Markham Club Shuts Down Voluntarily After Series Of Shootings
(CBS) -- After a series of shootings, a far South Suburban Markham nightclub is closing its doors voluntarily.
As CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez reports, the surprise announcement came at an emergency City Council meeting about how to stop the violence.
Residents who live near the controversial bar showed up ready for a fight. But instead, got just what they wanted.
"I just want to announce I'm closing the bar in light of what happened a couple of weeks ago," the bar owner said at the City Council meeting.
The bar owner didn't want to be shown on camera because of recent threats. But he says he's closing the Stadium Plus club on Dixie Highway-where police say they've been called frequently through the years.
Mack Sanders, Markham Police Chief says of the club, "Individuals are coming to these establishments and they don't have any regard for life. Period."
Just last Sunday police shot and killed a patron they say refused to drop a gun. After just five months, this new owner told council members, he's done.
"The whole main focus was to be the banquet hall. And that's what I'm going to focus on," he said.
Residents praised him, saying, "I think he's done the right thing."
Asked by Markham Mayor David Webb, if he's promising that won't be another nightclub, the owner said, "I'm promising that as long as I'm here in the chair, it will not be another nightclub there."
Residents say they're unsure about the banquet hall portion of the business. "But not the other people from other communities coming in and causing trouble," resident DeLores Goodlow says.
The council still passed an ordinance requiring clubs that hold more than 200 people and have entertainment to close by 2 a.m., before most violent incidents typically occur. It basically applies to two clubs.