Notorious Houston Nightclub Cle Slapped With Yet Another Liquor License Suspension

Cle, the notorious Houston nightclub that frequently made headlines during 2020 for flouting social distancing guidelines, is back in the news again.

Over the weekend, ABC13 reported that the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission had suspended the club’s liquor license following a shooting at Cle that claimed the lives of two people and injured two more. According to the agency, the suspension is in effect for seven days as the TABC investigates the incident. The club will be allowed to resume operations following that seven day period, “pending the results of the investigation,” according to the TABC.

Houston Police have not released many details about the incident, only that it occurred at around 1 a.m. on Monday morning and involved a single shooter. One of the injured victims remains in critical condition at a local hospital.

This is just the latest temporary liquor license suspension for the Cle Group, which operates Cle and Spire, among other establishments, over the past year. It’s the third suspension for the bar in the past 16 months alone, and comes on the heels of a 60-day suspension that began in January. Its sister spot, Spire, was also issued a 90-day suspension back in January.

Throughout the pandemic, Cle and Spire were able to sidestep regulations intended to encourage social distancing and limited capacity at restaurants by operating as “reception halls” instead of the nightclubs that they actually are. The clubs drew ire from officials like Houston mayor Sylvester Turner, who implored the TABC to crack down on establishments that were breaking COVID-19 regulations as the city attempted to manage the pandemic.

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• TABC Suspends Notorious Houston Bar Spire’s Liquor License [EHOU]
• TABC suspends Houston club’s alcohol license after deadly shooting [ABC13]