Hot 97 Fights Eviction with Counter Lawsuit

After an eviction suit was filed last week in an attempt to kick Hot 97 out of its studios, the New York radio station’s parent company has filed a counter suit, claiming that the eviction breaches their contract. On Friday (May 5), Emmis Radio filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit in Manhattan’s State Supreme Court against the New York City District Council of Carpenters Fund, the owners of the West Village building. The suit blocks their eviction by citing that six years remain on their lease, while also decrying the Fund for blocking “access to the premises by any and all of tenant's visitors.” According to the Associated Press, the landlord’s lawyer has said that Emmis’ lawsuit is “utterly without merit. The restrictions on visitors that they are complaining about, they agreed to them in writing.” The Carpenters Fund has cited several violent incidents, including the April 26 shooting of Brooklyn rapper Gravy outside the station, as grounds for an early eviction.