EDMONTON – A shooting that sent two people to hospital on New Year’s Day is connected to a hookah bar allegedly operating without a proper development permit.
Police reported the shooting was connected to patrons of Eclipse Hookah Lounge at 9317-19 111 Avenue.
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According to city documents, the building, which appears vacant from the front, is licensed as a general retail store.
On Sept. 2, 2015, an application was made to the city to get a development permit for a café and hookah lounge. That application was refused due to a lack of parking spaces, but according to residents, that didn’t stop the lounge from operating.
“It’s been operating without a development permit since it started, which was about mid-September. It doesn’t have a business licence and it’s operating with its windows blanked out,” said Cris Basualdo, the community league’s development director.
“I think any business looking to be a legitimate business would certainly put signage out front,” she added.
One of the building’s owners is a numbered corporation run by Tasneem Gohar, the wife of well-known Edmonton landlord Abdullah Shah, also known as Carmen Pervez.
Pervez was arrested on Christmas Eve and charged with 13 counts of possession for a purpose, possession of stolen property over $5,000, possession of a weapon dangerous to the public and careless use or storage of a firearm.
He was released on bail but re-arrested after breaching conditions.
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Community members in the Alberta Avenue neighbourhood said they have been filing complaints about the 111 Avenue building for months.
According to police, their concerns haven’t fallen on deaf ears.
“Based on some of the complaints that have come in from the neighbourhood, there is a suspicion that they are operating outside of what their licenses allow them to do,” said Det. Ryan Ferry.
In the past, the detective said officers have given owners verbal warnings and even issued fines and their investigation isn’t over.
“We certainly have some follow-up to do surrounding the way in which they’re operating. In fact, we’re meeting with detectives today,” Ferry said Monday.
The city’s licensing and permit department is also involved in the process.
“Because of the history on this file, we then followed up through development and compliance to check whether the business license and permit were actually matching use,” explained Peter Ohm with the City of Edmonton’s Sustainable Development department. “We were in the process of that investigation when we decided to collaborate with EPS.”
Ohm said any documentation the police receive can be used to make a case against the Eclipse owners.
“One of the actions that could come out of that is the license is revoked,” he said.
Basualdo said she always sees people coming and going out the back door and at night purple lights are turned on and she can see shadows through the film on the windows.
She hoped after the shooting the lounge would be closed down, but that is not the case.
“I don’t understand what the hold-up is. The city needs to get on it and actually shut that place down. It doesn’t have a permit.”
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