Alderman to 'Fix' Law That Allows Seedy Club to Operate Freely

An area alderman says shutting down a gang hangout located about one block west of Wicker Park's southwestern boundary is easier said than done.

Ald. Roberto Maldonado (26th) held a news conference Wednesday morning at the site at 2504 W. Division St., which is the scene of a Sunday morning shooting that claimed the life of 34-year-old Andre Velazquez. The bar there is rumored to be an "illegal social club" used by the Spanish Cobras gang.

"Maldonado ... has known about the club's reputation since he became alderman in 2009, but said he and police could do nothing because of an odd loophole in the law that allows the club to operate as a state-chartered private social club," reports DNA Info Chicago.

"Chicago police had no jurisdiction to enter the establishment ... unless a call of a fight or incident was made from inside the club. Otherwise they had to treat it like a private residence and could not go in if denied entry."

Maldonado reportedly says he intends to create a city ordinance to require social clubs like the one on Division to acquire a permit in order to operate.

"There absolutely nothing we can do with a place like that," the alderman told the crowd Wednesday, according to DNA Info. "But we are going to fix that law."

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