As Observer reporter Chris Shott points out, new Chelsea Hotel manager Andrew Tilley has found himself in a precarious position, attempting to make nice with the tenants while at the same time carrying out Marlene Krauss and David Elder’s harsh project of evictions. Talk about divided loyalties. Luckily, I guess his past experience qualifies him for the unenviable task of being caught between a ROCK and a HARD spot!
Living with Legends
Hotel Chelsea Blog
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As I’ve mentioned before on this blog, one of tragedies of the ouster of the Bard family is that the Chelsea is no longer fulfilling its historic mission of nurturing new artists. I have absolutely no interest in being one of the last Mohicans. And in the spirit of conciliation, Debbie and I will gladly give up our room in the Hotel if the following two conditions are met:
1. The return of the Bard family to a management role. No matter what you think of Stanley, he is the man who created the (recently much compromised) creative vibe of the Chelsea and maintained the hotel as a haven for artists for 50 years. None of us would be here if not for him.
2. An end to the current ban on new permanent residents. This is the only way to guarantee that the Chelsea continues to remain a vital artistic community in the years to come. (Transient guests are important, as they help liven things up, but in and of themselves they don’t constitute a community.) The best way to achieve this is to bring back the Bards.
Ed Hamilton
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A blog reader writes in to wish us luck in our struggle to preserve the Chelsea’s historic legacy.
I
just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your Hotel Chelsea blog. I try to stay at the Chelsea whenever I come to town, and I love being able to check up on what is happening there when I am
back home. I fell in LOVE with the Hotel Chelsea the minute I stepped
through the lobby doors. I have never felt more at home than I do within
the walls of that great building, which is not an exaggeration by any means.
I admire the effort that the tenants and admirers of the hotel are making
to keep its legacy intact. As you know, it is more than just a structure,
but instead a symbol of creativity and community. I am a twenty-three
year old with a degree in Film/Video and a love for writing. I feel like
the Chelsea is a place for people of my generation to look to for comfort in
knowing that there will always be a place where artists are not only welcome,
but can also come to flourish creatively. Once again, thank you for
everything you and those around you are doing to maintain the integrity of the Chelsea. I guess I just
wanted you to know that your efforts go beyond just the confines of New York City, and are appreciated
by those who hope that the Chelsea lives on for generations to come.Stephanie Class
Thanks for writing. We’ll do our best to ensure that the Chelsea remains a welcoming place for new generations of artists in the years to come. Of course to achieve this goal will involve restoring the Bards to their management role and allowing new permanent residents to be admitted to the hotel. Anything less and the Chelsea will become a merely a hollow shell of its former glorious self.
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Good News! As reported last week in Chelsea Now’s Buzz column, Andrew Tilley is going to revamp the Chelsea Hotel’s official website so he can take over our job of publicizing the work of Chelsea Hotel artists. This really takes a load off of our shoulders, and we couldn’t be happier, as now we can devote more time to writing fake letters from Marlene Krauss. Thanks Andrew.
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Last Thursday’s art show was a portrait filled occasion. First off, Storme Delarverie, the honoree of the evening was given a portrait painted by Zito. Secondly, our illustrious proprietor Stanley Bard was simarily
honored with a portrait, this one painted by Steven Fisher. (By this point in time, Stanley probably has a whole closet full of portraits!) Stanley gave Storme a big bear hug. "He’s stronger than he looks," Storme said. She said that she’d had many arguments with Stanley over the years but that they always made up and were friends afterwards. She also said, we’re like a big family here we fight amongst ourselves but no outsiders better come in here and mess with any of us. The portraits were presented by the evening’s emcee, Williamson Henderson, of the Stonewall Veterans Association. 
Not to be left out of the evening’s festivities, David Elder commissioned his own portrait from Zito, who was sketching portraits for anyone who cared to pay and generously donating some of the proceeds to the Stonewall Veterans Association.
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Rachel Cohen points us to an exhibit of Eugenie Gershoy’s work which is on display through August 31st
at the Fletcher Gallery located in Woodstock, New York. Gershoy is responsible for the fabulous "Pink Lady on a Swing" which hangs from the ceiling of the Chelsea Hotel lobby. (Photo: Sarah E. Dewar’s flickr)The Pink Lady is by Renate Goebel. Eugie Gershoy’s work is the papier maché portrait figures hanging above the telephone booths.
Judith Childs writes to tell us about a new song inspired by the hotel. So, check it out! Judith writes: "Billy Squire dreamed about the Hotel Chelsea for years and ever since I took him up to the roof some years ago to play his guitar atop the hallowed halls, he has returned, from New Zeland, to stay here, to play here and compose his dreams. He just sent me a dvd of his new album which you can find by going to www.billysquire.net and then to Listen to Album. "Chelsea Dreams" is seventh down the list."
Robert Shaw clues us in that a fellow Aussie stopped by the Chelsea. "Paul Capsis, a unique [to engage
an over used word] Aus cabaret / theatre / singer performer has paid a visit to the famed Chelsea Hotel. He’s currently playing Riff Raff in a brilliant production of Rocky Horror here- a role way way beneath his capabilities. Amongst Paul’s talents he ‘channels’ dead divas including a remarkable Janis."Cindy Gallop sends greetings along with a link to a piece in the Guardian featuring writer Joe O’Neill and family.Got Tips: Send them to chelblog at yahoo dot com -
Good news on the legal front. Another two tenants have had their apartments acknowledged as Rent Stabilized. The
one case I am at liberty to talk about is Jim Georgiou’s, though the other tenant’s case had a similar resolution.Everybody knows Jim: he’s that guy with dark hair and a small mustache who often wears a porkpie hat, and can be seen daily walking his big, friendly black and white dog, Teddy. Jim, who has lived at the hotel for 6 years, is a specialist in a form of the ancient Chinese healing art that some call Qi-Gong (Jim calls it something else that I can’t pronounce). Jim has been under the weather lately, suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome, among other ailments, and so fell behind in his rent. (In the past, on another occasion when he fell behind due to illness, the Bards let him slide for awhile, and he was able to repay the debt in full once he recovered. In other words, he’s not some slacker; he’s able to make good money in his profession.)
Although Jim received assurances from hotel management that his case was not yet critical, a few weeks back they sprung a surprise on him, taping a notice to his door telling him he had three days to pay or be evicted. Luckily, Jim was able to scramble and come up with the money in time. On Thursday,
August 21, when he went down to housing court, a representative of the hotel’s law firm, Belkin Berdin, granted him a discontinuance, which means they are dropping the eviction proceedings. (They could have sent Jim this document earlier, or just told him over the phone, but they made him come all the way down to Centre Street, either hoping that he wouldn’t show, or else just to inconvenience him.)The ironic thing about the case is that, in order to file eviction papers against Jim, hotel management had to first register his apartment as Rent Stabilized with the DHCR. (The strategy was to evict him and then convert the room to transient use, thus legally deregulating the room.) So, by not paying, Jim has ended up in much better shape now than he was before!
This is not to say that you shouldn’t pay your rent; everyone should pay their rent except on the advice of an attorney. But withholding rent is turning out to be one way of forcing hotel management to address the issue of Rent Stabilization. (The other case I referred to was settled in the same way: the tenant withheld rent; management registered the room as rent stabilized; and then the tenant simply paid the back rent.)
An even more important lesson to be learned is that hotel management is, at present, only going after tenants who are not represented by a lawyer. Neither of these tenants had legal counsel at the time they were served with eviction papers (Jim received some legal advice before he went to court). What’s more, there are two other Chelsea tenants in housing court at the present time, and neither of them had counsel either when they were served with eviction papers (one has since retained counsel). — Ed Hamilton
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It is with great sadness that we have learned of the passing of Angela O’Conner, 46. As reported in The Daily News she was discovered lying face up on her bed in a 9th floor apartment here at the Chelsea Hotel. Our heartfelt condolences go out to Ms. O’Conner’s family for their loss. Although we personally did not know the deceased we are sure that she had many friends at the hotel who will miss her.
Angela was discovered lying in bed sometime on Friday afternoon (not, as the Daily News reported after 8:00 p.m.). She had apparently been dead for a number of days. Manager Andrew Tilley informed us that although the room Angela was found in was that of a permanent resident, he did not believe that she lived there. (That contradicts what was said in the Daily News. We ourselves are not sure of her residential status. ) The case has been turned over to the medical examiners office, who will determine the cause of death. -
In route from Nashville Tennessee to the DNC, former Chelsea Hotel resident Kyle Taylor brought his DonJon platform to the streets of Chelsea for a few hours yesterday. Lots of people happily jumped on the bus for the Last Great American Road Trip. It remains to be seen if they’ll make it to the DNC. If you spot DonJon in your town send us some pics.
Vote for DonJon!
Robert Lambert may or may not be convinced that DonJon is the man.
Ed jumps/falls off of the back of the bus. (Nice photo Robert)
The bus pulls out with a message of hope!
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If you’ve been having leaky faucets and clogged toliets, you can rest easy now beleagered Chelseaite, for your problems are about to be solved. Our new manager, Andrew Tilley, has just hired Arnold Tamasar as Director of Operations of our budding boutique hotel.
Tamasar, who inherits Glennon Travis’s old title, was previously Assistant Director of Housekeeping and Style at the W
New York Times Square Hotel, in which capacity he received the prestigious Kimberly-Clark Award for Restroom Ambiance and Cleanliness. "…At the W New York Times Square Hotel, the ambiance is just as exquisite. The style is rather uniform for warmth and color, says Arnold Tamasar, the assistant director of housekeeping and style at the hotel.
The restrooms overflow with greenery. There are three tiers of wheat grass, Egyptian green limestone and white oak doors with gingko leaves embedded in the frosted glass. For special occasions such as weddings or wine tastings, the hotel adds an extra touch by providing a restroom attendant to hand out towels."
I can’t wait. “Consistency is very important,” says Tamasar. “We clean religiously.” Well that sounds great. But the most pressing question remains: can he keep the junkies out?
(Photo: Our Friends over at Hotel Chatter)
Living with Legends 
