Magee Hickey

EAST VILLAGE, Manhattan — For 50 years the Hells Angels clubhouse has been on East 3rd Street, but now they’re reportedly moving out.

The Hells Angels have been quite a presence in this neighborhood: from violent fights over parking spots for their beloved bikes to raids for suspected drug deals.

Some neighbors hide their faces in fear.

“I came out. There was an altercation. Someone was shot. That’s the mood that hangs over head. They are not a great neighborhood presence,” one woman said.

Others are afraid to talk at all. One passerby muttered under his breath to PIX11.

“Not with these guys. They’ll kill you.”

But the Angels do have their boosters.

“I love the Hells Angels,” Jay Colon, a neighbor told PIX11 News. “I’ve been in the community a long time. They always help people.”

“This was the only block where they didn’t sell during the crack epidemic because they wouldn’t have it,” Colon’s friend said.

As neighbors worry about what will replace the winged death head clubhouse, there is a sense of a colorful part of east village history coming to an end.

The business of an Out Bad club member. George Christie and Pete James. Audio and Video Features. The destruction of the traditional motorcycle club.

“I guess times are tough,” John Zee, another neighbor, told PIX11. “The building probably is worth millions. We’ll see what happens. It’s a shame they won’t be here anymore.”

The 1983 documentary “Hells Angels Everywhere” captured the street vibe of the clubhouse that’s been in the East Village since 1969, but when PIX11 tried to find out more about the reported sale of this six-story, 14-unit clubhouse to a developer, Hells Angels members were not forthcoming.

“Please respect our privacy,” one unidentified Hells Angel told PIX11 News. “We are being harassed.”

It’s believed the sale of clubhouse will take place in the spring.

Source Pix.com