In active use as a squat from 1992 onwards, the six-story building housed up to 60 people at its peak, including Brad Will.
In 1992 when the building at 713 East 9th Street in Alphabet City, Manhattan was first occupied by the squatters, it had been vacant for twelve years and was stripped of wires and pipes.
[1][2] The squatters renovated the derelict building themselves, installing their own plumbing, electrical wiring, and roof.
A former resident cites the production's $500 a day rental payment as underwriting the cost of putting plumbing in the building.
[4] Among the building's former residents was the late documentary filmmaker and Indymedia New York City journalist Brad Will.
[7] The developers quickly began eviction proceedings against the Dos Blockos squatters, who had by then occupied the building for five years.
After several years of legal struggles, the Dos Blockos squatters were alerted in early March 1999 by East Nine L.L.C.
She commented "the only reason people took over this building is because it was abandoned 20 years ago [...] Now the neighborhood is a place to make millions of dollars, so landlords come.