July 23, 2007
The Future of 1520
A while back we reported on possible changes at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, more widely known as "the birthplace of hip hop." Tenants of the apartment complex, as well as its supporters, have been fighting to get the building landmarked. Just as important, they want to keep the apartments rent stabilized.
At 9:30 this morning DJ Kool Herc, who is credited with inventing the genre in the building's rec room, rallied the troops to draw attention to the cause. The press conference announced that the New York State Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation approved a July 2nd application to make the building eligible as an historic landmark, citing it "meets the eligibility criteria being that it is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history."
The event this morning (which Senator Chuck Schumer attended) was held to celebrate that fact, but also to draw attention to the looming issue of protecting the building's affordable housing status. Newsday reports:
The DJ [Kool Herc] moved with his Caribbean immigrant family into the building when it first opened in 1970. Designed for middle-income families, rents were regulated under the Mitchell-Lama housing program.But after a 20-year limit expired, the building's owners are allowed to buy the property out of the program. Tenants got a letter in February saying the owner, BRS management, planned to do just that, residents said.
There is still work to be done to prevent its owners from converting the property to house market-rate rentals, but for now the future of the past is looking a little brighter, despite the rainy rally earlier.
|
"DJ Kool Herc (pictured)" DJ doesn't look so good, looking little 'brick.
If they landmark a project in the Bronx for its so-called historic legacy, and NOT the Richard Upjohn-designed 1847 St. Saviour's Church in Maspeth, I might just pack it in and give up.
I mean, jeeez.
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/STREET%20SCENES/st.saviours/st.sav.html
Birthplace of Hip Hop? Give me a break.
I find it kind of odd that all these mitchell-lama buildings are buying out of the program recently.
Where do these owners get the money to buy it back.
why is this happening within the last couple of years? the giuliani admin? the bloomberg admin?
And, this isn't a NYCHA project.
I used to live in a M-L building that was built in the twenties and only recently the management decided to opt out of the program, after years and years.
Where are they getting the money from? who are these developers? get ready, you don't know what's behind that door or where you're stepping.
molon labe, never again.
landmark? well,duh - look at the clear expression of the entryway scenario alone. When the brick was asked what it wanted to be it shouted "public housing at 1520 Sedgewick! Sir!" The steel fence is just so perfectly in scale with the mortar joints (read:skinny!) - one could go on and on...
Welcome to the wonderful world of Economics ! Posted by; "Still Not Amused"
What? economics again?????????
molon labe.
Best I grasp it, M-L was started as a way to get folks to invest in the poor/cheap housing stock back in the 60s and 70s. You had to operate it as affordable housing for twenty something years, after which time you could charge market rate. While it was well-intentioned, and it did help thousands of people out, it was somewhat short-sighted. No one thought the market would take of and be as white-hot as it is today, therefore there's no incentive to keep your building, which now may be in a nice area and worth thousands/millions more, in the M-L program. That's how a lot of folks (many of whom played a significant role in the rehabilitation of these buildings, see the Peaks Mason Mints building here in BH) get thrown out on their asses.
Economics, yes, true, but there is also a desperate need to either renew this program or write a new one to replace it.
Anywho, I'm getting off the subject...
Can we also landmark the place where it died just a few years later?
check out HUSH TOURS... Ol' skool legends give tours to the various birthplaces of Hip Hop in NYC.
The owner is Debra and she's cool.
http://www.hushtours.com/