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Read the press release here.

Rawhide Owner Plans to Move Longtime Chelsea Gay Bar After Closure

By Mathew Katz | March 4, 2013 2:36pm

CHELSEA — Giddy up.

The owner of popular Chelsea leather bar Rawhide hopes to move the popular watering hole to a new location after it closes at the end of the month.

The longtime neighborhood gay bar at 212 Eighth Ave. will shut down on March 31, according to Jeremiah's Vanishing New York, which first reported the 1979 establishment's closure.

According to the blog, the bar was forced from its long-term location after its landlord increased the rent from $15,000 to $27,000 a month. The building was sold to a new owner in 2011, according to city records. The new owner could not be reached for comment.

The bar's current owner, Jason Goudgeon, told DNAinfo.com New York he hoped to move Rawhide to a more affordable address before rushing off to a meeting to discuss a possible new location.

He would not provide details on a location until any potential deal was final. 

Rawhide first opened in 1979 and advertises itself as having "NYC's hottest male dancers every night."

The bar continues to bring in a wide audience of locals, both straight and gay, and has many rave reviews on Yelp.