Homeowners hope to shame bad bars

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Some bar goers in northwest Houston may be surprised to find themselves in an unflattering light on the Internet. Some residents are battling with bars in their neighborhood by grabbing their cameras, and posting what they catch online. The residents live on a stretch of Washington Avenue that been bustling with nightclubs.

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Over the past two years, the Washington corridor has become a bustling hot spot of nightlife, featuring bars and restaurants. While the increased business might be good, some neighbors say it has also brought noise, drunken debauchery and safety concerns to their neighbors. They say it's time that they do something about it.

The video might be grainy and you can't identify the people, but it's quite clear that it captures a bar brawl spilling onto the street. It was captured on camera by Larissa Lindsey, sitting at a bus stop at 2am.

"We have people who are vomiting," she said. "We have pictures of them vomiting on our sidewalks."

Lindsey started videotaping what goes on along Washington Avenue after she and other homeowners got fed up with drunken patrons in their neighborhood.

"The people peeing everywhere, the music being loud," explained frustrated resident Brian Baker. "People are getting in their cars, being overserved, driving while intoxicated in our neighborhood."

Homeowner Lee Strauss said, "It's one thing if they were being loud by accident. If we said, 'Hey, please be quiet,' and they would say, 'Oh, we're sorry, we're sorry.' But instead they say, 'Well, what are you gonna do, huh?'"

Lindsey says she and her neighbors just want the clubs to serve less and call taxis more. Until they get the results, they will continue to videotape and post what they capture on the Internet.

"We don't want to stop someone from opening what's a legitimate business," Lindsey said. "But we also want them to be really good neighbors. So let's find a way to work together."

We tried to interview one of the club owners, but he refused. Next week, some of the bar owners will be meeting with homeowners. In the meantime, the videos are posted to YouTube and the photos are posted on Flickr.

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local, miya shay

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