Editing Hotel Chelsea (section)

=== Stanley Bard operation ===
Stanley Bard became manager in 1964 after his father died.<ref name="Padnani 2017" /><ref name="Tippins pp. 166–167">{{harvnb|Tippins|2013|ps=.|pp=166–167}}</ref> Stanley, who had been a plumber's assistant at the hotel since 1957<ref name="Padnani 2017" /> or 1958,<ref name="Gross 1984" /> was already familiar with many of the hotel's artistic residents when he assumed the managerial role.<ref name="Tippins pp. 166–167" /> He began trying to attract artists who had been rejected from other hotels.<ref name="Cheshes 2022" /><ref name="Ackroyd 1983">{{Cite magazine |title=Living at the Chelsea |last=Ackroyd |first=Peter |magazine=The Spectator |volume=250 |issue=8067 |date=February 19, 1983 |pages=9, 10 |id={{ProQuest|1295781371}}}}</ref> Bard did not run advertisements, instead attracting new residents via [[word of mouth]].<ref name="The Wall Street Journal 1972" /> The remaining co-owners, Joseph Gross and Julius Krauss, continued to work under Stanley Bard.<ref name="Leogrande 1970" />

Stanley Bard was less strict than his predecessors, allowing residents to combine apartments on the basis of a [[handshake deal]].<ref name="Cheshes 2022" /> Residents could install their own art, and pets might be allowed based on Stanley's whims.<ref name="Gross 1984" /> Film director [[Ethan Hawke]], a onetime resident, recalled that Stanley charged residents different rates based on whether he liked them;<ref name="Cheshes 2022" /> a headline in ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' proclaimed that "If Stanley Bard likes your wife you'll get a room at the Chelsea".<ref name="The Wall Street Journal 1972">{{cite news |date=December 21, 1972 |title=If Stanley Bard Likes Your Wife You'll Get A Room at the Chelsea |page=1 |newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|id={{ProQuest|133702371}}}}</ref> Bard generally had a lax attitude toward unpaid rent;<ref name="Karmin 2011a" /><ref name="Susman 2009" /> he sometimes accepted paintings created by residents who were unable to pay rent,<ref name="Vadukul 2022" /><ref name="Cheshes 2022" /> and he started displaying these works in the lobby.<ref name="Leogrande 1970">{{Cite news |last=Leogrande |first=Ernest |date=March 21, 1970 |title=You Can Get High on Art in the Chelsea Lobby |page=100 |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]|via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-you-can-get-high-on-art-in-th/133732237/ |access-date=October 19, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021222420/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-you-can-get-high-on-art-in-th/133732237/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Another resident who could not afford rent was hired as a bellhop.<ref name="NPR 2011" /> Despite Bard's cavalier attitude toward guests' activities, he closely monitored all aspects of the hotel and sometimes refused to rent rooms to people who were disruptive or those that he disliked.<ref name="The Wall Street Journal 1972" />

Although Bard sometimes did not pay attention to maintenance (leading one resident to say that "the place was held together with Scotch tape"),<ref name="Pressler 2011">{{cite web |last=Pressler |first=Jessica |date=April 11, 2011 |title=The New York Apartment — Will the Chelsea Hotel Become a Luxury Condo or Boutique Hotel? |url=https://nymag.com/realestate/features/apartments/chelsea-hotel-2011-4/ |access-date=October 13, 2023 |website=New York |archive-date=March 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324025033/https://nymag.com/realestate/features/apartments/chelsea-hotel-2011-4/ |url-status=live}}</ref> he helped curate the artistic community there,<ref name="Leve 2007" /> providing artists with materials and looking after their children.<ref name="Tippins pp. 166–167" /> The hotel also came to be known as a place where creative and eccentric figures stayed.<ref name="Newsday 1978" /><ref name="Clines 1978">{{cite news |last=Clines |first=Francis X. |date=February 4, 1978 |title=About New York: The Chelsea Is Still a Roof for Creative Heads |page=17|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|id={{ProQuest|123833982}}}}</ref><ref name="Fleming 1983" /> Bard stated in 1975 that he had friendships with tenants, not "tenant–landlord" relationships,<ref name="Hilts 1975">{{cite news |last=Hilts |first=Donna |date=April 6, 1975 |title=A Quirky Old Hotel With An Aura of Creativity |pages=69, 71 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|id={{ProQuest|146359201}}}}</ref> and residents were free to walk into his office and talk with him.<ref name="Newsday 1978" /> Bard had a bookcase in his office, with books written by residents.<ref name="Burton 1971">{{Cite news |last=Burton |first=Anthony |date=December 23, 1971 |title=A Room in Bohemia: the Hotel Chelsea |page=335 |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]|via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-a-room-in-bohemia-the-hotel/133732468/ |access-date=October 19, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021222430/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-a-room-in-bohemia-the-hotel/133732468/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Ackroyd 1983" /> Tippins writes that Bard's inobtrusive management approach, along with the "self-directing population ... and members' willingness to live in the moment", created a strong artistic culture at the hotel.<ref name="Tippins p. 183">{{harvnb|Tippins|2013|ps=.|p=183}}</ref>

==== 1960s and 1970s ====
[[File:Chelsea Hotel (52323419077).jpg|thumb|The hotel viewed from the northeast]]
By the mid-1960s, the hotel began to attract artists who frequented [[Andy Warhol]]'s [[The Factory|Factory]] studio,<ref name="Tippins pp. 209–210">{{harvnb|Tippins|2013|ps=.|pp=209–210}}</ref> as well as rock musicians (who were not allowed in many other hotels).<ref name="Dwyer 2007">{{Cite news |last=Dwyer |first=Jim|author-link=Jim Dwyer (journalist)|date=June 20, 2007 |title=The Changing of the Guard at the Chelsea|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/20/nyregion/20about.html |access-date=October 13, 2023 |archive-date=November 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126011944/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/20/nyregion/20about.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Tippins p. 229">{{harvnb|Tippins|2013|ps=.|p=229}}</ref> The ''[[Austin American-Statesman|Austin American]]'' described the hotel as having "400 rooms, 150 kitchens, and 150 fireplaces".<ref name="The Austin Statesman 1966">{{Cite news |date=March 30, 1966 |title=Chelsea Hotel Same Amid Hell's Kitchen |page=7 |work=The Austin Statesman |id={{ProQuest|1516026643}}}}</ref> The hotel was physically decaying during that time,<ref name="Tippins pp. 209–210" /> though the facade was cleaned.<ref name="The Austin Statesman 1966" /> The [[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]] (LPC) designated the Hotel Chelsea as a city landmark in March 1966,<ref>{{cite news|date=March 23, 1966 |title=12 Buildings Chosen as City Landmarks |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1966/03/23/archives/12-buildings-chosen-as-city-landmarks.html |access-date=October 19, 2023|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|archive-date=March 8, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308075152/https://www.nytimes.com/1966/03/23/archives/12-buildings-chosen-as-city-landmarks.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=March 23, 1966 |title=Board Selects 12 Landmarks |page=517 |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]|via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-board-selects-12-landmarks/133729162/ |access-date=October 19, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021222923/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-board-selects-12-landmarks/133729162/ |url-status=live}}</ref> a decision ratified by the [[New York City Board of Estimate]] that June,<ref name="The New York Times 1966">{{Cite news |date=June 11, 1966 |title=City Estimate Board Calls Chelsea Hotel a Landmark|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1966/06/11/archives/city-estimate-board-calls-chelsea-hotel-a-landmark.html |access-date=October 16, 2023 |archive-date=March 17, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180317223107/https://www.nytimes.com/1966/06/11/archives/city-estimate-board-calls-chelsea-hotel-a-landmark.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=June 11, 1966 |title=Chelsea Hotel, Home of Artists, Named Landmark |page=3 |work=The Buffalo News |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-buffalo-news-chelsea-hotel-home-of/133732032/ |access-date=October 19, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021222924/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-buffalo-news-chelsea-hotel-home-of/133732032/ |url-status=live}}</ref> despite opposition from a local planning board, which called the Chelsea a "shabby institution".<ref name="The New York Times 1966" /><ref name="Tippins p. 210">{{harvnb|Tippins|2013|ps=.|p=210}}</ref> The hotel, which was recognized for both architectural and historical significance,<ref name="NPS p. 3" /><ref name="Tippins pp. 209–210" /> thus became one of the city's first official landmarks.<ref name="NPS p. 3" /> Later the same year, Bard decided to redecorate the lobby<ref name="Variety 1966" /> after the release of Warhol's film ''[[Chelsea Girls]]'' drew attention to the hotel.<ref name="Variety 1966">{{cite magazine |date=December 21, 1966 |title=Vintage Hotel Chelsea No Like Warhol's 'Girls'; Not Its Kinda of Frail |magazine=Variety |volume=245 |issue=5 |pages=1, 16 |id={{ProQuest|963026950}}}}</ref><ref name="Tippins p. 213">{{harvnb|Tippins|2013|ps=.|p=213}}</ref> The staircase was also cleaned in phases from top to bottom.<ref name="West 1968">{{Cite news |last=West |first=Isabel |date=December 8, 1968 |title=The Chelsea Hotel |page=A16 |work=Boston Globe |id={{ProQuest|366727245}}}}</ref>

The popularity of ''Chelsea Girls''—along with that of the album ''[[Blonde on Blonde]]'', written by Chelsea Hotel resident [[Bob Dylan]]—attracted many aspiring artists and actors to the hotel during the late 1960s, in spite of its rundown condition.{{sfn|Tippins|2013|pp=215–216}} About half of the rooms were occupied by permanent residents by the early 1970s; although new residents had to pay at least $400 ({{inflation|index=US|value=400|start_year=1970|fmt=eq}}{{inflation-fn|US|group=lower-alpha}}) per month, older residents were protected by [[rent regulation]] and paid as little as $155 a month ({{inflation|index=US|value=155|start_year=1970|fmt=eq}}{{inflation-fn|US|group=lower-alpha}}).<ref name="Cheshes 2022" /> ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' magazine wrote that the Chelsea was "the only landmark building still doing business" from the time when the neighborhood was a major theatrical hub.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Baral |first=Robert |date=January 10, 1973 |title=Miscellany: N.Y.'s Chelsea Zone To Redevelop Into A New Cultural & Show Biz Hub |magazine=Variety |volume=269 |issue=9 |pages=2, 60 |id={{ProQuest|1032460561}}}}</ref> The hotel's residents included many stage and film stars, artists, and "less conventional celebrities", who stayed despite the lack of modern amenities and the presence of pests.<ref name="Hilts 1975" /> The cheapest units tended to have more issues.<ref name="Payne 1977">{{cite news |last=Payne |first=Peggy |date=January 23, 1977 |title=Writers, artists: Hotel Chelsea lures the famous |page=C10|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|id={{ProQuest|169523052}}}}</ref> For many residents, however, there was "no life outside the Hotel", so they did not feel compelled to move.{{sfn|Tippins|2013|p=254}} By the early 1970s, residents were increasingly unable to pay rent because of a general economic downturn,<ref name="Tippins pp. 290–291">{{harvnb|ps=.|Tippins|2013|pp=290–291}}</ref> and Bard was forced to evict some residents to reduce expenses.{{sfn|Tippins|2013|pp=297–298}}

The hotel was in decline by the mid-1970s, with graffitied walls and a cockroach infestation.<ref name="Tippins 2022" /><ref name="Tippins p. 320" /> Residents removed some of the stained-glass windows and iron grates for scrap.{{sfn|Tippins|2013|p=310}} It was common to see drug users in bathrooms and drug dealers in the hallways,<ref name="Tippins 2022" /> and a brothel also operated openly within the hotel.<ref name="Buckley 2010">{{Cite news |last=Buckley |first=Cara |date=December 8, 2010 |title=As Hotel of Stars and Grit Faces Uncertain Future, the City Shrugs|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/08/nyregion/08chelsea.html |access-date=October 13, 2023 |archive-date=December 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221221173516/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/08/nyregion/08chelsea.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Resident suicides and fires were frequent,<ref name="Buckley 2010" /><ref name="Tippins 2013" /> as were robberies.<ref name="Tippins pp. 290–291" /> Robbers held several residents hostage in a 1974 robbery,<ref name="Fleming 1983" /><ref>{{cite news|title=2 Hold 15 in Hotel 2 Hours, Rape One|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=October 21, 1974 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/10/21/archives/2-hold-15-in-hotel-2-hours-rape-one-robbery-victims-are-placed-in.html |access-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021222923/https://www.nytimes.com/1974/10/21/archives/2-hold-15-in-hotel-2-hours-rape-one-robbery-victims-are-placed-in.html |url-status=live|postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=October 21, 1974 |title=Chelsea Hotel Robberies |page=12|newspaper=[[Newsday]]|via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-suffolk-edition-chelsea-hotel/133774809/ |access-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021223426/https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-suffolk-edition-chelsea-hotel/133774809/ |url-status=live}}</ref> and the Chelsea was damaged in a 1978 fire that killed one resident.<ref name="The New York Times 1978" /> The death of [[Nancy Spungen]] at the hotel in 1978,<ref name="Schindler 1978">{{cite news |last=Schindler |first=Jean |date=October 13, 1978 |title=Rock Artist Held in Friend's Death |page=9|newspaper=[[Newsday]]|id={{ProQuest|964384205}}}}</ref> and the death of her boyfriend—[[Sid Vicious]], who had been charged with her murder—the next year, brought further negative attention to the hotel.<ref name="Tippins 2022" />{{sfn|Tippins|2013|p=341}} Nonetheless, the Chelsea's reputation as an artists' and authors' haven remained intact.<ref name="Burke 1983" /> Although there were frequent remarks about the "downright creepy" atmosphere,<ref name="Tippins p. 325">{{harvnb|ps=.|Tippins|2013|p=325}}</ref> many residents remained in spite of the decline in both the hotel and the surrounding neighborhood.{{sfn|Tippins|2013|p=293}} Bard dispelled concerns by saying that any major crime at the hotel was covered by the media due to the Chelsea's bohemian nature.<ref name="Fleming 1983" /> According to Laurie Johnston of ''The New York Times'', the hotel had "some glittery (and, to some old-liners, scary) clientele among rock musicians and such".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Johnston |first=Laurie |date=May 25, 1979 |title=A Walk Through Chelsea's Literary Past|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/05/25/archives/a-walk-through-chelseas-literary-past-walking-tour-on-sunday.html |access-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021223426/https://www.nytimes.com/1979/05/25/archives/a-walk-through-chelseas-literary-past-walking-tour-on-sunday.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The hotel was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1977.<ref name="Tippins p. 320">{{harvnb|ps=.|Tippins|2013|p=320}}</ref>

==== 1980s to 2000s ====
Bard and the Chelsea's residents had planned a centennial celebration in November 1983,<ref name="Karlen 1983">{{cite magazine |id={{ProQuest|1882553883}} |title=Celebrating the Chelsea's Centennial |last=Karlen |first=Neal |volume=102 |issue=15 |date=October 10, 1983 |pages=16, 16D, 19 |magazine=Newsweek}}</ref><ref name="Colford 1983">{{cite news |id={{ProQuest|993675510}} |title=100 Wacky Years: the Eccentric Residents of the Chelsea Hotel prepare to celebrate the centennial of this artistic Mecca |first=Paul D. |last=Colford |date=November 17, 1983 |page=B4 |newspaper=[[Newsday]]}}</ref> though the celebration was delayed by a year.{{sfn|Tippins|2013|pp=341–342}} Bard said at the time that he wanted "to keep the atmosphere kooky but nice, eccentric but beautiful",<ref name="Dowd 1983" /> rather than updating the hotel to keep up with the surrounding neighborhood's [[gentrification]].<ref name="Karlen 1983" /> He accommodated residents' creativity and maintained close relationships with tenants,<ref name="Dowd 1983" /><ref name="Dougherty 1982" /> to the point that residents spoke with staff "as they were family" and walked behind Bard's desk to get their own mail.<ref name="Colford 1983" /> The hotel also attracted many tourists who wanted to experience its "eccentric" nature, although the staff mainly catered to long-term residents.<ref name="Dougherty 1982">{{cite news |id={{ProQuest|1630239202}} |title=Staying at Hotel Chelsea will expand your horizons |last=Dougherty |first=Steve |date=August 22, 1982 |pages=1F, 8F |work=The Atlanta Constitution}}</ref> The Chelsea was still cheap; nightly room rates were about one-third that of more upscale hotels uptown, and studios there were less expensive than others in the neighborhood.<ref name="Karlen 1983" /> By the mid-1980s, the hotel largely catered to the [[punk subculture]],<ref name="Gross 1984" /> and it was 80 percent residential by the late 1980s.<ref name="The Record 1988" /> The hotel building itself remained in a state of disrepair:<ref name="Gray 1998" /> for instance, a balcony fell off the facade in 1986, injuring two passersby.<ref>{{cite news|date=March 27, 1986 |title=The City; 2 Hurt by Debris Of Fallen Balcony |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/27/nyregion/the-city-2-hurt-by-debris-of-fallen-balcony.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524193459/http://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/27/nyregion/the-city-2-hurt-by-debris-of-fallen-balcony.html |archive-date=May 24, 2015 |access-date=October 20, 2023 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> The balcony's collapse prompted a subsequent renovation of the building.<ref name="Alpern 1992" />

After Bard's children David and Michele became involved in the hotel's operation during the 1990s,<ref name="Cheshes 2022" /> they completed a $500,000 renovation of the facade in 1990 and renovated one of the sixth-floor rooms.<ref>{{cite news|last=Slesin |first=Suzanne |title=Motif and Pace Set by Snail at the Chelsea|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=June 28, 1990 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/28/garden/motif-and-pace-set-by-snail-at-the-chelsea.html |access-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021223426/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/28/garden/motif-and-pace-set-by-snail-at-the-chelsea.html?searchResultPosition=2 |url-status=live}}</ref> David Bard upgraded the lobby's equipment,<ref name="Nathan 1993" /> and the family subdivided the ground-level ladies' reception room into a set of offices, but they left the ceiling murals intact.<ref name="Gray 1998" /> The reception desk had been relocated to a niche off the main lobby.<ref name="Sell 2002">{{Cite news |last=Sell |first=Larry |date=December 19, 2002 |title=A Night at the Chelsea |pages=1D, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/poughkeepsie-journal-chelsea-ghosts-and/133459941/ 2D] |work=Poughkeepsie Journal |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/poughkeepsie-journal-a-night-at-the-chel/133460032/ |access-date=October 15, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021223429/https://www.newspapers.com/article/poughkeepsie-journal-a-night-at-the-chel/133460032/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The Chelsea's reputation for "wildness" receded in the 1990s, though the hotel continued to attract artistic tenants under Bard's management.<ref name="Buckley 2010" /> Long-term residents paid up to $3,000 a month in rent, while short-term guestrooms cost up to $295.<ref name="Kaufman 1994">{{Cite news |last=Kaufman |first=Michael T.|author-link=Michael T. Kaufman|date=October 14, 1994 |title=The Hotel in Chelsea That Art Calls Home|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/14/arts/the-hotel-in-chelsea-that-art-calls-home.html |access-date=October 16, 2023 |archive-date=May 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526103702/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/14/arts/the-hotel-in-chelsea-that-art-calls-home.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Short-term guests also traveled to the hotel for a variety of reasons. Some wished to stay in rooms occupied by particular residents,<ref>{{cite news|first=Ron |last=Alexander |title=The Fame Lives On (In Fact, It Lives Here) |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=April 12, 1990 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/12/garden/the-fame-lives-on-in-fact-it-lives-here.html |access-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021223958/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/12/garden/the-fame-lives-on-in-fact-it-lives-here.html?searchResultPosition=1 |url-status=live}}</ref> while others traveled there because of their cheap rates.<ref name="Bragg 1992" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Zeman |first=Ned |date=April 18, 1993 |title=Rooms With Attitude: the New Hotel Scene|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/travel/1993/04/18/rooms-with-attitude-the-new-hotel-scene/a41e7d04-ab18-4cb7-98ed-664a73e04c72/ |access-date=October 20, 2023|archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021223929/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/travel/1993/04/18/rooms-with-attitude-the-new-hotel-scene/a41e7d04-ab18-4cb7-98ed-664a73e04c72/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The guestrooms lacked modern amenities such as minibars, room service, and cable TV.<ref name="Kaufman 1994" /><ref name="Miller 1999" />

In spite of Stanley Bard's unorthodox approach to rent collection, the hotel's finances remained stable in the 1990s.<ref name="Paul 1994">{{Cite news |last=Paul |first=Jim |date=April 17, 1994 |title=New York: Room Bored? Not a Chance, if You're Staying at Manhattan's Legendary Hotels|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/travel/1994/04/17/new-york-room-bored-not-a-chance-if-youre-staying-at-manhattans-legendary-hotels/16cdc0c4-ab7b-4ad0-a068-499e23afb68e/ |access-date=October 20, 2023|archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021223929/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/travel/1994/04/17/new-york-room-bored-not-a-chance-if-youre-staying-at-manhattans-legendary-hotels/16cdc0c4-ab7b-4ad0-a068-499e23afb68e/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The Bards continued to renovate selected rooms as part of a wide-ranging rehabilitation,<ref name="Paul 1994" />{{sfn|Tippins|2013|p=346}} and they also renovated the lobby.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Neighbor to the Famous Woman Recalls Chelsea Life |first=Anne |last=Thompson |agency=Associated Press |work=The Record |date=June 30, 1996 |page=N09 |id={{ProQuest|424746415}}}}</ref> By the end of the 20th century, three-fourths of the hotel was occupied by long-term residents,<ref name="Bragg 1992">{{Cite news |title=Chelsea Hotel: Still crazy after all these years? |first=Rebecca |last=Bragg |work=Toronto Star |date=July 18, 1992 |page=H2 |id={{ProQuest|436659246}}}}</ref><ref name="Gray 1998" /> and monthly rents ranged from $2,000 to $5,000.<ref name="Malbin 2000" /> Bard wished to maintain the hotel's character, showing preference to artists over other potential tenants.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sartwell |first=Matt |date=November 17, 2002 |title=A City Landmark – Historic, Artistic, Literary, Musical |page=218 |work=The Journal News |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-journal-news-a-city-landmark-histo/133459447/ |access-date=October 15, 2023 |archive-date=October 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021224931/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-journal-news-a-city-landmark-histo/133459447/ |url-status=live}}</ref> There was also an art gallery<ref name="Pedersen 2000">{{Cite news |last=Pedersen |first=Laura|author-link=Laura Pedersen|date=August 6, 2000 |title=Home Sweet Hotel|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/08/06/nyregion/home-sweet-hotel.html |access-date=October 15, 2023 |archive-date=December 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221214165035/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/08/06/nyregion/home-sweet-hotel.html |url-status=live}}</ref> and a basement bar named Serena.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ikenberg |first=Tamara |date=March 26, 2000 |title=Sexy City; New York: With Our Insider's Tour, You Can Do Manhattan Like the Leading Ladies of HBO's ''Sex and the City''. Traveler Discretion Advised |page=1R|newspaper=[[The Baltimore Sun]]|id={{ProQuest|406446812}}}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Grigoriadis |first=Vanessa |date=June 29, 2003 |title=A Chelsea Girl Makes a Name All Over Town|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/29/style/a-chelsea-girl-makes-a-name-all-over-town.html |access-date=October 15, 2023 |archive-date=February 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219092807/https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/29/style/a-chelsea-girl-makes-a-name-all-over-town.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

Unfounded rumors of a potential sale were circulating by the end of the 20th century.<ref name="Cale 2000">{{Cite news |last=Cale |first=John |date=September 3, 2000 |title=Chelsea mourning: Dylan got married there, Viva gave birth there and Nancy died there |pages=18, 19 |newspaper=The Observer |department=Life |id={{ProQuest|250404569}}}}</ref> Marlene Krauss, the daughter of Julius Krauss, told Bard to stop renewing long-term residents' leases in 2005.<ref name="Chamberlain 2007" /> Meanwhile, longtime resident David Elder (the grandson of Joseph Gross and the son of playwright and screenwriter [[Lonne Elder III]]) filed a lawsuit in 2005 to have Bard removed as the hotel's manager.<ref>{{cite web |last=Shott |first=Chris |date=May 14, 2008 |title=Elder Strikes Back at the Chelsea Hotel |url=https://observer.com/2008/05/elder-strikes-back-at-the-chelsea-hotel/ |access-date=October 13, 2023 |website=Observer |archive-date=February 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226022347/https://observer.com/2008/05/elder-strikes-back-at-the-chelsea-hotel/ |url-status=live}}</ref> At the time, three-fifths of the hotel's 240–250 rooms were occupied by permanent residents.<ref name="Chamberlain 2007" /> Temporary guestrooms and permanent residents' rooms were interspersed.<ref name="Leve 2007" /> As a result of rising expenses, there were fewer penurious artists living in the Chelsea compared to the mid- and late 20th century.<ref name="Considine 2005">{{Cite news |last=Considine |first=Austin |date=September 11, 2005 |title=A Little Traveling Music: Songs That Can Transport You|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/11/travel/a-little-traveling-music-songs-that-can-transport-you.html |access-date=October 15, 2023 |archive-date=February 27, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227192014/https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/11/travel/a-little-traveling-music-songs-that-can-transport-you.html |url-status=live}}</ref> A nightclub called the Star Lounge opened in the Chelsea's basement in early 2007.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Silverio |first=Victoria De |date=April 22, 2007 |title=And Ghosts Drink Free|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/22/fashion/22boite.html |access-date=October 13, 2023 |archive-date=March 6, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180306125108/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/22/fashion/22boite.html |url-status=live}}</ref>