"This tragedy shows just how dangerous overcrowded or mismanaged rooftop parties have become, and how often they have little to no safety protections or monitoring," local City Councilmember Carlina Rivera said during a press conference on Sunday morning outside the building between 12th Street and 13th Street. "We will continue to pursue my legislation to ensure agency responses so that these deadly situations do not happen again. But landlords are ultimately responsible for ensuring outdoor spaces are legally and safely accessible and are not used improperly. If you make the decision to buy a building, you are responsible for the lives of its residents. And these landlords are not living up to that responsibility."
Rivera is working on two bills to address this issue. She has already introduced Intro 1292, which would require tenants to sign and acknowledge their understanding of the city's noise codes. She's planning on introducing a second bill that would ensure enforcement agencies have easier access to phone numbers of overnight building supers or contacts and require better oversight of rooftop use and capacity.
"We've heard complaints from constituents regarding out-of-control rooftop parties, even before the start of the pandemic," said Assemblymember Harvey Epstein. "I'm committed to ensuring we push state legislation and hearings to address this ongoing problem. The city and state need to take control of this situation before we lose more lives."
Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer also said that she supports a City Council hearing and a City Hall review of building code enforcement procedures related to rooftop parties, which some residents say have increased in recent years with a spate of new or renovated buildings offering outdoor amenities.
Residents who have been enduring unending rooftop parties hope that the proposed legislation will call on landlords to prevent these events from occurring or assess penalties to tenants for disturbances.
Meanwhile, more details have emerged about the victim, identified in published reports as Cameron Perrelli, a Connecticut native and Lower East Side resident who worked in finance.
Her uncle, Michael Perrelli, told the Daily News that the family received three versions of what led to her fall into an airshaft at around 3 a.m.
"We got three stories — that she was jumping from one building to the next, and we heard that she was walking on an air-conditioning vent, and then somebody just said she slipped," he told the paper. "Don't they have a fence on top of the building? They allow parties?"
Said her father, Louis Perrelli: "It's not like her to be a risk-taker. She's not one to take those risks. I don't get it. She was perfect. ... She was always the designated driver, the good person, the peacemaker. She was an angel — that good."
The Daily Mail reports that Cameron Perrelli attempted to climb from the roof at 202 Avenue A to the roof next door at 200 Avenue A. A Daily Mail photographer accessed the roof yesterday morning, taking photos showing that 202 Avenue A is about four feet lower than the adjacent building at 200 Avenue A with a 3- to 4-foot airway in between.
As previously reported, workers added a horizontal and vertical enlargement of the existing 4-floor structure at 202 Avenue A, doubling the total square footage from 5,334 to 10,920. There are eight residences here at The Topanga. The penthouse units, featuring advertised rooftop access, are renting for $12,000 monthly, per Streeteasy.
Highpoint Property Group bought No. 202 in a deal that closed in late 2017 for $6.75 million. To date, Highpoint has not publicly responded to the tragedy despite requests from various media outlets, including The Daily Mail and People magazine.
In a complaint filed yesterday with the Department of Buildings, there's a "report of recreational use of the rooftop, contrary to the C of O [Certificate of Occupancy]."
Records at Streeteasy show that the first penthouse at the renovated building — with a $12,000 ask — was rented in November 2020.
It's not clear who filed the complaint. A DOB rep told ABC 7 yesterday that the department "was not requested to investigate the fatal fall and has not received any 311 calls related to illegal occupancy of the rooftop."
The DOB said in order for rooftops to be legally occupied as a recreational space, the building owners must obtain a Certificate of Occupancy for that use. They said 202 Avenue A does have a Certificate of Occupancy which includes an accessory roof terrace. The adjacent building, 200 Avenue A, does not have the certificate.
The most recent C of O we spotted online for 202 Avenue A was for the pre-renovated building and dated December 1992. (There appears to be a temporary C of O posted to the DOB Now portal.)
Also, according to 311 records, there have been 75 noise complaints at the address going back to December.
Image via Twitter
311 is such a waste of time, had only bad useless experiences with it.
ReplyDeleteEVGrieve killing it with the independent reporting here
ReplyDeleteyes fantastic reporting thank you grieve!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this update! Very interested to find out if C of O from 1992 still applies. The parties on the multiple roof decks and rear balconies are out of control. Don't know what roof occupancy is but I live across the street and often count 30 or more people at the parties on the Avenue A side. And there is a hot tub deck on the very top of the roof above the roof decks that has had up to 15 people. We've emailed McCallister Management (who manages the building for the owners High Point Development) several times with complaints and their reply is that they've done all they can to get their tenants under control and if neighbors are still having problems we should call 311. Also High Point has applied for a tapas bar on the ground floor with seating for 75, an open facade and sidewalk seating. CB3 denied the application so High Point has gone to the SLA to appeal. Neighbors are very concerned that if High Point can't control their tenants now what's going to happen if they get a tapas bar downstairs to party at?
ReplyDeleteThe more current C of Os are now in the DOB Now platform, which has been down for maintenance when I worked on this post last night. It appears that there is a temporary C of O on file now that’s valid through the summer.
DeleteAll these local officials rush in now with their press conferences and proposals but you have ignored our complaints about the bros snd sorority girls partying out of control on our rooftops and in our buildings for the last few years. They have been driving us insane and putting us in danger with their carelessness.
ReplyDeleteYup. Rooftops need to have a curfew of 11pm, regardless of day.
DeleteThis blog has been one delightful constant during the past year. Great reporting EVG.
ReplyDeleteLike the rezoning, the de Blasio administration has allowed this to happen, and developers have used this as a selling point. (Older building would not be able to hold the weight, so this was no problem in the past.)
ReplyDeleteLet's be real here. Rooftops are one of the few places we feel safe. Having rooftop get togethers has been part of NY history, in like forever.
ReplyDeleteDuring school and having to deal with people on the streets in bars etc, it is all so uncertain and scarey. Whereas rooftop get togethers provide a safe space where we can have fun, be free and not deal with all the olds. People just need to be respectful and vice versa. It is 2021 afterall, a new beginning for our bigger and brighter future! We are the future people, deal. with. it.
No, wrong. Rooftops are ruining this city and the peace of the neighborhood. There’s this thing called enjoying life without the need to get hammered, try it sometime. Want to meet friends? Keep it indoors in your apartment or go to a park. That’s it.
DeleteThere is a difference between having a party during the day or up until midnight vs. going till 3am with music blasting. Residents need to be able to sleep, and it is just plain disrespectful to party that late without consideration for others. I agree that we should close rooftops completely, but there is a time and place for everything. At least clubs and bars can attempt to maintain some sound control as they go into the early morning.
DeleteYou sound like some arrogant, pretentious recent transplant talking about "we are the future" and for people to "deal with it" and you have the gall to talk about what's been a part of NY history.
DeleteOops! You forgot the go back to the suburbs thing
DeleteDon't think it should fall on "the super" to babysit these parties.
ReplyDeletethis linked pic shows (29) 311 SR complaints logged for a one month period for residential noise at 202 avenue A. https://imgur.com/a/gKAm4J4
re: 89 noise complaints in a six month period- I'd say that is a conservative number, with consideration to:
I have found, the 311 SR #s tend to get dropped when you do a bulk search over extended period.
As well, consider the exact address may not be known to 311 callers(several "residential noise" night complaints filed to to 204 ave A, which is a construction site)
Possibly some complaints fall into a "quality of life" or other category rather than "residential noise" ?
just sayin.
And yes, all the more echoing just how useless 311 system actually is.
I agree with 10:48am here -- it's not like we have to throw the baby out with the bathwater concerning rooftop parties. I see many people throwing small, respectful gatherings where you barely notice they are there. But that was not the case with 202 Ave A. The music alone should have had them shut down, it was insane (club-level music, blaring at all hours on Fri/Sat). I saw people posing for selfies from a spiral staircase meant to be a fire escape. 311 was called enough times to warrant some sort of investigation. As usual with NYC, the politicians only speak up when someone dies.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, rooftops are a staple of NYC and have been a savior for being social outdoors during the pandemic. They're not all evil.
Anyone who thinks this roof rage situation will change now just because a young attractive woman was killed is fooling themselves. Did you see the pictures of the amenities on that roof? It is designed for parties just like the one that led to this tragedy. Landlords use the amenities to maximize profits over safety.
ReplyDeleteIt would be better to put the party patios in the backyards, at least the sound would be muffled and no one would risk falling off the roof.
Partying on the roof in NYC has been around for ages. It was actually immortalized in the hit song Up On The Roof by the Drifters in 1963. It's a NY thing. The simplest, most cost effective solution would be make the tenant aware of the noise ordinance, and then write into the lease that it will be cause for a fine and possible eviction if the decibel is exceeded during night time parties. Additionally, buildings with roof access and a CofO could bump up the security deposit and make it non-refundable in the event of a noise violation. Very inexpensive to install a a dB meter on the roof to insure compliance.
ReplyDeleteGetting the City involved? forgettaboutit.
Anonymous @ 10:48 said:
ReplyDelete"Having rooftop get togethers has been part of NY history, in like forever." Actually, like no. People used their roofs to have a drink, or look at the skyline or sneak a cigarette, or get some sun, or see the fireworks; no one ever had these kinds of parties.
"We are the future people, deal. with. it." You are definitely one version of the future, the Black Mirror one, -selfish, privileged, no concerned for others. You might want to think about what it says about your life that your enjoyment comes from getting plaster, screaming, and making everyone around you miserable.
I wonder if Ms. Perrelli lived in one of the Essex Crossing buildings (as she is said to lived on Delancey St.). Before COVID, those buildings shut their rooftops down at midnight. I think midnight is a reasonable curfew for outdoor parties.
ReplyDelete"You sound like some arrogant, pretentious recent transplant talking about "we are the future" and for people to "deal with it" and you have the gall to talk about what's been a part of NY history."
ReplyDeleteThis is so spot on. And the "deal with it" line is the evil twin of "if you don't like noise move to..." line. So Bro and Woo-Hoo......like yah! And the posters here talking about roof top parties like these horror shows having "been part of NY history" have no idea about the history of NYC, especially the EV/LES.
landlord should have to pay damages for wrongful death for not having dealt with these parties. that's it. no need for additional bureaucracy that won't prevent this sort of thing
ReplyDeleteEver since the pandemic has started, the less rosy view of residents or visitors from the other side becomes a hot topic. Suburbanites and rural folks have also been complaining about the mass influx of NYC residents to their outlying areas. Words like gentrification and crowdedness are mentioned just in like the city.
ReplyDeleteFrom the article: " She has already introduced Intro 1292, which would require tenants to sign and acknowledge their understanding of the city's noise codes. She's planning on introducing a second bill that would ensure enforcement agencies have easier access to phone numbers of overnight building supers or contacts and require better oversight of rooftop use and capacity."
ReplyDeleteThis is BS, b/c what's needed is guaranteed ACCESS to the roofs at the TIME of the problem.
Also landlords should be required to carry sufficient insurance for these party roofs, the cost of which I imagine would be extremely high - but just add it on to the cost of the $12K/month apartment.
And 311 would have to actually be of any use, which it is totally NOT in this kind of situation.
IMO, this "legislation" is a lot of hot air that does NOT address the very specific issues that genuinely need to be addressed. IMO, this just makes it look like Rivera did something, even when it's useless.
@10:48am: "Let's be real here. Rooftops are one of the few places we feel safe. Having rooftop get togethers has been part of NY history, in like forever."
ReplyDeleteNO, let's really be REAL here: if you need a rooftop to feel safe, get the fuck out of NYC. Go back to wherever it is you feel safe: your parents' basement or wherever.
And NO, rooftop get-togethers have NOT been part of NYC history, certainly NEVER the way we're seeing this concept abused now!
The landlords who create & market party roof buildings have a responsibility, but that does not mean the tenants in those buildings have a free pass to ruin the quality of life for everyone in hearing distance. So again, if you need a roof and booze and a lot of people & noise to feel "safe" then: GTFO!
@12:1pm: "It would be better to put the party patios in the backyards, at least the sound would be muffled and no one would risk falling off the roof."
ReplyDeleteYou are WRONG, and I know that b/c I live surrounded by "party patios" in every direction: multiple adjacent backyards stripped of all greenery, paved over & echoing every noise sideways and UP through the "canyon" formed by the walls of every surrounding building.
The noise levels can be unbearable, and everyone is subjected to it. (And I'm not even getting into the other issues, like the literal garbage these party goers throw over the fence into other people's yards.)
YES!!!! I moved into this exact situation thinking facing the back patios would be quieter, not knowing the surrounding buildings (not mine) have parties every weekend. The noise level that comes up feels as if I am right in the middle of the party! Horrible! 311 is completely useless with their "no access" responses!
DeleteI don’t think the responsibility of monitoring these roof top parties should fall on the super or the landlord. People should stay off the roofs, it is a means of egress, not a place for parties. Who organized the party where this poor girl died? They should be held responsible.
ReplyDeleteIt is NYC! Maybe people just need to chill out? Maybe start by getting ear plugs and then mind your own business! My rent is $4,720 and guaranteed roof access, per my lease.
ReplyDelete"My rent is $4,720 and guaranteed roof access, per my lease."
ReplyDelete(a) No one cares how much you (or your parents) were sucker enough to pay.
(b) "Guaranteed roof access" doesn't mean you can run a brothel or a shooting gallery up there. Like all your privileges, it is conditioned on rules we work out together to maintain a decent functioning society. Your lease doesn't trump them.
We can argue about what appropriate limits are. I'm not in favor of banning rooftop parties altogether. I think noise is part of city life, especially in younger neighborhoods on weekends. But if you don't perceive any responsibility to your neighbors, especially based on a gentrifier rent, then you really do need to go back to the atomistic suburban hellhole that spawned you.
Something doesn’t make sense here. Why would she be trying to get out the roof of another building? Was there another party going on over there? If not, why try to jump to an empty rooftop? We’re others at the party doing the same thing? Was this a game of truth or dare? The other people who were at the party have been suspiciously quiet about the circumstances. Even her own father says he has heard three different versions and does not know what happened. Don’t the people who were there owe him an explanation?
ReplyDeleteI would pay to know those details. Please share if you have heard any answers to those questions
Delete10:48AM : We are the future people, deal. with. it.
ReplyDeleteThe Future: Go to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200.
The cops need to be allowed to enforce the noise regulations and instructed to do so. DEP has to be in the field measuring DB levels and if they aren't they need new bosses. Roof access and occupancy numbers have to be tied by law to insurance rates with extreme fines for multiple infractions.
ReplyDeleteNone of this is going to happen. Maybe the cops will be allowed to enforce noise ordinances once DeBlasio is long gone. Either confront the tenants yourselves, which could get interesting, or embrace the horror.
What makes this harder is roof parties are only part of the problem. Backyard discos and huge club level sound systems in living rooms are now normal.
I looked at the photos the Daily Mail took of the rooftop at 202 Avenue A. It is several feel lower than the rooftop of 200 Avenue A and the story going around is the woman fell while trying to climb from the roof of 202 to 200. But how? If there was only a foot or two of difference between the rooftops, I could see the woman trying to cross from one rooftop to another like these partiers do. But she would have to be Spiderman to scale the side of 200 to get up on their roof from the 202 building. What would she even hold on to to climb? I hope her family is pressing for further investigation. If the story was, she was standing or dancing on the ledge between the airway between the two buildings and fell, I would buy that. But the story being put out doesn't make sense.
ReplyDeleteNo it doesn't make any sense and I pray the truth will come out
Delete11:32a.m. posted, "Want to meet friends? ...go to a park."
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately our neighborhood is severely lacking in open space.
Wished we weren't going to lose an entire park and all 1,000 of its 80 year old trees - 5 to 10 years without East River Park :(
Sadly, nothing will change, especially if Rivera is at the helm. Her focus is on the demolition of East River Park. My heart goes out to this young woman's family. So young and such a terrible way to die.
ReplyDeleteIs this a contest in how much of life you can regulate? Let rooftops be…enter at your own risk
ReplyDeleteGo back to suburbia and try your inconsiderate nonsense there.
Delete"What makes this harder is roof parties are only part of the problem. Backyard discos and huge club level sound systems in living rooms are now normal."--Exactly.
ReplyDeleteAs I said a dB monitor on the roof with a direct feed to the Building Mngt Co is the best, easiest, and most effective way to get an accurate field document in order to take the proper legal action. Could also be used on backyard patios and inside the building as well. It's not rocket science.
However, there aren't enough cops to patrol the subways. It's absurd to think they should somehow be required to enforce a noise ordinance when they aren't permitted to enter a building w/o evidence of a crime taking place.
"It is NYC! Maybe people just need to chill out? Maybe start by getting ear plugs and then mind your own business! My rent is $4,720 and guaranteed roof access, per my lease."
ReplyDeleteSo says the entitled, parental funded, suburban transient. "mind your own business" now joins "deal with it" and "if you don't like noise, move to...." lines, a horror trifecta of narcissistic POVs.
Gotta love "It is NYC". Really pray tell?
Thank You once again to Grieve for this forum
ReplyDeleteCarolina’s statement about Landlords having a responsibilities to their tenants to ensure safety while 100% left out the in many ways the larger responsibility that the landlords and developers have to the community as a whole
Please stop with the kid gloves treatment of the big money developers owners and tenants and stand up for the working people of this community, we work weekends we work odd hours and days, so the idea that any time is ok to blast amplified sound from roofs, terraces, courtyards or backyards and apartments into a public space is absurd
Totally agree with ya 4:48pm the discoification of apartments and backyards is also a HUGE problem and has been even before covid and 5:03 you bring up a interesting point
make no mistake regardless of his rhetoric Bill De Blasio hates NY’s working class and has allowed this to happen
There's already laws and regulations on the books to pretty much prevent and or shut down this activity yet every time we spoke to the NYPD about shutting down a party next door to us, that had been raging for 6 hours by the time the cops showed up, the officer said we can't shut it down only ask them to turn it down orders from the mayor office so it's no wonder the kids tell you to call the cops when you speak to them directly they know the NYPD hands are tied
Did nobody notice the jacuzzi in the pictures on Zillow? Maybe the roof was wet and slippery?
ReplyDeleteEver see a book "Tar Beach" by Faith Ringgold?
ReplyDelete@4:40pm: " The other people who were at the party have been suspiciously quiet about the circumstances. Even her own father says he has heard three different versions and does not know what happened. Don’t the people who were there owe him an explanation?"
ReplyDeleteI'm sure "the people who were there" by now likely all have lawyers, and their lawyers have told them not to make any statements. Because you can imagine what is going to happen if there is a lawsuit over this.
@4:18pm: Thank you for stating it so clearly! These entitled people (such as @3:47pm) don't understand that paying a lot of money in rent does NOT buy them out of their responsibilities under the social contract in the society we all are living in.
ReplyDeleteThe "I pay a lot of money so I can do whatever I want" mentality is WHY the suburbs exist: so people can have lots of room to do what they want without bothering their neighbors.
If people like @3:47pm are "our future", then our society is well & truly doomed. And those who have such an anti-social POV should definitely stay out of densely populated cities.
I understand the controversy and need for change. But all I keep thinking about is how sad it is for her family and friends. I hope her parents aren’t reading the comments about entitlement. It would be incredibly hurtful for them.
ReplyDeleteBtw- Tar beach was about a family quietly enjoying the stars not a crowd of bros in a hot tub playing beer pong.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. And it was set in Harlem, 1939.
DeleteDespite the tensions between long time NYC residents and city visitors from the outlying areas (bridge and tunnel crowd), New York State has become a source of envy for many other states. The term rustbelt almost no longer applies to us. I can't think of anywhere in NY where gentrification and wealth doesn't exist. Right before the pandemic, King Andrew Cuomo had allotted millions and millions of dollars for many areas in NY so their downtown core areas are rebuilt into lively centers of human civilization. Many scenic and idyllic areas have also become 2nd residences or vacation spots for NYC's wealthy.
ReplyDeletePeople falling off of rooftops during parties has been happening for as long as I can remember. What I never understood is why the people throwing the parties never seem to hire security or at least watch for alcohol fueled dangerous behavior. On a historical note...The best rooftop parties ever held in the neighborhood were the ones at CUANDO , at Second Ave. and Houston St, back in the 80s.
ReplyDelete@John Penley said...
ReplyDeleteFunny how memories of different people can vary so much. In the early 80's nothing compared to these keg parties of present day EV. Friends sometime gathered on rooftops to escape their non air conditioned apartments on stifling summer evenings, I never heard of large boozy parties in those days. What we had then were places to socialize and drink if that was your thing, ie dive bars, dance clubs which are now part of the history of the era which I won't mention here. In fact the only people we heard of falling from rooftops were drug addicts (name your drug) here.
Landlords did not offer rooftop party spaces as part of the EV experience back then being on the roof was forbidden.
The problem here is developers and landlords are creating illegal night clubs on their rooftops and the pro-landlord City Government turns a blind eye as long as the cash flow keeps coming to their election campaigns. The neighborhood so many less apartments where small families can afford to live the EV has not officially become the transient college campus which developers and new landlords are working towards. Those of us with children or simply want to get a decent night's sleep have the right to a certain quality of life and we will vote accordingly for those who will stand up for our rights over the frat / sorotity "culture" which are ruining life for the majority in our neighborhood.
@John Penley- Back in the day people *falling* off rooftops in the EV and South Bronx were more likely to be drug dealers, snitches, and assorted lowlifes who came to their demise after being chased by NY's Finest and accidentally *fell* while trying to evade arrest. Check out Fort Apache, the movie.
ReplyDeleteCan we please throw the babies out with the bathwater?
ReplyDeletethe babies who want to escape the "olds", and pay 5k rent, and think there is no problem with the fact that they are disrupting the peace and quiet of the entire neighborhood. "It's the city" as free for all mentality used by folks from the burbs, and the same greedy developers who've decided the east village is the itinerant playground for NYU and college set. Well yeah, us townies don't like it. We live here. We're invested in the community, and we're being sold short by community leaders who IGNORE our quality of life complaints.
DEP does have field inspectors who can show up fast, & simultaneously as local NYPD precinct.
They've showed up for construction complaint one sunday morning. "Badge number XXX... actually thought they were NYPD- was DEP. So?
On another note, the other chronic nuisance address on the block, 196 avenue A, had six people shouting out of the windows to turn off the music late last thursday night when there was a song break.
They could care less, shouted back, and cranked it up again.
yeah, thanks so much for that asshole gesture.
and you know kids- that's not cool.
That music you're listening to that makes you feel so bad ass-
made by people like your grumpy neighbors who'd like to get a little sleep. you're not cool.you're clueless. Go do your acting out elsewhere.
The same people suggesting folks party in apartments or parks would complain about that too. They’ll never be happy as long as other folks are having a good time in this “city that never sleeps”.
ReplyDeleteThe real problem is how to prevent deaths and what in the world happened to this poor girl, not noise complaints. Get your priorities straight.
city that never sleeps" is a bullshit cliche which was never true.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is the parts of the city where people got freaky were mostly industrial or commercial areas, they were NOT neighborhoods. Now west Chelsea, parts of the EV which were in ruins, Flatiron, "Tribeca" etc now have luxury lofts and apartments.
The city knows that those once empty blocks now filled with millionaires would not tolerate the bar saturation the East Village and lower side has. We've been fucked over by Bloomberg and his dumb followup act De Blasio for the past 20 years. So you fucking bro's can suck my dick!
@12:19pm: "The real problem is how to prevent deaths and what in the world happened to this poor girl, not noise complaints. Get your priorities straight."
ReplyDelete1) There will never be an answer to what happened to this "poor girl" so forget about that.
2) You prevent deaths by not having/allowing drunken partying on rooftops. That should be obvious.
3) Noise complaints ARE indeed the priorities of most of us who live here!
4) Plenty of people know how to have a good time in their apartment without destroying the quality of life for all their neighbors. So it's YOU who needs to get YOUR priorities straight, b/c your priorities do not match up with the priorities of the MAJORITY of residents in this neighborhood.
God, everyone here needs to chill out.
ReplyDeleteRooftop parties shouldn't be banned - UNSAFE and LOUD rooftop parties should be banned.
Introducing legislation that keeps space-strapped people inside in a borough where there just aren't enough parks isn't a great idea.
Evicting people who make excessive noise, create unsafe environments, and annoy their neighbors is a great idea. The cops keep bitching about how everyone hates them. Well maybe they should regularly start breaking up frat idiot blowouts like these and enjoy the resulting boost in popularity. But they won't (spoiler: they were once the frat idiots).
And before anyone jumps down my throat: I grew up in downtown Manhattan. So yes, you can be an actual native that hates these parties/people yet STILL doesn't want people congregating on roofs to be banned.
People - raised here or not - aren't entitled for wanting to have a good time and enjoy, but if you have a good time at the expense of others then you've crossed the asshole line and need to get shut down. It's that simple.
As always, EV Grieve proves itself the most important news source for those of us living here.
ReplyDeleteThank you, EV Grieve!
I've lived in this neighborhood since 1973 and in this city a bit longer, pretty much all my life. I have family who lived here since the 1950s. Roofs were our tar beach--This means that they were where we went for sun during summers when we couldn't afford to get to the beach. We hung our laundry on the rooftops. We watched each others' kids there. On really hot nights, some of us slept on rooftops and fire escapes. Sometimes we had quiet dinners on the roof. We were always aware of our neighbors living downstairs and in the buildings around us.
In the late 1990s as gentrification really took hold, suddenly roof parties exploded--lots of jumping on rooftops, screaming, loud music . . . When a ceiling light detached in my apartment, I remember going up to my roof at 2:00 a.m. to find a major coke party spread out across my roof and two more roofs to the west. I told them to quiet down and they actually did for a little while until they forgot . . . I called my landlord the next day to complain, and he told me that I shouldn't say things like that (meaning drug use) about my new neighbors. "These are very nice people. They pay a lot more than you do. Very nice young people," he told me. I know he'd never met them or seen them . . . Then the landlord died. The buildings were sold to speculators who charged ridiculous rents. And it's all gotten much worse in the twenty years since that incident.
So class (economic class, not behavioral class) wins out, of course, over quality of life. And these people who assume that their inflated rents give them the right to abuse their neighbors--these iPeople who move through the streets as profoundly oblivious to the community around them as their landlords are--also seem to believe that nothing bad can ever happen to them. The sense of privilege extends beyond society to the universe, I've come to believe: They literally think they are protected and invulnerable.
And sadly, this is what happens. I am deeply sad for this young woman's family and friends. I feel sad, too, that no one posting here about how much rent they pay and how the rest of us should get used to their parties cared enough to mention the death--DEATH, folks--of their neighbor. But this kind of self-involved disconnect is what we have all become accustomed to as we watch these oblivious people move through the neighborhood.
By the way, backyard parties, proposed in some of the comments here, aren't a viable alternative. When the iPeople hold them, they are just as destructive--because, again, sound does rise, bouncing up building walls, and since for the iPeople, no one exists in the apartment buildings around them, the sound level is unbearable to the rest of us trying to get enough sleep to make it to work the next morning.
And if my precious roof access is taken away, I really don't know what I'll do.
Thanks for sharing that, John Penley. Wow, what was that like 40 years ago when Evetythog was burnt out. Hard yo believe.
ReplyDeleteIn reply to Anonymous...CUANDO was a squatted community center much like CHARAS was. In the summer when it was hot [people did not have AC like they do now] they would throw fundraiser parties on their roof with DJs and they would sell beer too. Sometimes the parties would be every night all weekend and admission was $5 and with a stamp on your hand you could come and go as you wished. For those who liked coke and cannabis some of the better quality dealers would always show up at the Cuando parties so they would always be packed with stoned locals and insane and FUN. CUANDO had a staff that lived there and always handled security so no one ever fell off the building at their parties. Eventually, and it took a few years , people complaining about the noise caused NYPD raids which put an end to the rooftop dancing fiestas. The neighborhood may have been burned but places like The World nightclub and Save The Robots and CUANDO parties were famous both in the city and in Europe too.
ReplyDeleteTo anyone/everyone: If you can't have "fun" unless you are drunk or high, you have a big problem with who you are & how you live your life.
ReplyDeleteI am relieved we are having a rainy Memorial Day weekend. I was stressed out about the bros and sorority girls going wild partying this weekend but at least the rain will keep them from partying on the rooftops. I am hopeful I will get to sleep two nights in a row this weekend!
ReplyDeleteSadly, yet another young woman has died after falling off a rooftop Kips Bay. Some friends were having a party up there and she was trying to climb up the fire escape when she slipped and fell. Unfortunately one tragedy doesn’t prevent the next one from happening, they just keep repeating themselves.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone has any updates or knows anything about the events that night on the rooftop of 202 Avenue A, please share 🙏. Also are they still having raging parties? Was any further construction done to prevent this from happening?
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