Galicia Restaurant Backed At Washington Heights Rally

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — Dozens of supporters of Galicia Restaurant rallied Sunday to save the longtime Washington Heights eatery from closing. The beloved Spanish restaurant is in danger of shuttering after their landlord imposed a big rent hike, supporters and local officials say.

Protesters on Sunday called for city laws to protect local businesses, including the Small Business Jobs Survival Act, which would give small businesses more control over their leases, according to Twitter posts from the rally.

"Our small businesses are the mercy of an unregulated commercial leasing market," protester Juan Rosa wrote on Twitter.

The crowd included City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez, Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat.

Galicia, located on Broadway between 172nd and 173rd streets, first opened in Washington Heights in 1988. Its possible closure after what Rodriguez has called an "exorbitant" rent hike would put 14 people out of work, according to an online petition to the restaurant's landlord, Edel Family Management. The petition has more than 1,400 signatures.

Local officials and activists are trying to rescue the eatery after community support saved Coogan's, another Washington Heights mainstay threatened by a rent hike. The restaurant was able to negotiate a new lease with its landlord, New York Presbyterian Hospital.

Signs at the rally called for "protective" laws for businesses, including the Small Business Jobs Survival Act. The bill would give small business owners certain protections when negotiating new commercial leases with landlords.

The legislation has been introduced in the City Council several times since the 1980s but hasn't had a hearing in in several years. Rodriguez, a Democrat, tweeted his support for the bill on Sunday.

(Lead image: Protesters rally to save Galicia Restaurant in Washington Heights from closing on Sunday. Photo by Juan Rosa via Twitter)