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New Owner for Birthplace of Hip-Hop
By
Jen Chung
Published Oct 4, 2008
Modified Oct 4, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Oct 4, 2008
Modified Oct 4, 2008
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NY1 reports that Bronx apartment building 1520 Sedgwick Avenue was sold to a new owner. The address is known as the "Birthplace of Hip-Hop" because DJ Kool Herc first "introduced extended break beats" in the apartment building's rec room back in 1973. Tenants had been trying to preserve its Mitchell-Lama status and keep it affordable by buying it themselves, but the landlord chose developer Mark Karasick to buy the building. Last week, Housing Preservation Department commissioner SHaun Donovan questioned the sale, "It is difficult to understand why the owners would choose to put the affordability of over 100 families’ homes at risk.” DJ Kool Herc himself told NY1, "We have landmark status in our hearts. The fight will continue."
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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