COLUMBUS, Ohio — The hookah lounge at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Summit Street in Columbus’ Weinland Park neighborhood has been officially shut down by the City of Columbus.
Boards cover the doors, but the bullet holes in the windows remain. City Attorney Zach Klein said the business was the “epicenter” for violence in the neighborhood.
The Columbus Division of Police has been called to the location 19 times in the last year, according to the city’s temporary restraining order. In May, three people were killed and three others were injured in a shooting near the lounge. Four more people were shot at the intersection in September.
RELATED: City of Columbus shuts down Weinland Park hookah bar that was the scene of several violent crimes
After the shooting in June, neighbors had hoped the lounge would close.
“It is a good thing that it shut down -- to have the quietness to figure out where we go from here,” said Demetreus Moorer-Saunders, who lives nearby.
He said it has been more calm in the neighborhood, but there is still more to be done.
“We still have a lot of street racing, we still have a lot of riff-raff that come out here and park in the middle of night as well,” he said.
Next, the city plans to go after Del Baggio Pizzeria across the street. Columbus police have been called to that location 13 times since last October.
Moorer-Saunders hopes as the city goes after problem businesses, that the neighborhood can continue to thrive in a positive way.
“The more businesses we have, the more our community thrives, to have that place shut down, and even with the hookah lounge shut down, and nobody is filling the space... if that were to shut down, who would be coming in to help the community fill that space?” he asked.
The pizza shop will be discussed at the next hearing in a few weeks.