The appearance of what looked like a Craigslist ad to rent the recently shuttered 285 Kent space for $8,000 per month caused a minor tizzy yesterday before it was pulled from the site without any explanation. ANIMAL contacted venue owner Todd P before the post was removed to ask whether it was legit, and he responded with a statement that was also posted to Facebook late last night.
In short: no, Todd didn’t post the ad, but that doesn’t change the fact that 285 Kent is over, and something else will be occupying the space soon enough.
People seem all up an (sic) arms about this, and while this particular ad is not my doing, so what if it had been? The place closed for good reason: it couldn’t be made “legal” and people were going to end up in jail if it kept operating, plus would have seen their legal records tarnished against running “legit” spaces in the future… now that’s one thing if that happens to me or to Ric Leichtung, but if it happens to the staff that’s really not acceptable. But you know what, it’s over. It has to become something else now. New York City is expensive for rent, Williamsburg especially, and this space is actually cheap, sadly. But either way, it’s not like we can put a exhibition rope around it and preserve it as a museum.
There you have it. If you’re not ready to say goodbye quite yet, dry your eyes and read ANIMAL’s oral history of 285.
