Shuttered Wash Heights Bar Partners With Facebook For Fundraiser

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — The iconic Washington Heights bar Coogan's shuttered permanently in March due to pandemic related losses, but the beloved neighborhood gathering spot is still finding a way to support the community.

Coogan's is partnering with Facebook and United Way of New York City to raise money for hard-hit small businesses and non-profits in Washington Heights and other surrounding communities.

Facebook is matching up to the first $100,000 in donations, and Coogan's has already raised $9,231 as of Tuesday morning.

The fundraising campaign hit the ground two weeks ago when a jogging Peter Walsh, a former owner of Coogan's, appeared in a Facebook advertisement.

As they say on their new Facebook fundraising page: "Coogan's doors may be closed forever, but our hearts are wide open!...Your supported us in our time of need and we want to give back the love."

Coogan's shut down operations in March after it attempted to sustain itself through takeout and delivery, but it announced its permanent closure in April.

Walsh told Patch at the time of the March closure that if the shuttering lasted too long, Coogan's would have no choice but to close for good.

"If this goes to a certain amount of time and it's too difficult to reopen, we'll close forever," he said. "This emergency is so unique — that has never happened in our lives."

The restaurant near 169th Street and Broadway had been open in Washington Heights for 35 years.

Walsh owned the bar along with Dave Hunt and Tess O'Connor McDade.

The joint was known as a community favorite, a place that transcended lines of race and class in the diverse, largely Dominican neighborhood and managed to bring together all types, from doctors and nurses at nearby Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, to cops, firefighters and politicians. Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of the Broadway smash "Hamilton" and "In The Heights", was a frequent visitor.

It also became one of the premier bars for runners in New York City. The Irish bar's busiest times of the year was St. Patrick's Day — one year Gerry Adams, the head of the Irish Republican Army political arm Sinn Feinn, stopped by for a pint — and the nearby Armory Track's track and field championship season.

"We will all miss Coogan's. It was a safe place for all souls to enter the room, a gathering of soul mates, celebrating with poetry and song, and as community stakeholders, we all always benefited from Dave and Peter's wise counsel," said Alfred Kurland, in the Coogan's Facebook page for the fundraiser.

You can find out more about the fundraiser and donate yourself on the Coogan's Pay It Forward Community Fund Facebook page.