Police said the property was the source of many complaints and they were called there for a variety of criminal activities.
“There has been numerous and deliberate violations where the property was being occupied and they were functioning as an event hall even after orders were given,” said Dayton police Lt. Stephen Clark, watch commander with the West Patrol Operations Division.
Owner Willie Parson told the zoning appeals board criminal activities did not take place directly on his property and he wanted to take over operation of the building, instead of leasing it out, to clean things up and correct any problems.
“Me and my wife want to save our building,” he said. “We are trying to upgrade our building."
Parson says he has owned the commercial property on James H. McGee for more than 20 years, which is south of West Fifth Street and located in the MacFarlane neighborhood.
The property contains a 3,460-square-foot building and a small paved area on the north side.
The building’s floor plan shows two offices, a dining and kitchen area and a large central room, city staff said.
Parson recently applied for a use variance to create an assembly hall, with a capacity of up to 40 people. Assembly halls are not permitted in that zoning district.
The property once was used as a church, but more recently it operated as a place of assembly without prior approval and went by the names the Blue Room and Beanz Place, according to a city of Dayton planning staff analysis.
A business check in June 2018 revealed Parson was operating the facility as a rental hall that served alcohol and had a fully stocked bar, wrote Dayton police Major Chris Malson, commander of the West Patrol Operations Division, in a letter to the zoning board.
Later that year, police responded to a shooting at the property, Malson said, and police responded to two shootings at the property in 2019, including one murder.
Javon Jones, 24, was shot and killed outside of the property in August 2019.
Officers also discovered a variety of other violations and criminal offenses at the property in 2019, including drug possession and receiving stolen property, Malson said.
This year, the city and police say there have been eight violations at the property, and all noted the business was operating in violation of a standing order and without the proper licenses.
Parson told the zoning board he tried to put policies in his leasing agreements that required tenants act responsibly and legally. But he said some tenants lied on their paperwork or did not follow the rules and betrayed his trust.
“I feel sorry about some of the stuff that happened over there ― which never, ever even happened on the premise, thank God,” Parson said.
Parson said he terminated his lease with a tenant in August after he was served with an official cease and desist order from Public Health ― Dayton & Montgomery County. The order was for operating food service without a license.
Parson told the zoning appeals board that he recently decided to take over the operation of the building and run it himself. He said he owns other properties and businesses.
“I have a reputation downtown with everybody, and I don’t want ... people to say, ‘That building ain’t nothing but trouble,'” he said. “While I have plans to change a lot of things around here, I need the city to be behind me and help me out.”
Parson pledged to do background checks before allowing people to use the property. He said he removed everything from inside the property that gave the feel of a night club.
But Lt. Clark said police responded to five calls at the property in August, which does not suggest conditions there are improving.
In mid-August, officers observed a couple dozen vehicles parked by the property and there were multiple security staff wearing SWAT- and military-style rifle armor, which is even more heavy-duty than regular police body armor, he said.
“My question is what type of establishment are you actually running,” he said, “because obviously (why do you) need three security guards, heavily armed in tactical vests?”
Clark said Parson was instructed by police and fire inspectors to cease operations but he did not.
“Although you may not be present, the property owner is responsible for the actions the tenants are taking,” he said.
Members of the zoning appeals board said they were concerned the owner was not taking responsibility for problems at the property.
They said non-permitted uses were allowed to continue and so were unsafe activities, and zoning request did not meet the basic conditions required for a variance.
About the Author
