Its a difficult truth to face but we must be realistic- the anarchic place we have all loved to work in for the past however many years is no longer. We are now in a state of transition and the best asset we have in making this transition go smoothly is to stick together, not be intimidated by hearsay and rumor, understand the facts and know our rights. Whether you decide to work with the new owner or to strike out and find a new studio, let it be on your own terms. Remember a few important facts:
-nothing is true until you have it in writing.
-90 days is the standard notice given to vacate a property
Word to the wise: if you have anything in a common area i.e. something outside of your locked studio area, put your name in it clearly or better yet, remove it altogether.
Comments welcome!
~theresa
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I'm sharing some details of what's going on, and a little advice. Other, please add more.
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't met with him, I wouldn't go too far out of my way to meet with him. He has comepletely missed, by hours, three days of appointments, Today he is missing 5 different people. Set a time, or wait until he comes to you, and if he doesn't show for a half hour, leave and let him figure out what happened.
He's asking most people to leave their current studios, and move to the 1st and 2nd floors of the west side of the building, but none of these rooms are divided yet, and he has no apparent plan about how that is going to happen, or when (and no permits). I think just by suggesting it, he hopes to get most of us to move, but we have rights that at least give us a month (if not 90 days) from the day we receive something in writing. If you haven been asked to leave your space, then you have been asked to pay the "going rate" of 1.18/ sq foot for your room, which makes most rooms in the building unaffordable.
He talks a benevelent story, but if you talk to enough people and hear how we have all been treated, it seems like he does not care about any of us, or if we even stay. In fact from what i am hearing on a city level, his plans are to move us for a year, and then he's been real vague about our future in the building after that. Some on the Beacon City Art Committee even think he'll move us out and not even have studios there in a year or so.
Funny note, He does not even have a Cert of Occupancy for the building, which means that we legally cannot even be in the building?!? It's really crazy.
I love the community we have in the building and want to be a part of that still, but as the hours go by, the lesss I trust Ethan, and the less I want a man (who has treated us like this in the first week) to be my landlord.
The overall important thing is despite all we have heard and been asked to do, nothing has been in writing, and until that happens, we have time to think out our situations, and find a new place to work.
Rick
PS Melissa Tadge and I are checking out some space on Monday with room for 10- 20 people. Keep your fingers crossed.
Hi Everyone, Thanks Theresa for providing this forum. I am happy to hear of the 90 days as standard to leave the studio...it gives some time anyway. Is that from the time of a written eviction notice, or from the time he has taken ownership? Anyone know?
ReplyDeleteThis is a time of change...we knew it was coming but not how fast. It's not easy...I hope everyone will do what's best for them, whether to stay of leave. That's such an individual decision, depending on what your needs are. The building may in the long run be perfect for some and not right for others. There are options out there. And hopefully OPen Studios will connect the dots in Beacon.
We wish everyone the best of luck in finding a future studio.
As a tenant that just moved into the building 6 months ago and was beginning to settle in, this is all upsetting. I most likely won't stick around to find out if the new management gut the rest of the building once done with the side they want now. A stable work environment isn't too much to ask for. Once the super rich move in there will be no need to lease to a few artists.
ReplyDeleteWhen I moved in I was forewarned that there was a buyer but it was mentioned casually as there have been deals that fell through in the past. None of us expected this and I certainly didn't expect that a whopping 6 months in I would be faced with relocation. I haven't received any formal documentation from either the school or the new ownership. As some of you have said there needs to be something in writing. Money talks and it's interesting to see how little the city cares about the tenants currently occupying the space.
Not sure what the plans will be for BOS this year or if people will stay with all the uncertainty in the air. Beacon Studios was the hub of that event with a majority of BOS artists showcasing in that building. At least I had the pleasure of participating once.
Best of luck to all. I'm sure we'll miss the smell of fresh baked bread wafting through the halls and all that great studio sunlight.
EW