Lawsuit claims Soho apartment featured in Beyonce video is fire hazard

Neighbor says owner received an illegal easement

The townhouse at 214 Lafayette Street in Soho (inset: Beyonce)
The townhouse at 214 Lafayette Street in Soho (inset: Beyonce)

When Beyonce filmed part of her music video in a Soho townhouse’s swimming pool, she was surrounded by water but also inside a firetrap, according to a new lawsuit.

Film producer Tony Krantz filed a lawsuit against the owner of 214 Lafayette Street, claiming that the townhouse doesn’t have a legal fire escape, the New York Post reported. The townhouse, which is rented out for roughly $100,000 a month, features a 40-foot swimming pool that Beyonce used for her “Halo” music video.

Krantz, who lives in an adjacent duplex at 55 Crosby Street, alleges that the owner secretly acquired an illegal easement that cuts across a strip of land between Krantz’s apartment and a parking lot he owns to get around the lack of a fire escape in the building.

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It’s not exactly clear who owns the townhouse. Director Marcus Nispel transferred the property to an LLC in 2012 for $0, but it’s not clear if he controls the entity

In addition to Queen Bey, John Mayer used the townhouse in his video for “Who Says.” [NYP] — Kathryn Brenzel