don’t know new management. I haven’t met David Bernstein yet. I haven’t met Ms. Krauss. I DO know Stanley and David and don’t feel good about the way things happened, want them back and am upset, but I also would like this building’s upkeep to be taken care of for the sake of this building and all who live and stay here. This doesn’t mean that bad things have to happen to the residents in order for this to take place and IF this hotel is turned into a Starbucks-like boutique hotel, it’ll be a damn shame, but until signs of this begin, I’m not going to have vile statements about people I don’t know doing things they have yet to do be stated as MY opinion.
    I definitely think Stanley and David should be treated more kindly but I’m not going to claim that I know all the details of what’s been going on legally, etc when I simply don’t know all of the facts.
    I LIVE here. It’s very upsetting for me and my friends and neighbors at the moment to live in such uncertainty and see people we care about being treated harshly. But the fact is that we DO NOT KNOW ANYTHING for a FACT except that they want to repair the things that need repair and collect on the rent that people owe.
    So PLEASE, think about what you’re saying, claiming and then think about what you can PROVE is factual and what’s merely your OPINION, then claim it as YOUR opinion, not EVERYONE’S!
    We simply do not know what’s going to happen to us yet! So have consideration for this fact and the people who are living within this fact.

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  22. consider this Avatar
    consider this

    Also, Sparkle…not EVERYONE knew about the lawsuit. Stanley and David didn’t want everyone to know and that’s understandable, but some did.
    I certainly hope that the media attention and outcry of turning this place into something generic and commercial doesn’t happen and DO hope the protests prevent this, but nothing is for sure right now. It’s unfair to claim that this is BEING DONE and that they don’t care at all about residents, retaining the culture of this place, etc ., when we don’t know for a FACT. Is it thought to probably be the case…probably. And there will be a major uproar with a LOT of media attention if these steps ARE begun, but demonizing them the way people have been isn’t going to help. It probably makes them hate the residents more and care less. Some residents feel the demonizing is warranted, some don’t. It’s the ones who DON’T feel this way YET that have the right to say stop speaking for them.
    I don’t know if sending them nasty postcards is going to do anything but make them angrier or if it’ll make them feel guilty. IF they’re the heartless people some are claiming they are, do you really think nasty postcards will change anything? Positive media attention to retain CERTAIN aspects of the Chelsea is vital, but nobody’s going to complain about having plumbing or electrical issues repaired.
    I’m SO tired of hostility when the statements are not able to be proved yet claimed as fact.

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  23. Avatar
    Anonymous

    Nobody needs to demonize them. What they’ve done is bad enough without any extra help. Marlene Krauss, David Elder, BD Hotels, please leave. Sell your shares to the Bards and LEAVE. PLEASE.

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  24. Avatar
    Anonymous

    I don’t believe this person, Consider This, is really a resident of the hotel. I think it is someone with the Interlopers who is trying to divide the residents. PLEASE LEAVE. I promise you, if you don’t, you will regret it all your lives.

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  25. consider this Avatar
    consider this

    FORMER Resident:
    NEW management did NOT take management away from Stanley, the other SHAREHOLDERS/OWNERS did.
    You can assume all you want and comment on your thoughts, but please don’t state your opinions or thoughts as FACTS that are happening or have happened when this is not the case.
    This place has had MANY new coats of paint recently, while Stanley was still manager! So no, I don’t think they forced him out for things like that, nor did I say that I did. I’m saying, stick to statements that are FACTUAL otherwise, say it’s your OPINION and do not say it’s ALL RESIDENTS’ opinion.
    Yes, ALL residents are CONCERNED about what will happen to them, I’d say that the majority are quite unhappy about this hostile takeover and wish things went down in a very different way where Stanley and David were still in charge. But you don’t know all the facts, neither do the residents and the fact of the matter is, the courts made this decision and now we have to deal with it, but making false statements about the other shareholders and making terrible statements about their personal life when you don’t even know them is NOT okay…unless you speak for YOURSELF.
    And one final thing; how DARE you tell someone else that they should “stay off this blog” and that “they belong here as much as david elder et al do!”
    David Elder “et al” are part OWNERS, like it or not and actually, I’d LOVE to have them on this blog so they can inform us CURRENT RESIDENTS as to what the facts actually ARE and have it in writing!
    “this hotel would have gone under the wrecking ball 40 years ago if not for what the Bard family began to cultivate.”
    Doubt it. It’s a national landmark, I don’t know if it can go under the wrecking ball without a very good reason, though I agree that the Bards have kept it from turning into another clone of all the other boutique hotels, and for that I think most people are grateful, me included.
    “i’d like to get both of my hands around your neck and we’ll see how much you protest yourself. And thats a bona fide offer.”
    For this reason alone I’m glad you’re a FORMER Resident. Please stay away until you can control your violent temper. I don’t think the residents particularly want people who exhibit violent behavior in the building. We have enough to worry about as it is.

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  26. Witness Avatar
    Witness

    Let’s all take a deep breath.
    The facts are:
    1. The Board members and the new management company have removed Stanley Bard from his position.
    2. Their first action at the Chelsea was to send a letter advising tenants to catch up on their back rent.
    3. They issued a press release describing their plans for “modernization” of the Chelsea, with new “amenties” and a redesign of the “street-dront retail”
    4. They have taken on the “expert” who turned the Chateau Marmont into a commercialized version of itself to “improve” the Chelsea.
    These facts, considering the economic/development climate of this city–which is also an undeniable fact–do not look good for the Chelsea’s future as a democratic, artist-friendly hotel. True, its plumbing is likely to be improved. Possible, the wires in the corridors will be concealed. Such improvements come at a price. It is not unreasonable to conclude that the price will be paid by the residents.
    Considering these facts, it is wise to prepare for likely future events, rather than to wait until they happen and then try to respond retroactively. We are not children. We know how it goes when a management team takes over a choice piece of real estate in the center of Manhattan. Naturally, residents are going to express rage, and grief, and try to bargain–all of those usual stages–on their way to creating a plan.
    Now is the time for a plan. Enough of the name-calling.

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  27. Current Resident Avatar
    Current Resident

    You’re right, no way Consider This lives in the hotel. Can’t even keep straight who he’s BLATHERING at so EMPHATICALLY. Current Resident here. Or you can call me the Chelsea Hotel Strangler…

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  28. sparkle Avatar
    sparkle

    Consider this, I’ve never claimed to be speaking for everyone and have said several times I’m theorizing based on what we do know, on the available facts. Based on the available facts, these people haven’t appeared too friendly or even very interested in the hotel before this. Based on the available facts, it’s clear they have a propensity for trendy, over-designed boutique hotels and overpriced condos. Based on the available facts, they appear much more concerned about getting the back rent from the SROs than in introducing themselves to concerned residents. Based on the facts (years of pressure on Stanley to stop admitting new longterm residents and to get more money out the residents and the commercial space) it’s clear they’re not interested in keeping a vibrant artistic community in the hotel if there’s more profit to be made by removing them. The questions I’ve asked have been fair and on many people’s minds, and asked by many others, judging by the people I’ve spoken to and by this blog.
    Based on the facts… it appears they fired the Bards.
    (And I didn’t suggest nasty postcards either, but flowers and cheery get well cards! Please don’t put words in my mouth either. Someone else, on another blog I believe, originally suggested not nasty postcards but postcards of support for Stanley)

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  29. Former Resident Avatar
    Former Resident

    I’m not sure who you’re talking to, Consider This. There must be someone else posting as a Former Resident. I’m angry, not violent.
    Yeah, the people the residents have to fear are those posting here, not the investors and the new management. Sure.

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  30. Former Resident Avatar
    Former Resident

    I didn’t say I was speaking for everyone.

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  31. Scarlet Avatar
    Scarlet

    Rather than demonizing, perhaps a more benign presence is required. What about Yaddo or one of the other artist colonies/foundations could take over managing the place?

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  32. Betty Bishop Avatar
    Betty Bishop

    Consider this – Can you tell us more about the “big court battle” – who sued who for what? I don’t know where you are reading all the hatred and venom you are talking about. I think I am reading everything and nothing I read sounds overall like “evil” or “scum”. People are saying the New Gang [or rather their bosses] are greedy and probably rude and maybe foolish but it doesn’t strike me as much more that that except for joking remarks and parodies. If you are only one of many residents who think the blog isn’t helping your situation why don’t you ask the others to speak up and sign in and why not sign your name? You say “This is an infuriating blog to me and a LOT of other residents here (YES, believe it or not, a LOT of other residents DO feel the same way I do and I know this because I HAVE DISCUSSED THIS WITH THEM!!!!)” Do you not realize YOU you are speaking for THEM at the same time as you tell us to speak for ourselves! I think it goes without saying that people who post in here are only speaking for themselves with the exception of one post that was signed “what most of us think” or something like that. Former/current resident is former resident/current not residents! I haven’t heard posters say that artists shouldn’t have to pay rent either. You say “I DO think that it would be an absolute abomination if the new management tries to kick people out, started doing things that weren’t very cool to try and force residents out, or make life so bad for them that they want to leave…but collecting back rent and fixing up the place….come on?” and “the ONLY things they have STATED PUBLICLY is that they want to fix the electrical issues, fix the plumbking and clean the place up!!!” Are you serious? You do know about “if it walks like a duck don’t you…”? Of course they are going to get you all out [unless you have a million or so bucks] in time! Surely you don’t actually believe they arrived to spend millions on the pipes and wires to make the current residents happy do you? You think they are going to put lots of money in and not expect to somehow or other get lots and lots of money out? Most of the bloggers, understandably, don’t seem to be residents so I can’t imagine why the new owners would “punish” you for what we outsiders say? If the residents want the new owners to accept them I am sure they know how to be very nice to new management. It sounds to me like you are someone with a healthy bank account and you want to keep your Chelsea nest. I don’t blame you – it is a great place. You also want the place spruced up – I don’t blame you for that either. What you don’t seem to realize is that it can’t be done without losing what I think is the Chelsea Hotel. You want to have your cake and eat it too. A win win. Maybe you are young and idealistic? Good luck but I don’t think it will happen. By the way – isn’t Stanley still there?

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  33. Betty Bishop Avatar
    Betty Bishop

    Yes Yes – maybe the Art Students League could buy it – It would work for them – half artist residents and half studios. Go and see them Stanley!

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  34. Cowboy Avatar
    Cowboy

    Consider This sounds quite sensible to me.
    Why all the hate?

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  35. Sherill Avatar
    Sherill

    It would be good to see the Art Students League back on 23rd Street, where they were during the Chelsea’s early days. They’ve been associated with so many residents of this building, and their cooperative origins are very similar to the Chelsea’s.

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  36. sparkle Avatar
    sparkle

    Great post, Betty Bishop.
    I don’t think anyone has claimed to speak for ALL the residents, aside from one reference to the management company being “universally loathed.” Someone posted as “PRETTY MUCH EVERYBODY.” Judging by the press, the posters here and the email I’ve received, it is pretty much everybody.
    I think people here have bent over backwards to try to understand the Board. But we can only theorize because they haven’t made an effort to get to know the residents, have they? If they loved this hotel and what it embodies and represents, why haven’t they been there, hanging out all these years? We (the people in my time and the people there now) would have made them feel welcome. It was that kind of place. Rich, poor, artist, non-artist, black, white, gay, hetero, American, foreign, it didn’t matter ever during the Bards’ tenure. Stanley is not a snob by any means. So where were they? Then, their first action is to send a letter demanding rent, and people see Andre Balazs and learn that Ira Drukier is running the place now. Duh.
    Until they give any reason to think otherwise, of course a lot of people are going to be pissed off about all this. Rightly so. For those who care about Stanley, David and Michelle, and about the continuation of the wonderful environment Stanley created, there is great reason to be angry.
    Stanley got booted by this board whose names most of us didn’t even know until after this happened, and because we’ve all seen what changes they forced in the hotel in the last few years, we (the huge and growing pro-Stanley crowd) are understandably fearful of what they will do to the place. Everyone I’ve spoken to wants Stanley back and these people bought out and gone.
    I don’t live there any more, and it’s unlikely I ever will. But it’s a lot bigger than me and you. This was a rare place in the world, a relaxed, creative, free, democratuic environment like no other. The results: Look at the long, awe-inspiring list of people who created here. To treat this all so cavalierly, as the board appears</> to have done, is to demonstrate a complete lack of understanding of the place.
    To paraphrase Casebeer’s post, if it wasn’t for Stanley this place would have died a junkie’s death years ago and been sold. It’s here for them to take over because Stanley kept it vital and creative during the down times. A world without Stanley’s Chelsea is no world I want to live in. Your mileage may vary.

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  37. Avatar
    Anonymous

    Current and Former Residents: I can keep track of who I’m “blathering” at just as well as you can. Gee, who was it who mistook someone else for me in the first place earlier? Nobody is perfect but I have gone back as I’ve written to attribute a statement to a specific person. Perhaps there are several people posting under the same name as was suggested before! Another reason this blog is disturbing. Different people can post under names that have been used by someone else already! This normally is not the case for most blogs. Individual screen names can be used by only ONE person.
    And I’m not joking around when I say that you had better be careful about what you threaten to physically to do people. Freedom of speech is one thing, actual threats IN WRITING, IN PUBLIC, to physically harm someone is, I THINK, a crime. I’ll have to inquire about this, but no matter what, I suggest you rethink your outbursts of violent threats. You MAY be kidding, but there’s absolutely no indication of anything but seriousness in your tone. It’s NOT okay to threaten the physical well being of another person because they don’t completely agree with your thoughts.
    PERIOD.
    A WITNESS: Thank you! Well stated and you’ve laid out the facts as we know them!
    While I don’t necessarily disagree with your opinions of what’s in store for this hotel, and this may be nitpicking, but you can’t really say that anything is “CLEARLY” anything yet. Nothing has taken place to prove this. But, your post was definitely appreciated by me!
    Betty:
    The minority shareholders have wanted a say in how the hotel is managed and it seems they did not have a say…or at least ENOUGH of one. So, they decided to do something about it.
    No, I cannot tell you more about the “big court battle” because, if you recall, I stated that I DO NOT KNOW ALL THE DETAILS or even MOST. I simply stated the fact that there WAS a lengthy court battle and that a judge did not rule on Stanley and David’s favor, which is obvious. I cannot comment on anything or anyone’s side when I don’t truly know details, only the facts presented. The fact is, two families against one came out on top in the ruling.
    Stanley’s smiling face is still around the building and I wish David’s were as well.
    You don’t know where I’m reading all the hatred and venom?!?!?! Are you kidding me? Excuse me but, with all due respect, what blog have YOU been reading? It certainly isn’t THIS one! I don’t feel the need to address where I’m reading all the “hatred and venom” any further than to say that you should RE-READ THIS ENTIRE BLOG (or even just this thread).
    ” I think I am reading everything and nothing I read sounds overall like “evil” or “scum”.
    It doesn’t have to “sound” like it to you, those exact WORDS and statements are being SAID! I don’t know how your brain processes things, but when something is stated in such harsh, serious tones, that’s generally how it’s taken by people…unless it’s obviously a parody, as the two fictional stories were, and I SAID they were FICTIONAL. I also know that the residents I have spoken with do NOT find those pieces of fiction to be beneficial to us nor do we find them very amusing. And I speak for THOSE I HAVE TALKED WITH, which are quite a few.
    “People are saying the New Gang [or rather their bosses] are greedy and probably rude and maybe foolish but it doesn’t strike me as much more that that except for joking remarks and parodies.”
    They aren’t saying that they are “probably” or “maybe” rude or foolish, they’re saying that they ARE. And if what people are writing on this blog in regards to the nasty things said about new management etc, is merely “joking remarks” or “parodies”… their tone is SERIOUSLY OFF. Again, except for the actual pieces of fiction (which WERE horribly nasty but OBVIOUSLY fictional/parodies… I do NOT believe for one minute that it’s all joking around. I believe people are SERIOUS. I’m going to bet that I am by FAR not the only one who does NOT think the statements are said jokingly.
    Yes, I am speaking for “THEM” as I tell you not to speak for ALL residents. But this is because I said that SOME (a LOT) of other tenants feel the same way I do and I CAN say this because of what I included in my response which was that I SPOKE WITH “THEM!” The fact is that a lot of the tenants that I spoke with agree with what I stated. THOSE and ONLY THOSE are the ones I’m speaking for…not ALL. Don’t you see the difference? I cannot speak for ALL residents and say that “the residents feel/think___” as others have done, which was my point. I said “a lot” and this is true because a lot have told me this.
    And Betty, no, it DOESEN’T go “without saying” that everyone is speaking for themselves. People are saying some very nasty and also very FALSE statements about people and I strongly feel it’s important to state that this is your opinion or SOME residents (providing you’ve spoken with them or they’ve stated such thoughts previously)….because it is very easy to make blanket statements that imply the things stated are known to be felt or thought by all and may be taken this way in the heat of the moment.
    I think we should remember this for all future posts, out of courtesy to the residents at the very least…and I ask this because I do live here (and don’t care what certain posters claim, which is also a PERFECT example what I have been saying about people like them; they make statements as facts and they are NOT necessarily – and often DEFINITELY NOT- correct about those statements).
    I’m not just stating my opinion (as if it were a fact) and claiming that “the residents” feel this way or that way. THAT is speaking for ALL residents.
    “You do know about “if it walks like a duck don’t you…”? Of course they are going to get you all out [unless you have a million or so bucks] in time! Surely you don’t actually believe they arrived to spend millions on the pipes and wires to make the current residents happy do you?”
    You know nothing about me as your thoughts regarding what I am is incorrect. I AM STATING THE FACTS THAT YOU SEEM TO CONTINUALLY DISREGARD.
    – I said over and over that I don’t necessarily disagree with what you think is going to happen with the new management, I said that IT HASN’T BEEN DONE OR PROVEN YET!!!
    You CANNOT say “OF COURSE” to ANYTHING not done yet. I already stated that I don’t necessarily think you’re WRONG, but stating things as facts when they are NOT facts (yet and maybe not EVER) is irresponsible at the very least.
    What I THINK or YOU THINK or ANYONE THINKS is just that…what we THINK. You keep saying that they ARE going to do this or going to do that when you do NOT KNOW! It hasn’t happened yet!
    I’m NOT going to argue this fact anymore. I have better things to do than continually defend an obvious FACT on this blog.
    I think the renovations are NEEDED for the hotel itself. The residents have a right to have safely functioning outlets and plumbing as residents! The hotel GUESTS are paying a lot of money and they TOO deserve to have the infrastructure kept up. I never said that I think the new management wants to fix anything to make the residents happy! YOU are asking/claiming that I think this! I HAVE NOT SAID THIS EVER AND THIS IS, AGAIN (!) what I am TALKING ABOUT.
    Also, about the “duck” statements. Wasn’t it the Ugly DUCKLING who turned out to actually be a SWAN? I’m not saying this is necessarily going to be the case for new management, but not everything that is THOUGHT to be a duck is actually a duck…mistakes happen. Waiting and seeing is the only PROOF we’ve got.
    “Most of the bloggers, understandably, don’t seem to be residents so I can’t imagine why the new owners would “punish” you for what we outsiders say?”
    I don’t know if they would, I am saying I wouldn’t WANT them to do so and yeah, as most of you seem to be “OUTSIDERS” maybe you should respect the position of the “INSIDERS” a little more.
    “If the residents want the new owners to accept them I am sure they know how to be very nice to new management.”
    I’m sure. I’ve never met new management aka. Mr. Bernstein. I have met David Elder though and, I can’t claim that I actually KNOW him well, what I do know of him from any limited conversation has not been negative at all. I like him so far. Doesn’t mean I’m necessarily going to like whatever MAY be in store for us who live here, but from the conversations so far, he seems pretty human to me. Why do I just know that this statement is going to be twisted by someone? sigh.
    “It sounds to me like you are someone with a healthy bank account and you want to keep your Chelsea nest.”
    Proving my point AGAIN, are you? I STATED that I am BY FAR NOT wealthy or well off. My bank account is a bit ill and I have things in my life that will continue to keep it in a not-so-healthy state.
    If you really were reading what I wrote more carefully, you’d have noticed that I said this already and it wouldn’t “sound like” anything otherwise to you.
    I also stated that you don’t know if I love my apartment, hate my apartment or what, but it’s my home and has been for YEARS. There are plenty of complaints as I ALSO stated. If the hotel is a great place to live or not also tends to be personal opinion. Many have moved out because they didn’t feel it was such a great place to live. It’s different for everyone. It is a great place in general, I agree.
    “You also want the place spruced up – I don’t blame you for that either.”
    I also never said that I want the place “spruced up!” I said that there needs to have certain UPKEEP to the infrastructure so it doesn’t crumble. Those who pay ABOVE market rate absolutely would like to have properly working plumbing and electricity. ANYONE WHO LIVES ANYWHERE DOES!!! And no matter what you pay in rent, as a tenant, you have this right.
    Spruced up to you, I believe, means something different than REPAIRS.
    “What you don’t seem to realize is that it can’t be done without losing what I think is the Chelsea Hotel.”
    Oh yeah? Says who!?!? Do you think that by fixing the plumbing issues and electrical issues and cleaning dust and dirt and making the place a little healthier looking that that means changing this place so much that it loses what you think is the Chelsea Hotel? What DO you think IS the Chelsea Hotel?
    If they turn this place into a “boutique hotel,” well, I agree with you. It will NOT be the same Chelsea Hotel that you seem to view the hotel as being. But again…..I’ve ALREADY STATED THIS PREVIOUSLY!
    I’m going on facts, not assumptions. I’ve stated my personal thoughts and have tried to make people aware that what they are stating as happening or what WILL happen are merely thoughts and opinions…it hasn’t happened YET.
    I LIVE here. I don’t think you do Betty and, if you have in the past (I don’t feel like going back and re-reading everything you wrote, sorry), you haven’t lived here in years that I’m aware of at least. I talk with and hang out with other residents EVERY SINGLE DAY. If I say that a lot of residents feel a certain way because I’ve talked with a lot of residents, I HAVE. I didn’t say MOST because I haven’t spoken with MOST residents about these things specifically. There are a LOT of residents here!
    Who DOESN’T want to have their cake and eat it too? But that is NOT the case with me. I worry about what is going to happen to the tenants just as much as the rest of us!
    I AM idealistic, but also REALISTIC. I’m not so young either, so another assumption on your part is incorrect. FACTS, I can only go on FACTS.
    A Witness had the facts stated clearly and any thoughts, opinions, assumptions on what may come….they’re just that, until they happen. THIS is the fact I continue to point out. That’s it. Pointed out, no more wasting time doing so again.
    “Former/current resident is former resident/current not residents! ”
    Huh? There is “Former Resident” and “Current Resident” and since they post individually, unless YOU know something I don’t, I take each person as a separate person, not ONE person posting under BOTH names as it seems you’re suggesting. I responded to them both in here but I am treating them as individuals and what’s said by whom can be re-read in the blog by scrolling up. It’s not hard to make accidental confusions of statements when there’s so much being written.
    And that said, Sparkle: I apologize, yes you said to send flowers and “get well” cards to Stanley, not postcards of hate. However, mentioning it in the last post in the context it was mentioned made it sound as though you were suggesting to send the management nasty postcards rather than support for Stanley. My misunderstanding…but still, I did NOT put words in YOUR mouth. I mistook a statement that wasn’t clear for something it sounded like in the context of your post. There is a difference. Again, I apologize.
    Why does Stanley need “get well” cards though? I saw him a day or so ago and he looked pretty darn healthy to me!
    Former Resident:
    Yeah, the people the residents have to fear are those posting here, not the investors and the new management. Sure.
    Jeez! AGAIN, this is what I’m saying! I never ONCE SAID NOR SUGGESTED that the residents have to FEAR the people posting here! You spin and twist words into pieces of fiction and are making FALSE STATEMENTS about what I think. Please STOP doing this!
    I NEVER said we had to FEAR ANYTHING anyway! I said that I wouldn’t want new management to read the things posted and think that ALL residents feel this way, possibly causing them to act on this thought and create problems for the residents!
    Anytime someone says things that are untrue (like what you just wrote) or are opinions and they’re attributed to a group of people or specific people, there’s the potential that people will believe what’s written and act on it. I do not want this to happen.
    I obviously have no problem speaking my mind, but I’m also fair and do not want to make false statements in such a serious situation. Is that so difficult for you to understand? Did I EVER say that I think management wants to make this place a wonderful place for us residents? NO. Do I think this? Not exactly, but until something is DONE, I am not willing to claim that is has been done or is in the works, even if I tend to agree that it may be just that.
    I think I’ve repeated myself more than enough by now. Can we move on from all this petty garbage and deal with things in a more positive, useful way than mudslinging?
    And YES, Stanley IS still around. He just has no say in management decisions. I believe he still has his office though, for which I personally am glad.
    I’m not bothering to preview this…

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  38. consider this Avatar
    consider this

    I believe I may have forgotten to sign my name with the last post, not that it wasn’t obvious as to who was responding, but…
    When it comes to real names, there are reasons for not posting real names, especially if you DO live here, though I, as do many other residents, speak their mind when asked…and even when not asked. 🙂
    People can twist what is said to such degrees that they become absolute fabrications. That’s what is unfair, and I’m not talking about misinterpreting or misunderstanding, I’m talking about twisting what’s said into meaning something else. We all need to be careful about this.

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  39. lp Avatar
    lp

    Wait a second. I agree that some rude things have been said here. On behalf of ALL the residents, past and present, let me apologize. But really, who is the ruder party in this situation? I can’t get over that the first directive of the New Order was to demand money from some of the most vulnerable residents, while, at the very same time, putting out a piece of PR claiming they were going to continue the Chelsea much the way it was, with just a few infrastructure improvements. Hmm. Who needs a high-powered PR firm here, Stanley or the investors? Why?
    Cowboy, I don’t think there’s hatred for Consider This. There’s argument, and there’s real anger.

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  40. sparkle Avatar
    sparkle

    I too have to take a break and do some work. No tears, please — it goes without saying you’ll miss me. Emoticon.
    Just a thought before I go:
    The current residents face a conflict all the former tenants and hotel visitors do not. On one hand, it’s fair to say almost all of them want Stanley back, probably all. On the other hand, they have homes and roots there, some have families there, and they probably don’t want to lose their apartments, and hope, wishfully, unrealistically, in my opinion, that the partners will keep it much as it is. Those of us who have left are likely to look at the place differently, with a kind of nostalgia of course, but also with the fresh knowledge of what it is to live elsewhere, some place where you don’t have what we had at the Chelsea, which is almost indefinable. It’s not always good, but it’s better than anywhere else. Or was. And now it looks to many like developers are moving in on a fragile and endangered ecosystem.

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  41. chelsearez Avatar
    chelsearez

    Pardon me, Consider This, but I think you should take off your rose-colored glasses about the new management cabal. You keep posting and keep ignoring the facts stated by others.
    If the infrastructure needs fixing up, let’s bring back Stanley, David and Michelle to oversee it. The building is hardly crumbling inside. Let’s not overstate so dramatically. It’s a good solid building that will last another couple of hundred years. I need no repairs done and honestly, I would be happy to trade my excellent water pressure and all but one electrical outlet — and much more — to have Stanley back. Stanley is the Chelsea hotel. I don’t care if these other guys plate my faucets with gold and cook me dinner every night. I want Stanley back. I want the hotel the way it was before these investors began pressuring him to gentrify it and make it what they seem to consider more “respectable.” Fuck them. Dylan Thomas wrote there. Mark Twain. Arthur Miller. Leonard Cohen. My friends and neighbors and I. That’s all the respectability I need. Fuck them fuck them fuck them. I want Stanley back, and I don’t know any residents who feel differently.

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  42. Betty Bishop Avatar
    Betty Bishop

    Thanks Sparkle – “Consider this” should consider this – those of us who don’t live at the hotel have nothing to gain or lose by writing here. We do it out of love for one of the special places on the planet. Maybe we can help preserve that place somehow. Probably not but for sure not if we don’t try. I only lived at the Chelsea for 6 months but it was a very important 6 months in my life. As Leonard says: “I remember it well” – the quietness – the guys next door who filled their flower boxes with geraniums [are you still there??] – the hall with the stairs going to nowhere – the way people had painted their doors – that damn elevator – the time the guy jumped down the stairwell – the very urban New Yorker I met at the MET who asked if she could see my room as she had “always wanted to see a room at the Chelsea” – afterwards we went to the Halloween parade. Thanksgiving with Bonnie and that woman from Paris who used to swim with Picasso and filmmakers from Holland – or was it Germany? Years before I lived at the Chelsea I lived at The Albert Hotel for a few months – god what I horrible feeling when I later walked down University Place and saw The Albert Apartments. I expect it will happen at the Chelsea too – it will for sure if most of the residents feel as you do Consider This. You seem willing to wait for it to be a FACT. Is that the way you felt about the invasion of Iraq too – it hasn’t happened yet – stop screaming about it!? Of course everyone wants to have their cake and eat it to but at my age I feel I have learned it seldom happens – everything has a price. I think the price of a bright and shiny everything-works Chelsea will be its soul. As Stanley says “there is something in the walls”. I too am going to check out of here for a while – I have said all I have to say. I will be reading and hope next time I am in New York there will still be a rather grubby old Chelsea Hotel – even if the price of a room is now ridiculous and has been for some years. Take care all.

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  43. consider this Avatar
    consider this

    p.s.- Betty….you’re right in that the people who do not live in the hotel don’t have anything to lose by writing to the blog. What you should consider is the fact that the people who DO live here DO have something to lose…a LOT to lose, and not just their HOME. So yeah, sling all the mud at the shareholders and new management, if it’s definite facts you’re slinging, sling away, if it’s opinions and assumptions… I would hope you’d refrain a little or aim a little differently because the mud is likely to hit the residents as well.

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  44. Witness Avatar
    Witness

    Oh, Sparkle and Betty, I will miss your posts. Sparkle, you are so beautifully literate, and Betty, I took the opportunity to google you and saw your lovely, lovely painting of your room at the Chelsea Hotel.
    You are what will be lost if the current residents (who could also consider themselves the current heirs) of the Chelsea don’t manage to steer toward a safe new harbor.
    It’s never a good idea to wait until the bad stuff happens before figuring out how to stop it.

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  45. lp Avatar
    lp

    The former residents, visitors and other lovers of the Chelsea Hotel are obviously not the “OUTSIDERS”* in this situation. Are you deliberately trying to spin it that way, Consider This?
    * BD Hotels and the other two partners, anyone?

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  46. Previous Tenant :-( Avatar
    Previous Tenant :-(

    Witness, good point, and I’d like to point out that bad stuff has already happened. Stanley and his family were ousted in some stupid shareholder coup. Aside from their other actions and the ominous signs, this alone is enough to show me who they are and what they’re about. People who say there’s no reason to be alarmed are either crazy, working for the new guys, or they have blinders on and don’t want to see what’s right there. After all this protest, if they do make trouble for the current residents, or anyone, they’ll get themselves a whole lot of bad publicity. What is Consider This really saying, and what is Consider this really afraid of?

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