Granby Theater shut down after shooting, put up for sale

The Granby Theater in downtown Norfolk Wednesday morning. (Genevieve Ross/The Virginian-Pilot)

By Matthew Roy, Malcolm Venable and Steve Stone
The Virginian-Pilot

NORFOLK — The Granby Theater, scene of an overnight shooting that left a man critically injured, was closed after its management was given numerous citations for fire and safety concerns.

An owner of the popular venue said late Wednesday that it will not reopen. The move came hours after the vice mayor issued a call for accountability by nightclubs as well as steps to curb violence in the black community.

Police said a man opened fire around 1:15 a.m. Wednesday during an event called “The Soul Provider Birthday Bash” that featured performances by hip-hop artists, including Clipse. It was hosted by 8Ball and MJG.

One man was shot repeatedly. He was listed in critical condition Wednesday afternoon at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. Police said his injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

About 5 p.m. Wednesday, a team of inspectors from Norfolk Fire-Rescue went into the club and were there for several hours.

“We did a spot inspection,” said Battalion Chief Bruce Evans, a fire department spokesman. That came after “some phone calls came into the Fire Marshall’s office with concerns about overcrowding and people’s inability to rapidly exit the theater.”

Evans said the club’s management was given citations for 19 different fire code and “life-safety issues.”

Shortly after the inspectors emerged, the club put out the word that it was suspending operations .

“We have voluntarily closed down,” T.N. Clary, a management consultant for the theater, said late Wednesday. Bobby Wright, an owner said late Wednesday that he wants to sell or lease the site, and by 11 p.m. the building’s marquis had been made into a For Sale sign.

Evans said the owner “voluntarily agreed to close down until he can get these things worked out.”

The exact list of violations was not available Wednesday night.

At a news conference earlier in the day, Vice Mayor Anthony Burfoot said he is concerned about the potential for such violence to reverse downtown redevelopment.

“Any establishment that wants to try to attract the type of crowd that was at that establishment last night, then they need to understand that we will shut them down. And they can come to me if they want to say that it’s a racial issue. I’ll fight that battle,” said Burfoot, who is black.

Norfolk Vice Mayor Anthony L. Burfoot speaks to the media about the shooting this afternoon.GENEVIEVE ROSS/THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT

“The type of party they had last night again was – and I hate to use 'the hip-hop crowd,’ because that’s unfair to some folks – but when I talked to friends of mine that know folk that had ventured to that place last night, that’s basically what I have to say,” he said. “But it’s unfair to single out the entire hip-hop community and say that everybody fits that category when they do not.”

Burfoot also said he wanted to shine a light on the “real issue,” which was “not the club last night … it’s black-on-black crime. And these are the things that need to be addressed. You know, other folk are going to have to get involved. The police cannot solve this problem ... Enough is enough.”

Burfoot spoke flanked by several men, including community activist Michael Muhammad of the Nation of Islam and Curt Anderson, executive director of the Coalition of Young Black Professionals. Muhammad called for civic, political and religious leaders to start a dialogue on the community’s needs.

The incident that sparked it all occurred in a historic theater that reopened in 2005 after extensive renovations.

Clary said hundreds attended a party for a manager of some local musicians. It was open to the public. He said 32 security guards were on hand. They checked people with metal-detecting wands and searched them.

Shortly after 1 a.m., patrons heard shots. People ducked for cover and lay on the floor.

Officers took a man into custody shortly after the shooting. Joseph Reid III, 23, of the 1200 block of Marsh St., Norfolk, was charged with malicious wounding, use of a firearm in a felony and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

State Alcoholic Beverage Control officials are investigating the incident.

Clary said the management of the theater shares Burfoot’s sentiment about downtown and keeps the safety of its patrons paramount. He said management has worked to maintain a classy, safe environment. A dress code is posted at the entrance. He noted that actor Jamie Foxx recently hosted a party there.

The shooting, he said, was “an isolated event, outside of the character of the club.”

The staff is reviewing how a person sneaked a gun through security, he said.

“It’s totally devastating,” said Terrence Thornton, a member of Clipse who goes by the name Pusha T. “It put a black eye on everything we stand for to our fans and the community.”

He said the group had no affiliation with the accused shooter or the victim. “Nothing like this has happened before. We don’t promote violence to anyone and we don’t want that going on.”

But he cautioned against blaming hip hop or his group in particular.

“I don’t condone the 'music made me do it’ theory,” he said.

“It’s easy to say dress code, but what does the dress code have to do with anything? It’s more about infrastructure and organization. Every time we’ve done events there we had a successful night.”

“The Clipse are definitely willing to do any and everything in cooperation with local government. Anything they feel like we should do in regards to curb violence, we’re here,” he said.

Shae Haley, a longtime friend of Clipse and a member of the group N.E.R.D., was at the club when the shooting began.

“All of us came to have a good time. Nobody in my circle knows who was doing the shooting or knows who got shot … We were trying to throw a birthday celebration. The last thing we were trying to do was to ruin a good time. We never wanted it to end up like this.”