San Jose May Crack Down On Bar After Reports Of Violence, Prostitution
SAN JOSE (KPIX 5) -- City officials may soon shut down a San Jose bar, after neighbors said the establishment is attracting crime, drugs and prostitution.
People who live near El Tarasco in Downtown San Jose said they are used to seeing violence around the bar. It has made their lives miserable, a worker was shot dead right outside the bar two years ago. And residents said things have only gotten worse.
A neighbor shared video of the bar with KPIX 5. The video shows fights spilling into the street, and drunk prostitutes stumble around, throw up in front of homes and loiter out front.
"There's this culture of lawlessness," said Elisa Huang-Mendez, who lives nearby. "We've seen prostitution, drugs, fights. They literally have taken over the whole block."
So much so that neighbors near 13th and Mission said they can't go about their usual business.
A man who did not want his identity revealed said to KPIX 5, "My family is terrified, sometimes we have kids over to play, we don't let them go outside to play.
He said that drunks have totaled his family's parked car, egged and tagged his home and urinated all over his yard.
"We've got a lot of families that live in this neighborhood. It's a working class neighborhood," said San Jose city councilmember Sam Liccardo, who is also running for mayor.
Liccardo is pushing to shut the bar down by revoking a special permit that allows the old establishment to run as a bar.
"This property isn't exactly zoned for a bar. And I'm pushing to get the city to ensure that this bar and no other bar can operate again on this piece of land," he said.
Uriel Barron, who owns the bar and lives next door, said his bar does not cause trouble in the neighborhood. "Like I said, if that would have been true, they would tell me - they're customers," he said.
Barron also denied there was any illegal activity in his bar.
Yelp reviews have been less than flattering. The place has 1 and a half stars.
On Thursday, it was not peaceful. San Jose Police were called to the establishment…
Liccardo said within two weeks, he will start the process to shut down El Tarasco with the rules committee.
