A Near East Side bar accused of fueling weekend after weekend of gunfire, break-ins and assaults is now boarded up until further notice. Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein announced that Aurora Nightlife, located at 1025 E. 5th Ave., would be shut down by court order following a pattern of violent crime tied to the business.
According to Centre Daily Times, Klein's Property Action Team reached an agreement with Franklin County Municipal Court on Oct. 28 to close Aurora Nightlife down. The closure stemmed from a documented history of violent crime, shootings and after-hours liquor sales at the location, per the city's release.
Court documents reviewed as part of the case showed liquor-code violations and numerous police runs at the bar, the city said. Those runs included reports of shots fired, vehicle break-ins, assaults and shootings over the past two weekends alone, and one of the recent shootings involved a 16-year-old.
Permit Pulled, Building Boarded Up
Property owners evicted Aurora Nightlife from the premises, and the building will remain boarded up until further notice, the city said. Aurora Nightlife's liquor permit has also been placed in safekeeping, a step that Ohio law requires when a permit holder's tenancy is terminated, according to Ohio Revised Code Section 4303.272.
As part of the resolution, Aurora Nightlife's owner agreed not to open another illegal bar anywhere in Columbus. The owners also agreed to strict terms should another tenant ever move into the space, with Columbus police and the court set to conduct regular inspections to ensure compliance, the city said. Ohio law does allow a court to permit someone other than the original defendant to occupy premises tied to a nuisance case, but only under bond and no-liquor conditions laid out in Ohio Revised Code Section 3767.05.
“Nightlife cannot come at the expense of public safety,” Klein said in the announcement.
Part of a Broader Columbus Crackdown
Aurora Nightlife is the latest Columbus bar to be forced out under this kind of enforcement action. Earlier this year, Klein announced a similar court order shutting down Pressure Lounge 614, an illegal after-hours club where police had responded to more than 30 calls for service since March 2025, according to The Columbus Dispatch.
Other recent cases show the city leaning on similar tools against problem nightlife spots. A judge ordered the downtown club Aura, formerly known as Avalon, closed for a full year over violence and criminal activity, WOSU Public Media reported. Columbus has also filed suit to shut down three East Side bars at Crossroads Shopping Center, where police logged 66 crime reports over two years, including shootings, assaults and drug-related incidents, per NBC4. In North Linden, the bar First Stop closed permanently after its owners struck a deal with the city following a March 22 shooting that killed one man and wounded another, according to ABC6 On Your Side.
Property Action Team attorney Sophie Yano said community reports often drive these efforts to hold owners and landlords accountable. She urged residents to report problem properties to 311 and to report any criminal activity directly to law enforcement.
