Questions remain after fire destroys Old Pink in Buffalo

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — In Buffalo’s Allentown neighborhood, reality is setting in as many come to terms with the loss of The Old Pink.

A makeshift memorial and a pile of rubble are all that remains of The Old Pink, a signature of Buffalo nightlife for decades.

David Arakelian is one of the owners of Nietzsche’s in Allentown, a bar and restaurant across the street from where The Old Pink was. He and many others are wondering what’s next.

“I don’t know what they’re going to do with it. I don’t know if it’ll be a bar again,” Arakelian said.

While it’s unclear whether The Old Pink’s owners plan to rebuild, one thing is clear. Many people are mourning the loss of this iconic establishment.

A GoFundMe has been set up to raise money to help the bar owner and staff. Monday evening, the community showed up at what remains of The Old Pink for a candlelight vigil.

“It was the first funeral in a building I’ve been to,” Arakelian said.

Catherine Amdur is another fan of The Old Pink. She also serves as Commissioner of Permitting and Inspection Services in Buffalo and is now directly involved in deciding the future of this historic Allentown site. She said they were able to preserve some of the historic pieces in the building.

“I reviewed it with my team yesterday morning and requested that we keep the Buffalo sign hanging above the front door, the front door itself and the address numbers,” said Amdur said.

All items they can use if the owner decides to rebuild.

Amdur said if the new owners or anyone else does any rebuilding, the plans would have to be approved by the zoning board.

While we wait to see what’s next for the soon-to-be vacant land, Nietzsche’s owners want people to know they’re still open for business.

“So we never expected to see an increase in the number of people coming through our doors. We have always loved The Pink and we love all the customers there. We have been customers there ourselves and we hope to offer our house to people who are looking for a place.