Battle over hallway décor in luxury building spills into court

Residents of the Kenilworth on Central Park West are hoping to stop a renovation

The Kenilworth at 151 Central Park West
The Kenilworth at 151 Central Park West

Residents of the Kenilworth, a luxury pre-war building overlooking Central Park, have exacting tastes – so much so that a legal battle has erupted over how the fourth-floor corridor should be decorated.

Timothy and Marianne Hogue have lived in the co-op building, located at 151 Central Park West, for more than two decades, sharing a common hallway with just two other neighbors, according to the New York Post.

But when new neighbors moved in and attempted to alter the hallway’s original gas light fixtures, white walls, wooden bench and artwork trouble began.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

“We do not consent to your church pew in the hallway or your artwork and would like both to be removed immediately,” new neighbor Brian Kramer wrote to the Hogues in an e-mail in February. “Additionally we would like the hanging light to be replaced with something akin to those on other floors; it is crooked, rusty, generally unattractive and does not throw enough light. Do you really feel that newcomers must live with existing decorating? Does that sound just and fair? Our landing looks awful.”

The Hogues are now asking a judge to decide if their décor shall stay or go. [NYP] Christopher Cameron