GRAND RAPIDS, MI — The city of Grand Rapids says a hookah lounge in Eastown is hosting live entertainment, dancing and is operating as a night club in violation of the city’s zoning code.
On May 20, the city sent a zoning complaint laying out the alleged violations to Mohamed Abdulrahman and Jihane Rgabi, the owners of Eastown Hookah Lounge, 1522 Wealthy St. SE. The business, which has until June 9 to appeal the complaint, must obtain a special land use permit to host live entertainment, according to the city.
Based on the zoning complaint issued by the city, a dance club/night club and live entertainment are prohibited uses for the Eastown Hookah Lounge.
Rgabi disputes that she’s violating the city’s zoning code.
She says her business is “grandfathered in” and can host live music and entertainment because prior businesses that operated at the location were permitted to do so. The hookah lounge’s attorney has sent a letter to city requesting a meeting to discuss the matter, according to the city.
“Leave us alone,” Rgabi told MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. “We’re just trying to live. We’re not trying to hurt anybody.”
The zoning violation is one element of a wider dispute in the neighborhood over the hookah lounge. Eastown Community Association board members say the hookah lounge has stayed open until 4 a.m. on some weekends, providing a spot where patrons could continue to party after nearby bars close.
Operating past 2 a.m. can contribute to what, on weekends, can be a rowdy and occasionally destructive late-night atmosphere on Wealthy Street SE between Lake Drive and Atlas Avenue, said Dakota Riehl-Davis, board president of the Eastown Community Association.
“It’s just been kind of the recipe for — I don’t want to say disaster — but just an escalating environment,” she said. Later, she added: “I don’t think the business is completely to blame. It’s just a part of the issue.”
Rgabi said her business in March through May occasionally stayed open until 4 a.m. on weekends, but that it no longer does so.
The city’s zoning complaint does not mention the hookah lounge’s hours, but city spokesperson Steve Guitar said in an email that 2 a.m. is the closing time the hookah lounge should be adhering to. The closing time is based on the verified property use from the city’s planning department.
As for the zoning complaint, if the business does not comply with the city’s ordinance, the city could issue civil infraction tickets to the business and file a misdemeanor complaint in court, according to Eric Jordan, the city’s code compliance manager.
“It is our hope that the business owners cease violating the Zoning ordinance and their approved conditions,” he said in an email.
Riehl-Davis said she’s pleased to hear the business no longer plans to operate until 4 a.m. “We just would like them to adhere to the zoning policy, and the city is stepping in to ask them to do that,” she said.
The most recent example of destructive behavior in the neighborhood occurred in the early morning hours of Sunday, May 15. At least three businesses, including The Pita House, were struck by bullets on Wealthy Street SE near Ethel Avenue. No injuries were reported.
Riehl-Davis said there is no indication that customers from Eastown Hookah Lounge were involved in the shooting, and that she’s not blaming them for the incident.
She says allowing a business in the neighborhood to operate past 2 a.m. is problematic.
She said the stretch of Wealthy Street near the hookah lounge has poor street lighting, and that there have been reports of customers gathering outside the hookah lounge to drink alcohol. She says the Eastown Community Association wants to do what it can to address violence in the area, and that encouraging businesses to close by 2 a.m. may help.
“I think you create an environment where tempers can rise very easily where things can very easily go from a fun night out to people who maybe get angry and upset,” she said, describing the effects of businesses staying open past 2 a.m.
This week, the Eastown Community Association also posted a letter on its Facebook page asking businesses to close no later than 2 a.m.
“The increase in violence here in Eastown, especially late at night, makes this issue one of critical importance to our neighbors and business owners,” the letter said.
Rgabi, who along with her husband took over the hookah lounge last year, said her business does not sell alcohol and is permitted to stay open until 4 a.m. However, she said she only stayed open that late occasionally on weekends between March and mid-May of this year.
And, in response to neighborhood concerns, she says she no longer stays open that late.
“We’re open till 2 a.m. and sometimes 1:30 a.m.,” she said. “We’re open till 2 a.m. only on Fridays and Saturdays.”
Rgabi also said her customers don’t loiter outside her business or cause problems in the neighborhood. She said she feels like she’s being singled out by the community.
“They want to blame it on us even though it’s not us,” said Rgabi, who moved to Grand Rapids from Morocco in 2005. “They want to point fingers, that’s fine. But we’re not going to point fingers.”
One former employee, Gabriel Jimenez, said by staying open past 2 a.m. the hookah lounge attracted a crowd that is “drunk” and treats the business like “an after-hours party.”
But he said he couldn’t blame the business for recent shootings or other bad behavior in the neighborhood.
“There are some times that some things happen and they do blame the hookah lounge when the hookah lounge has nothing to do with it,” said Jimenez, who now works in operations management for a home décor company.
Grand Rapids Police Captain Joe Trigg, who oversees the South Neighborhood Service Area, which includes Eastown, could not be reached for an interview. But in a statement he said police are working to address concerns about violence in the neighborhood.
“If we can address the zoning issues, that can have an impact on things like disruptive behavior, loitering near closed businesses, and noise violations, which are less serious than the recent shooting but are understandably concerning to residents and businesses,” he said. “We will continue to work with the community to help improve safety for everyone.”
-MLive staff writer Michael Kransz contributed to this report
Read more:
‘No, bro, you’re dead,’ woman allegedly told boyfriend before fatal shooting
Gov. Whitmer orders state agencies, departments to protect abortion access in Michigan
Michigan adds nearly 600 jobs in auto, EV and semiconductors
Ad Choices