Early Sunday morning, another violent incident occurred at a troubled bar in Akron’s Firestone Park neighborhood. Around 4:45 a.m., 911 dispatchers began receiving frantic calls from patrons inside the bar on Archwood Avenue, reporting a shooting.
“My friend got shot,” one caller told an operator. When asked if they knew the shooter, the caller responded, “No, they came in the bar and ran.”
According to police, the victim, a 30-year-old security guard, sustained a gunshot wound to the shoulder. He managed to drive himself to Summa Akron City Hospital, where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Authorities have yet to identify any suspects.
The establishment, which has operated under different names over the years—including The Pour House and The Office Bar and Grille—has been a persistent source of disturbances, police said. The venue has been linked to multiple fights, noise complaints, and shootings in recent years.
Kathy Klein, a nearby resident, described the shooting as yet another alarming event that has left her on edge. “Same thing, new year, same problems,” she said. Klein previously spoke with reporters in March 2024 after a separate shooting startled her awake and left bullet holes in her wooden fence. “I heard a lot of gunshots, and it sounded like two different guns firing,” she recalled.
In that case, police reported that a confrontation inside the bar led to gunfire outside, resulting in the death of 41-year-old Roland Williams, who was found shot a few blocks away. Klein, who has remained concerned about ongoing violence, said she was “not surprised at all” by the most recent shooting.
Following the 2024 homicide, investigators uncovered eight prior incidents of shots fired at the bar’s address between November 2022 and the spring of 2024. Some incidents resulted in injuries, while others did not. Since then, two additional reports of gunfire have been recorded, in addition to Sunday’s shooting of the security guard.
Akron Councilman Johnnie Hannah expressed concern over the persistent violence. “Liquor and guns usually result in some type of behavior that ends up with shooting someone or starting a fight,” Hannah said.
The city is now taking steps that could lead to the bar’s closure. City Prosecutor Craig Morgan confirmed that Akron has formally objected to the renewal of the establishment’s liquor license and to the current permit holder’s attempt to transfer ownership. A hearing before the Division of Liquor Control is scheduled for April 4.
Hannah supports the city’s efforts to monitor or potentially shut down the bar. “You have to listen to the residents in our wards, and they’ve been crying for the last two years to shut that bar down,” he said.
Meanwhile, Klein remains vigilant, taking extra precautions when stepping outside her home. “I would love to see that location become another kind of business that’s more conducive to a neighborhood,” she said, hoping for change and an end to the gunfire.