Judge Grants Graffiti Artists $6.7M For Destroyed Queens Work: AP

LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS — A group of local graffiti artists will get $6.7 million for their ruined work on Long Island City buildings that were demolished to make way for luxury condos, the Associated Press reported.

A federal judge in Brooklyn ordered the multimillion-dollar payout on Monday to the 21 aerosol artists, who sued the owner of a Long Island City site known as 5Pointz for painting over their work on the building and then knocking it down, according to the AP.

The warehouse buildings at 45-46 Davis St. had functioned as a community mural space for decades before the site's owner whitewashed their exterior in 2013. The buildings were torn down a year later to make way for 800 luxury condos and 200 affordable housing units.

Federal Judge Frederic Block ordered the owners repay the $6.7 million in damages to the artists following a three-week trial over the buildings in November.

Block said the property owners showed no remorse for tearing down the buildings, and noted he wouldn't have ordered such a steep payout had the owner awaited his permits and demolished the art 10 months later.

Lead photo by Frank Franklin II/Associated Press.