May 11, 2015
To the Editor:
I was both surprised and disappointed at the recent article concerning Westbeth in WestView. Surprised because I have always thought a basic tenet of journalism was to get both sides of a story. Your reporter contacted no one at Westbeth in the course of her reporting. I was also surprised that your reporter did not reveal that she is a long-term tenant at Westbeth until deep in the story, which would have told your readers that the writer might not be completely impartial in her views. I was disappointed because had WestView inquired, we could have shown you how Westbeth is committed to providing affordable artists’ live-work spaces and have done so for almost 50 years. We also would have explained to you that we are exploring every opportunity to achieve our mission now and in the future. Your article, “Will Westbeth be the next St. Vincent’s?” draws a baseless analogy that will only needlessly worry our tenants and stakeholders. The fate of a failing hospital run by the Roman Catholic Church has no bearing on the fate of a successful housing and arts center owned and run by an independent corporation. The article itself is locked into events that occurred 30 years ago, without acknowledging that times have changed since 1985. Westbeth has paid off its 1970 mortgage and is operating in the black, and our commercial leases subsidize our 350 residential tenants, not the other way around. And, we have spent more than $15 million since 2011 in updating and repairing our physical plant, including the current façade and roof replacements.
More important, artists want to live at Westbeth. Most of those on our waiting list have been waiting more than a decade, which is why we stopped taking new applications eight years ago. Rents for new tenants are set following federal guidelines that determine what rent is affordable to moderate-income families. Our residential tenants are all protected by Rent Stabilization or Section 8 laws. The average household in Westbeth pays $900 in rent, including electricity, approximately one-third to one-quarter the rents in the neighborhood.
We’re proud of our 50-year record of providing affordable housing to artists and affordable space to arts organizations such as the Martha Graham Dance Company and the Labyrinth Theater, and we fully intend to keep doing so for the next 50 years and beyond.
Perhaps a member of your staff would care to inquire about Westbeth; if they do, I will be more than happy to give them my time and attention.
Yours,
Steven A. Neil
Executive director
