Please Keep Parlor Safe: Emergency & Uncertainty

Hello! This is Kevin & Ashlee at Parlor. Bear with us as we try to concisely explain the situation while respecting certain parties' privacy. We have a TLDR at the bottom, though.

We have been successfully starved out. While there have been many challenges for us over the past three years, none of it has felt totally insurmountable. We, as a collective, overcame the daunting terrain of uncertainty and the new “normal.” We launched a business moments before the pandemic surfaced. We were granted permission to officially open our doors to the public during the week the Governor ordered businesses to close. We saw this coming and decided to do the responsible thing and wait it out. With no following to speak of as a new business, there was no opportunity to offer curb-side pickup to locals. It wasn’t until the following summer that we got to have our chance to thrive.

While we can’t say that we ever thrived in the monetary sense, we can safely say that we thrived in a creative and spiritual sense. The community that has rallied around us and made our events possible has been nothing short of beautiful. Our Sunday Jazz Program has become a reliable, weekly source of practice and fun for people all over the Hudson Valley and beyond. Our Saturday shows picked up so much momentum, providing a space for locals and passionate touring bands of all experience levels and genres. Throughout the week, we opened our space in the evenings for practice, recording, and jam sessions.

Unfortunately, one obstacle we have done our best to overcome has become officially insurmountable. Each week it feels, we were presented with new limiting rules. We did our best to keep adapting. Our outside shows were quashed(one of many, many arbitrary decisions outside of our control), limiting the amount of people we could invite to our space safely. Eventually, it boiled down to the front of our shop being completely fenced off and blocked with heavy machinery – forcing us to continuously try to update our community and newcomers on the creative ways they could still get to our shop. We’ve been completely at the whim and mercy of someone with much more time and resources.

The good news is: we are still fighting the good fight and will keep our doors open for you to use as a creative hub for as long as possible. The bad news is: we need to protect our livelihood. Between malicious tampering and increasingly desperate circumstances, we have lost a great deal of our stock due to damage that could have been easily avoided. We are making a plea for assistance in helping us move in a safe and timely manner.

We have successfully procured safe storage space for our books and records. However, that is a 4+ hour journey up north. We will need to rent a large uHaul truck, obtain appropriate boxes and materials, and much more. The new location is on an expansive property where the owner gets and loves what we do. We see infinite opportunities to continue collaborating and making art together. Maybe we will sell a few books and records along the way.

Our timeline for exiting with our property is completely unknown unfortunately. Conflicting information from the courts has left us confused and fearful that our situation is much more urgent than we realize(possible just a few days).

TLDR: The challenges of this location have become too much. To safely continue, we need to move. We are asking for help either via donation or sharing our cause. Fighting “The Man” is a hamper on our spirit and wallet, and we want to focus on community and art. We have safe storage north, and need urgent assistance in making it possible.

At minimum, the cost of renting a uHaul truck will be $500. That’s before gas expenses and any extra mileage outside of the quote. While we have a lot of donated packing boxes, a lot of our inventory is delicate and heavy. The most efficient way for us to pack is to utilize bankers boxes and sturdy record boxes, totally to $250+. There will be many additional expenses we can't even fathom at this moment, as we are in legal limbo. We set the goal a bit higher in hopes that if we find more support, we can hire proper representation - as we are pro se at the moment.

Thank you for reading,

Ashlee & Kevin, Parlor