No one can erase Angela “Big Ang” Raiola’s legacy, but an angry landlord in Staten Island is certainly trying.
Big Ang’s sister, Janine Detore, owns a store in Staten Island called Country Mouse Boutique. For years, there’s been a giant mural of the late Mob Wives star painted on the side of the building saying, “I’m not here for a long time, just for a good time.”
According to TMZ, the store’s landlord just brazenly covered up the mural. How could you just plaster over Big Ang’s face like it’s nothing? Janine thinks her landlord is retaliating over unpaid rent.
No more Big Ang mural
Janine said the drama all started earlier this fall when she kept getting sick, and her doctors determined it was mold poisoning. They told her to get her boutique inspected for mold, so she hired someone. When she communicated that information to her landlord, he replied and said, “Just to let you know, this [mural] is coming down.” Random, right?
With little warning, the landlord went forward with covering up the mural, leaving Janine and her family devastated. She said that it all felt retaliatory because she owes her landlord a whopping $27,000 in unpaid rent.
The outlet spoke to the landlord, and of course, he had a totally different story. He described Janine as a difficult tenant, refusing to let contractors inside the store to make repairs and trying to take advantage of him by refusing to pay rent. He said the only reason he covered the mural was because he’s getting ready to sell the building. In his opinion, Janine is just using this mural story to get publicity.
There’s a lot of finger-pointing happening her. Regardless of who’s to blame, the mural is gone. Paying the rent she owes isn’t going to bring it back. However, Janine said that she’s hopeful to get another Big Ang mural put up in a different location in Staten Island. Maybe they should just do a statue instead.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK IT WAS UNFAIR FOR THE LANDLORD TO COVER THE MURAL? OR, DO YOU BELIEVE THE LANDLORD’S STORY ABOUT JANINE BEING DIFFICULT?
