Lights Out For Club Industry

Residents of Indianapolis' downtown Cole-Noble District who packed a City-County Council meeting room yesterday where the Marion County Alcohol Board was holding one of its regular meetings responded with loud applause as the board unanimously voted to deny renewal of Club Industry's 3-way alcohol permit owned by David Hohman, which is located at 416 E. Wabash. Sgt. William Carter detailed 32 police runs to the club, a/k/a The Event Set, involving fights, public intoxication and shootings in the last year alone. One resident of Fire House Square complained that a leak in her roof had been caused by a bullet fired from one of the guns. Residents complained of having to clean up beer bottles and women's underwear found on their property after events at the club. To hear Hohman speak, he had the club totally under control, which he claimed was primarily used to host private parties for the well-heeled. Sgt. Carter read one police report where Hohman was described as running down an alley waving his hands pleading for help one night because he had lost control of his club.

The video above (NSFW) of a Super Bowl party featuring Rick Ross and YoGotti gives you a flavor of the hip-hop club atmosphere that the club has been transformed into that has caused so much consternation for the downtown residents who reside in the neighborhood. It was one of several videos Sgt. Carter played during the hearing. The looks on the alcohol board members said it all. They turned away and asked Sgt. Carter to cut them short after they told him they had seen all they wanted to see. Hohman told the board that he had no idea the videos had been taken, although some like the one above were easily accessed on YouTube. Sgt. Carter testified that the club had been cited for illegally permitting nude entertainment, but the club's owner and his attorney apparently didn't know about the citation. The Red Garter is the only adult establishment permitted within the mile square business district. When it first opened a few years ago, it had a reputation for hosting circuit parties for a mostly gay clientele who consumed more drugs than alcohol. Hohman defended the club's reputation by saying it had hosted one of Julia Carter's last political fundraisers. You knew Hohman's license renewal was in trouble when the only person his attorney could produce to speak for his character was his hired liquor license agent who appears before the board every meeting as his sole occupation

WRTV's Jack Rinehart has a story on the hearing here. You can view the alcohol board's May 21, 2012 hearing broadcast live on WCTY here.