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Norfolk Nightlife


soloextreme

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I think this is a strategy move. Norfolk gave them 19 citations and they are making the smart move of saying we will shut down until we figure everything out and can make it right. I don't think anyone has the coin to buy the place and no one in the city wants to see it close. It is a great addition to downtown. Seems to me that this might be a move to get the big wigs to take a second look to see if they really do want to be so confrontational about it; I think they are hoping that this will make the city move from being confrontational to aligning with them to help them solve the broader criminal problem.

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While I am not in favor of shutting down businesses, these measures need to be addressed from time to time. I stopped going into downtown Norfolk for a few reasons, parking being one, but the crowd that started to come in the area after dark was not the kind of people I would want to deal with. I do not like to hear the song playing on the CD in your car while I am trying to enjoy dinner, and with the lyrics in these songs............I just do not want to hear that. The hip-hop crowd wants respect but is very unwilling to give it to others (not all persons who enjoy hip-hop, just the ones that play the music REALLY loud and walk down the street cursing every other word out there mouths)

Downtown Norfolk is for EVERYONE but, everyone must respect the rights of others to enjoy it. Same goes for the oceanfront in Va. Beach.

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It's difficult to have it both ways: vibrant night life and middle class residential don't always mix. This is not a rich community and young non-affluent people need places to go to have a good time. That means some hip-hop, some cars with rattling sub-woofers, and an occasional idiot with a knife and an attitude. Downtown cannot be the place for that anymore, but somewhere needs to be. We used to have Ocean View until the real estate community and city council gentrified it. People think that you shouldn't plan for the lumpenproletariat, but you really need to. Otherwise, whole areas get torn down eventually.

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Here's a bigger article from the pilot

New England, I hope you're right. A friend of mine was throwing the euronight series at the club and they were an absolutely unbelievable success. Good vibe, no fights, just everyone appreciative of having a venue where they could get together and listen to the music they want to. Ironically, with this club shutting down, the only thing left in HR is the same crap hip-hop and top 40 clubs that they like to complain about in the first place. Premiere really raised the bar and it is a sad day for downtown Norfolk. :(

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Closing the Premiere sounds like an overreation to me. If every club here in DC closed because of a violent altercation there would be no clubs left. We had an incident two months ago where a 17 year old girl was killed by a stray bullet in a club and it still remains open as the city council debates what to do. The owners should probably take a deep breath and look at ways to address the code infractions and correct them and then beef up security even more. Lets hope that this unique and hip venue reopens quickly.

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Closing the Premiere sounds like an overreation to me. If every club here in DC closed because of a violent altercation there would be no clubs left. We had an incident two months ago where a 17 year old girl was killed by a stray bullet in a club and it still remains open as the city council debates what to do. The owners should probably take a deep breath and look at ways to address the code infractions and correct them and then beef up security even more. Lets hope that this unique and hip venue reopens quickly.
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Listening to the news will have you believe this was a rowdy hip hop club,but now that I have heard some reputable people stand up in defense of the club.I'm more inclined to believe this was an isolated incident that could have happened in any establishment.I dont believe any educated hard working person would choose to hang out in a rowdy,dangerous night club.I think that a really bad night spot would never have lasted that long anyway.We must have nightlife in Norfolk

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I think this is a strategy move. Norfolk gave them 19 citations and they are making the smart move of saying we will shut down until we figure everything out and can make it right. I don't think anyone has the coin to buy the place and no one in the city wants to see it close. It is a great addition to downtown. Seems to me that this might be a move to get the big wigs to take a second look to see if they really do want to be so confrontational about it; I think they are hoping that this will make the city move from being confrontational to aligning with them to help them solve the broader criminal problem.
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Listening to the news will have you believe this was a rowdy hip hop club,but now that I have heard some reputable people stand up in defense of the club.I'm more inclined to believe this was an isolated incident that could have happened in any establishment.I dont believe any educated hard working person would choose to hang out in a rowdy,dangerous night club.I think that a really bad night spot would never have lasted that long anyway.We must have nightlife in Norfolk
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I'm on the fence about Burfoot's reaction to this....while FAR from perfect (he spoke of the Premier as if it attracts this kind of incident)but he framed the debate around larger issues and not just if downtown is safe or not. Plus he wanted to give the impression that the city was on top of it.... cast that against what the reporting would be like if he made no statement at all.... I guess time will have to tell if he is helping or hurting the situation.
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No one has mentioned that the club was cited for 19 code and safety violations. I mean, 3 or 4 is one thing, but 19???

I have never attended an event there, but I have been inside and it is a beautiful place. It would be a shame if it was not reopened and it did not continue to serve the vast majority of quality patrons it normally attracts.

So, I too do not see the big problem with what Mr. Burfoot said. It seems like the owners dropped the ball on staying in compliance with code and with allowing someone with a gun inside.

Hope it all works out.

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Why in the world does the city hate places like this. This is the first time that I have heard any problems with the club. Idiots at the city need to realize that night life is a reason for companies to want to relocate to a certain area. If we keep our city undesirable we will never grow to where we need to be.

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Something doesn't smell right on this.

Wright spent too much money on this place for there to be 19 code and safety violations that are too expensive to fix.

Then, within 24 hours, Wright just caves in and puts the place up for sale??

Why such a quick decision?

It just doesn't make sense. Whoever he sells to will obviously have to address these 19 violations and then make a go of it.

If the demand is there, I'll bet this venue will be back.

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Total Overreaction on Everyone's Part:

1. The city: While I agree that the city must enforce accountability, laws, etc., it is not for one individual to take up this obviously isolated event as a crusade by targeting one venue and threatening it with closure because of the type of event it staged. I understand and agree with the Vice Mayor's concern regarding violence, but this matter should be handled by council as a group and the venue treated like any other. Even if the violations are serious (and one suspects overcrowding to be the norm here), it should not have been handled as it was from the city's POV.

2. The owner: The best thing for Norfolk (not just from a night-life perspective but also from a reputation view) is for the business to address the violations and reopen as soon as possible. If every owner closed their doors after every bad incident, there would be no night clubs left. Yeh, the city did revoke their license, but I have to believe the cooperation was essentially nill and that the reaction was hasty. I say, "Be an adult and handle the situation. If you make no progress in resolving the matter due to unfair treatment, then fine, sell and move on. But this quick reaction borders on unprofessionalism."

3. The media: Here we go again. You'd think this was the crime of the century. Someone mentioned a similar incident in DC earlier, but the difference is that there, no one hears about it becuase it's always downplayed. Here, it makes the front page of the Pilot, makes the front page of Link, and all 4 TV stations are on hand to report live. In fact, all TV stations are out there again today. I mean, give me a break. The world could literally come to an end, and our local media would be covering some back-alley shooting. Kind of sounds sick and obsessed, if you ask me. If it weren't this, it would be something else. Just like the Ford Plant closing, our media really knows how to milk a story. I always remember when the president of China came to town and spent the night: 2 of the 3 TV stations led with nothing crime stories that most of us could care less about. Wow. I guess they're afraid no one will take them seriously otherwise.

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Being a part of the hip hop community as a fan and an upcoming artist from Virginia Beach, I feel I must address some of the issues involved. Hip Hop as a whole is not a violent community. It is the individuals who have a violent nature to them (a small percentage which happens to be the most marketed on the radio) that ruin these type of functions for all of us. There are PLENTY of positive hip hop acts out there and plenty of non violent listeners. Someone got shot at a club and I've attended clubs before where people have started shooting. (look up Bubbler's in Northridge Ca for an example where three people died in one night). I was at Bubbler's that night. Often a shooting is instigated because of a personal matter between two parties which has nothing to do with the venue they are at. Shootings can happen ANYWHERE at ANYTIME. Trust me, I've seen guns pulled out at the most random locations. Often its over something petty such as a relationship with a woman or a mans ego getting bruised.

The main issue would be how that gun got into the club and how can you prevent that in the future. Metal Detectors at the door are a common Feature in Los Angeles night clubs and in other major cities. On my last visit to Granby Street for my wedding, I was not even patted down by security when I walked into Scotty Quixx, Farenheit, or any of the other clubs I entered.

Without security measures the guns and drugs get in and the situation can get intense over the simplest argument. It is up to the clubs to take measures such as maintaining a dress code and patting down people at the door.

I thought you guys might like the perspective of a person who has actually ducked a bullet or two in the club before.

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Dozens rally to show support for Granby Theater

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Granby Theater patron Jason Ward of Portsmouth joins others Thursday night at a rally in front of the theater to show support for keeping the downtown Norfolk venue open.

NORFOLK - A crowd of about 50 people, brought together through e-mails, text messages and a MySpace bulletin, rallied in front of Granby Theater on Thursday in a show of support for the venue, whose closing was announced after a shooting there Wednesday.
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