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BD Gets Another “C” (They Deserve an “F”)

April 15, 2008

The HPD building inspector paid another visit to Michele Zalopany’s leaking, mold-spotted apartment last week. He was less than pleased to learn that the A & B Level violations he had previously cited had been ignored. However, upon closer inspection, he discovered another C-level violation in her apartment. Now BD will have to replace Michele’s entire living room floor!

We know that Michele’s living situation is all-too-typical around the Chelsea Hotel. In particular, we’ve been in a number of apartments with rotting floor boards and broken floor tiles. But hey, HPD is being responsive to our problems. Call 311 now and get yourself a new floor.
Boutique Hotel Here We Come

April 14, 2008

Check out this new "do not disturb" sign spotted hanging on a door on our floor. It replaces those quirky ones we had before which said we were all busy working on our masterpieces. In BD’s new world order there will not be any masterpieces created at this place.
Greed Fair

April 11, 2008

Yes, look at me now, I’m a Rock Star! Bobby DeNiro is my Best Friend. Go to hell Chelsea losers. You deadbeats can kiss my ass! (Gold ball brought to you by Tax Free Liberty Bonds) Also, all you millions of bloggers out there may want to know that we’ll automatically cancel your reservation if we find your name in our system!

Ira Drukier at the Greenwich Hotel. Vanity Fair via down by the hipster.
The Party’s Over for Hoteliers as Banks Pull Loans

April 10, 2008

Good news for the forces of sanity and sustainable development: Wall Street bankers are pulling the rug out from under hoteliers, taking away the loans that have been subsidizing all these hideous hotels they keep throwing up all around the city. That’s what happened to Sam Chang, head of the McSam Hotel Group, New York City’s largest hotel developer. "The city is being overbuilt," Chang says, citing a coming room glut that will drive down rates.

Though BD has just received the rubber stamp from the Landmarks Preservation Commission for an unnecessary hotel at 145 Perry Street, one that would totally alter the character of that quiet neighborhood, the changing real estate climate will hopefully lead the banks to reconsider and tell Born and Drukier to go take a flying leap from the top of the Pod Hotel.

BD also needs a loan in order to gut renovate the Chelsea, or whatever the hell it is they plan to do to us, and now it’s not looking so good for them in that respect. As Stanley Bard said in his recent Video statement at the Museum of the City of New York , "We’re not always going to be in this bubble. We’re not always going to be in this economic boom, hotel wise." Well, it looks like his words are coming true already. BD needs to figure out who their clientele is (hint: adventurous artistic types who want a unique New York experience) if they want to last for long at the Chelsea. — Ed Hamilton

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Last Chance to Catch “the Man, the Master, the Magic”

April 9, 2008

Herbert Gentry’s retrospective exhibition, entitled “The Man, The Master, The Magic” celebrating over forty years of work will close on April 12^th, 2008. G. R. N’Namdi Gallery is located at 526 West 26th Street, #316.

"The paintings and drawings in this retrospective exhibition vary in size and range from 1964 until 2003. Gentry’s formation as a painter should be considered in light of the passion he brought to his identity as a painter, “A painter paints, a fighter fights, a writer writes,” he would say. Gentry painted his world on canvas, alluding to his fascination with the power of social relationships and the allure of the journey. His aesthetic speaks through decisive lines and a strong sense of composition. His canvasses are intuitively descriptive of his international experiences living in Harlem and throughout Europe. He stated: “Painting is very much about sex, it’s about love, it’s about putting things together”. The drawings featured in this exhibition, although as extemporaneous as his paintings, are more laid-back and lovely. They’re filled with sinfully sinuous lines forming erotic shapes inspired by the curvaceous form of the female body." (From the Press Release)
Are The Elevators Fixed?

April 8, 2008

With the recent problems resulting from BD incompetently overloading the elevator some guests have written in to our blog to make sure they are running before they make the trip. Well, we’re pleased to report that they are presently running if not smoothly then at least some what jerkily. But that is not the only problem to be encountered on the infamous elevators of the Chelsea Hotel.

Directed by Luke Joerger for Snap Films. Based on a story by Ed Hamilton from "Legends of the Chelsea Hotel: Living with the Artists and Outlaws of New York’s Rebel Mecca." View other trailers here.
HPD Responsive to Chelsea Residents’ Concerns

April 7, 2008

A couple of weeks after we reported on the sorry state of Michele Zalopany’s apartment – due to leaks that BD wouldn’t repair – progress appears to have been made. In particular, BD is now putting in a new floor in her kitchen. Though we’d like to claim credit for the blog, it had more to do with Michele calling 311 and reporting the problems. The inspector arrived and promptly cited BD with 10 violations for her apartment alone. If you have any of these violations listed, or any other problems that you think might constitute violations (including violations for defective wood flooring, broken ceramic floor tiles, missing smoke detector, missing carbon monoxide detector, defective plastering and paint, and mold) now’s the time to have them addressed.

HPD (Council of Housing Preservation and Development) was very responsive so everyone should call 311 and report problems in their apartment, because that’s the only way to get anything done. Apparently the floor was so bad that the HPD actually levied a fine against BD, prompting them to really push for the floor repairs. As for the leaks, the HPD advised Michele to call them again once it rained and the water was really streaming in. They seem to be listening folks. (You can view the violations by searching the database.) — Ed Hamilton
Rene Ricard’s New Exhibit is the Talk of the Town

April 4, 2008

London’s Scream Gallery, co-owned by Ronnie Wood, is the setting of Rene Ricard’s latest exhibition, "What Every Young Sissy Should Know". The typically reculsive Ricard even gave an interview to The Independent. According to Vito Schnabel, who curated the show, we need not worry if we can’t make it to London he’ll bring a similar show to the states later this year."

(Images from the show courtesy of http://www.screamlondon.co.uk/artists/23/rene-ricard/377/the-last-thing)
New Hotel with Glennon’s Name Written All Over It

April 3, 2008

There’s a new hotel on the horizon and it seems like the perfect place for Glennon Travis to continue his hotel management career now that he has gained some valuable experience here at the Chelsea. They’re already touting the fact that Edie Sedgwick was a former guest!
Price Slashing

April 2, 2008

BD hotels continue to slash the room rates at the Chelsea. We hear that the Hampton Inn in Times Square is currently the only place with lower rates than the Chelsea. Meanwhile, minority shareholder Marlene Krauss’s penthouse is still on the market at its original asking price of $4.7 million. No price chopping for Marlene. Surely somebody wants to be Marlene’s neighbor!

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