CBGB's RIP? Music News You Can Use
Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 7:04 am
CBGB RIP?
CBGB, the legendary New York City club that launched the American punk rock scene, is being threatened with closure over unpaid rent and alleged safety concerns, according to Reuters. A homeless charity that owns the building which houses CBGB claims that club owner Hilly Kristal owes $76,000 in back rent. If Kristal does not pay, the club will be shut down when its lease runs out this August.
Kristal, who founded the venue in 1973 and says the building owners "don't want me back," has also clashed with his landlord over renovations and building safety certificates in recent years.
The downtown building, at the corner of Bowery and Bleecker, is owned by a non-profit organization called the Bowery Residents' Committee, which wants to double the club's rent. The organization's executive director, Muzzy Rosenblatt, told the New York Times, "I am not going to subsidize CBGB at the expense of homeless people."
Although CBGB stands for "Country, Bluegrass and Blues," the club became synonymous with the explosion of punk rock in the Seventies, as bands like the Ramones, Blondie, Television and the Talking Heads launched their careers there.
http://1077theend.com/musicnews.asp
CBGB, the legendary New York City club that launched the American punk rock scene, is being threatened with closure over unpaid rent and alleged safety concerns, according to Reuters. A homeless charity that owns the building which houses CBGB claims that club owner Hilly Kristal owes $76,000 in back rent. If Kristal does not pay, the club will be shut down when its lease runs out this August.
Kristal, who founded the venue in 1973 and says the building owners "don't want me back," has also clashed with his landlord over renovations and building safety certificates in recent years.
The downtown building, at the corner of Bowery and Bleecker, is owned by a non-profit organization called the Bowery Residents' Committee, which wants to double the club's rent. The organization's executive director, Muzzy Rosenblatt, told the New York Times, "I am not going to subsidize CBGB at the expense of homeless people."
Although CBGB stands for "Country, Bluegrass and Blues," the club became synonymous with the explosion of punk rock in the Seventies, as bands like the Ramones, Blondie, Television and the Talking Heads launched their careers there.
http://1077theend.com/musicnews.asp