KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County, including Independence. Share your story idea with Tod.
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Building code violations led Kansas City, Missouri, to revoke the occupancy license of a nightclub where two people were killed, and two more were injured in a shooting last weekend.
The city said that its Multidisciplinary Public Safety Task Force determined that Blvd Nights, which owned and operated Status in the 2800 block of Southwest Boulevard, “does not have a valid Certificate of Occupancy.”
Red “Do Not Enter/Occupy” signs were placed on the doors Thursday at 2801 and 2805 Southwest Boulevard, where the nightclub operated, “after it was determined the property City inspectors identified unpermitted construction and modifications that had not received required plan approval, permits, or final inspections.”
Eboni Silas, 29, and Tashauna Ballard, 24, died in the shooting, which took place around 2 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15.
“We are coming after those who don’t follow our rules to ensure that we can protect the health and safety of Kansas Citians,” KCMO Mayor Quinton Lucas said. “Our condolences certainly go out to these young women, and my goal is to make sure that we don’t see an incident like this in a club again.”
With Status closed for the foreseeable future, I visited Southwest Boulevard to speak with businesses in the area. None wanted to go on camera, with several worried about possible retaliation for speaking out.
However, a clear pattern emerged.
Most businesses in the vicinity of Status had been forced to make adjustments due to the large, rowdy crowds the nightclub would attract.
It was common on weekends for vehicles to be parked two deep on both sides of Southwest Boulevard, an area that also has been a popular — and problematic — spot for illegal sideshows in recent years.
The QuikTrip at 31st Street, a few blocks west of Status, confirmed that it closes from 2 to 4 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday mornings around the club’s closing time, unheard of for most of the convenience-store chain’s locations.
Several restaurants in the area also close early on weekends out of concern for staff safety and because the crowds tend to lead to crime — including vehicle break-ins, fights and other violent incidents.
Residents in the area expressed concern, too, as my colleague, Charlie Keegan, learned earlier in the week.
“You usually hear gunfire at night when the place closes,” David Botello, who lives near Status, said.
Kansas City has dealt with nuisance nightclubs before.
After a deadly September 2020 shooting in eastern KCMO, the city moved to revoke 9 Ultra Lounge’s liquor license.
The city created new laws to regulate illegal nightclubs, which operated from other businesses without any oversight, after an afterparty at an auto shop in June 2023 turned deadly in the 5600 block of Prospect Avenue.
“Our goal is always to make sure we’re taking steps before something like this happens,” Lucas said.
Despite 18 prior calls for service to Status, the city wasn’t able to intervene before violence interrupted the Valentine’s Night festivities.
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