San Antonio – Living near the bar scene on Broadway Street is even more frustrating for residents after a shooting broke out at REBAR that sent eight people to the hospital.
“It is pretty shocking,” said Jeremy Wilson, a resident who has lived in the area for over 20 years. “I know a similar situation happened about 10 years ago. It was just scary because I was in my house when I heard the gunshots going off and I was kind of freaking out because I didn’t know what was going on. It is just sad because it puts everyone in danger, and I hope nothing like this happens again.”
John Brenneman is another resident who said the bar scene has been chaotic for a while.
“There, commotion has been going on for some time now,” Brenneman said. “REBAR is actually a good place. The owner has worked hard with us on becoming a great neighbor, but it’s the bars across the street.”
He said one of the issues is parking.
“At REBAR, there are ample parking spaces,” Brenneman said. “There is not much parking at the other bars, so they come to our neighborhood and park all along our street. We end up having a large crowd here and they cause havoc in the neighborhood, so the commotion definitely doesn’t stop when the bars close."
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Both Brenneman and Wilson said things have gotten so chaotic at times that they have had to build cages around their front doors.
“Yeah some people have come in our yard and have gone to the bathroom, but then there is another situation where this was this one guy who was in our backyard and I don’t know what he was trying to do, but it was scary to see someone jumped our fence,” Wilson said.
“We have had to put our gate up because we have had people come up and steal things off our benches on our porch,” said Brenneman.
Brenneman said he is happy that REBAR screened the suspect before he tried to enter the bar intoxicated. He said he hopes other bars are more aware of how they are serving people.
“The guy left the other bar intoxicated and was trying to get in at REBAR,” Brenneman said. “Your responsibility doesn’t go away just because they walk out of the door. You have to be careful about overserving people.”
The complaints are no surprise for District 10 Councilman Clayton Perry.
“We have received complaints about noise, people parking in their yards, litter and that kind of thing,” Perry said. “Primarily noise complaints from that area.”
Perry applauds the REBAR establishment for adapting with their commands such as soundproofing their building and screening patrons. He said it is the other bars that may need to be addressed.
“All of those bars together in one place with the music and the crowds and all that, yes, it does create some nuisance problems there for the community,” Perry said. “I am a pro-business guy, but I love my neighborhoods and I totally understand what these folks are going through and I want to do what I can to try to help them.”
Perry said he hopes to have more discussions addressing the bar scene in the area.
“Maybe there can be some notifications or signage or that kind of thing to let people know, hey, this is right next to a neighborhood and to be considerate,” Perry said. “Maybe we could also have more police patrol that area as well. “
He said he is grateful that nobody was killed in the shooting, but he hopes the suspect responsible is found sooner rather than later.
“Just think of yourself being in that situation and being on the other side of that gun,” Perry said. “Think of your family that would be out in this situation. Would you want that to happen to your family or be on the receiving end of something like that?”
“Things like this just don’t need to happen, especially with everything that is going on right now,” Wilson said. “People are already on edge and people are already feeling really unsafe.”
“It is just absolutely crazy,” Brenneman said. “Who would think, ‘Go back to your truck or vehicle, get a rifle, come back and start shooting?’ That is just barbaric.”
If you have any information that could help lead to an arrest, you are urged to call the police.
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