Hogan's Alley, one of the last old-school Fort Avenue haunts, is up for sale.
Sherry "Pinky" Hogan, who owns the place along with her husband, a retired police officer named Girard, wants to keep the building but sell the business, she said.
"I'm tired," she said. "You know how you get worn out? That's exactly what it is. I'm tired and I don't want to deal with it anymore."
Hogan, who used to sell real estate, was showing a bar to some folks from out of town in 2004 when she realized she'd rather buy it herself than let them have it. So she did, and opened Hogan's. ...
The Hogans took over from Ellen Berry, the daughter of Robert Cox, who owned the corner bar from 1975 to 1991.
Cox is the reason why Hogan's doesn't have many windows -- cops caught him in the bar after hours (Cox lived upstairs), and in retaliation, he bricked in all the windows on the first floor. I love that story.
Technically, I like to call Hogan's a new old-school bar. It has flat-screen TVs and a few beers on tap, but there's also an authentic South Baltimore atmosphere.
So far, Hogan has had a nibble or two but nothing substantive. She wants to make sure it's the right person, though.
"This is a good neighborhood bar," she said. "I'm not going to let just anybody walk in here and destroy it."
(Photo by Rob Perry)