Updated: Jan 11, 6:45 A.M.

For decades, Coogan's in Washington Heights has been more than a restaurant. The business has served as an unofficial community center, where people of all races, ethnicities and occupations have come together.

But the owners have announced that this will come to an end in May, now that their landlord, New York Presbyterian, is raising their monthly rent by $40,000.

"It's insane," said one of Coogan's owners, Paul Walsh. "I would have to charge $150 a hamburger."

New York Presbyterian, a non-profit hospital system that is based a block away, told WNYC that it's still open to negotiating on the rent agreement. "For the past two years, anticipating the conclusion of Coogan’s current lease in May, we have been engaged in good-faith negotiations with its ownership team," a hospital spokesperson said. "We are willing to continue those negotiations in an effort to reach a fair and reasonable resolution."

Locals — including some famous ones — say that the thought of Coogan's closing its doors is horrifying.

One of the true Washington Heights mainstays, and has embraced every wave of neighborhood changes. I love Coogan's. My stomach hurts from this news. https://t.co/NKIVfGwfkT

— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) January 10, 2018

Other famous patrons include former Vice President Al Gore, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Alicia Keys. But in this heavily Dominican neighborhood that's been gentrifying at what some feel is an alarming rate, Coogan's has also proven to be a haven for the regular folk who live nearby.

"It's not about Coogan's, a restaurant, it's about a neighborhood. It's about the middle class," said Walsh. "We're a communal hangout. We're tribal here, and our tribe is everybody."

Much of the establishment's goodwill comes from the days when Washington Heights was at the center of the crack wars in the 1980s. Coogan's was a central place for refuge and often kept its doors open 24 hours a day. But now rents are rising swiftly across the neighborhood.

One woman who's lived in Uptown Manhattan for 25 years says she's held birthday parties, film screenings, and countless quality conversations at the restaurant.

"It's a neighborhood institution. It would be like losing an old friend," said Arlene Schulman, who runs a Facebook group for Washington Heights and Inwood.

But, she says, she's not giving up. And neither are others who think of Coogan's as a second home. They're joining elected officials at a rally at the restaurant  on Sunday.