Dec. 21—A business association and a neighborhood watch group are formally objecting to a Platte Avenue bar's liquor license renewal after a series of shootings and other violence near the business in the last year.

In the formal objection letter, the neighbors say the bar, formerly known as Babilonia Bar and Grill, and now the Paradise Nightclub and Restaurant, has a history of violence and crime including shootings, armed robbery, assault disorderly conduct, and brawling in the streets.

"The neighbors are terrified," the letter said.

The documentation submitted by the neighbors said while the bar was open as Babilonia eight shootings happened in the area between January and June injuring a handful of people. Residents near the bar at 2501 E. Platte Ave. have also seen property damage from bullets and have had to clean up blood from the sidewalk following violence, the letter said.

Businesses in the area also reported damage, such as car vandalism, burglaries and damage from bullets, according to spreadsheets submitted by the neighborhood groups outlining the problems.

They called on the city to revoke the license, citing a section of code that allows the city to consider whether liquor license holders have adversely impacted the safety of the neighborhood and contributed to a pattern of fights, violent activity or disorderly conduct.

The owner of the liquor license and businesses, Juliet Romero-Garcia, declined to comment on this story. But she told The Gazette over the summer that the business did not contribute to the problems and said she wanted to see violent offenders arrested. She said at the time the business had installed security cameras and hired security guards.

Objecting groups, including the Platte Avenue Business and Neighborhood Association and The Boulder Street Neighborhood Watch, said in the letter the best evidence for a denial of the liquor license renewal is that, while the venue was closed, the neighborhood did not experience any shootings or other violence.

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Babilonia closed in late August, according to its Facebook page. Paradise Nightclub started promoting itself in late October on Facebook, in the same location under the same ownership.

Neighborhood Watch block captain Jacques Sears said the bar has not been a problem since it reopened as Paradise Nightclub, but he supports the revocation of the liquor license, given the history of the business. Babilonia also wasn't a problem right after it opened but gradually worsened with time, he said.

"It was a slow roll," he said.

A change of hours could also help prevent conflict with the neighbors, he said.

"There is really no reason to have a bar that's open to 2 a.m. ... right next to or in the middle of a bunch of residences," he said. While Paradise Nightclub faces Platte Avenue, on the Boulder Street side, it is adjacent to homes.

After neighbors complained about the bar repeatedly at Colorado Springs City Council meetings, Colorado Springs Utilities put in new street lights along Boulder Street. The lights didn't really help, Sears said, except to help neighbors identify the details about violent incidences, such as the color of vehicles involved and the number of people involved, he said.

A decision on whether to hold a hearing on the liquor license will be made after the first of the year, City Clerk Sarah Johnson said. If a hearing is held, it will be conducted by a municipal court judge. The city transitioned away from a liquor licensing board model in 2018.

The bar does not have any state liquor license violations, said Suzanne Karrer with the Colorado Liquor & Tobacco Enforcement Division.