a day ago
Community works together to reopen East Side staple from 1949
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A staple on Buffalo's East Side, The Happy Swallow, was closed by the city back in April. This weekend, the community will come together to help the family-owned business open once again.
'We think it's very important to keep a place like this alive, in order to continue telling the story of this neighborhood,' said Eddy Dobosiewicz, the president of Forgotten Buffalo. 'This area of the city at one point was the most densely populated part of Buffalo and as such, there were a lot of taverns and restaurants and the family owned operations that were meeting places, they were the Facebook of their generation.'
The Happy Swallow Bar & Restaurant first opened their doors in 1949, and then two years later, moved to its current location. The family who owns the business bought it back in the 1980s.
It was shutdown by the City of Buffalo due to the condition of the fire suppression system, foundational issues, and a car port which was deemed unsafe.
We reached out to Councilmember Mitch Nowakowski about the closure of this establishment, who described The Happy Swallow as a 'cherished' part of the neighborhood.
'While the recent closure due to health and safety compliance issues was necessary to protect patrons and staff, I fully support this beloved establishment in their efforts to return to operation,' he said.
Dobosiewicz explained the hardships that the family has faced in the recent past.
'They've had horrible bad luck, they've had unexpected deaths in the family, they had a fire upstairs, they had structural issues in the back, COVID knocked them out of the box for a couple years, they continued to stay open throughout the whole period, in spite of all the adversity,' said Dobosiewicz.
Dobosiewicz shared how much this family run establishment means to the community, and says it was the last remaining full service establishment in the neighborhood.
This Sunday, they are holding a fundraiser, hoping to raise $10,000 to $15,000 dollars to help with repairs that will allow them to reopen. It will run from 12 p.m. till 4 p.m. at the Polish Cadets.
You can also donate to their GoFundMe here.
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Hope Winter is a reporter and multimedia journalist who has been part of the News 4 team since 2021. See more of her work here.
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