When news broke yesterday that the Sky Studios space at 704 Broadway had, after years on the market, been snapped up by Ron Burkle for $17 million in cash, we had a feeling there would be some pretty unhappy brides-to-be. Sure enough, one such bride got in touch with Curbed. Turns out those with weddings booked in the space were informed yesterday, by means of a rather unapologetic form letter ("We are indeed sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you"), that their weddings would not take place high above the Central Village after all. And not only that: the letter outlines an absurd excuse about capacity concerns as the reason for the cancellation, mentioning not a work about the fact that, uh, they're selling the place.
Here's the letter sent by Sky Studios to those with events scheduled in the space:
Writes our bride-to-be:
I was alerted today that Sky Studios would not honor the contract for my [fall 2007] wedding. I know that you covered the sale on Curbed today, but I'm wondering if you have any further information.
They are in complete breach of contract—and it's truly a horrible situation for those of us who now have to scramble to find other venues. I'm pretty pissed off about the whole thing. It's a sham because if you go on any event planning website, Sky Studios sells themselves as a venue that accommodates 150 people (even their website). They have been known to have parties with many more than that. I think they are using this as a cover-up to hide the fact that the current owner wants to sell quickly because it's a cash deal.Ouch. Very, very ouch.
· 704 Broadway, NYC's Loftiest Loft, Finally Sells [Curbed]