Living with Legends

I have lived in Chelsea for the past 11 years and have always wondered about the situation in the Chelsea Hotel. Do they still allow people to live there or is it as overpriced as everywhere else in the city. My friend used to work in the the 303 hair salon and I went to visit to see and explore this place because being an artist myself I have held the Chelsea in such high regard for what it apparently represents. It wasn’t the best experience actually Stanley Bard told me to get out and that I wasn’t allowed to look around, but that is besides the point. I could never afford to get a room there so I never stayed.  Chelsea as is NYC is becoming almost impossible to live in, we are actually moving soon.

Anyhow I guess I just wanted to see if people are still allowed to live there full time and if artists are welcome and what was it like in the past. I saw a wonderful documentary on it with Quintin Crisp and Jobriath with his pyramid apartment (is it still there?). Judging by your blog it might as well be the Maritime Hotel, but I figured I would ask anyhow.  Best

Well, it’s not as bad as the Maritime yet, thank God, though it does seem to be moving swiftly in that direction. We’re working as hard as we can here at Legends to forestall that trend. In answer to your question, there are still a large number of permanent residents living at the Chelsea, but the sad thing is that the new management company, BD, is not allowing any new comers to become permanent. It’s a damn shame for a number of reasons. For one thing it alters the edgy vibe of the hotel, which has always been a mix of old Bohemians and energetic new blood. But by far the most regrettable consequence is that it destroys the beautiful dream of the Chelsea, which is the dream of New York itself: no longer can a young artist with little money move in and work to achieve a name for himself in his chosen field. New York (and now the Chelsea) to young artists: Drop Dead.

We’re sorry NYC is losing you: All the wrong people are moving out. The pyramid is still on the roof, though Jobriath died of AIDS. The hair salon, April Barton’s Suite 303, is still here, though will probably have to leave when its lease is up. Sorry about Stanley too: he’s very protective of the hotel and perhaps it was just a bad day. On a better day, he might have proudly shown you around the place himself. — Ed Hamilton