THE owners of the Barmooda building on
the corner of Station Road and Lower Main Road have vehemently
denied that the controversial night club will return to premises.
This follows a broadcast by Reon
Hekrath, the owner of Barmooda which burnt down in June this year,
via the Blackberry Messaging service that “Barmooda will be around
soon, for a very long time”.
He gave no indication of where he
intends to reopen his nightclub, which for years was the cause of
many noise and nuisance complaints in Observatory.
But according to a former employee who
did not want to be named, and who is friendly with Reon, the talk is
that Barmooda will be coming back to Obs.
Reon message, sent out to former
employees and patrons, reads: "So Barmooda officially opened its
doors eight years ago today (4 December) We've had many, many great
nights with amazing people. I'd like to take this opportunity to
thank each and every one of you for contributing to the success of
Barmooda over the past eight years. The DJ's, bartenders, security
personnel, the cleaning staff, and most importantly, the patrons. My
dream was to reach ten years, a decade, but unfortunately I never
achieved this there, and coming back from what has happened has not
been an easy task. However, there's been an overwhelming show of
support, and I intend on completing the rest of the two years, so
that I may achieve my ten year goal. There is no doubt that Barmooda
will be around soon, for a very long time.The official Barmooda
Capetown group went live today on Facebook. Best Regards, Reon".
But Brian Roberts of Zhauns Business
Opportunity and Engineering Group which owns the building, said they
will “not ever” allow Barmooda back into the building, "under
no circumstances will he (Reon) be allowed back”. Asked why
Barmooda will not be allowed back, Brian said: "We have our own
reasons, which cannot be disclosed."
ObsLife tried to contact Reon, but he
was unavailable for comment.
The Barmooda building burnt down in
June when a robber set the building alight. It was not the first time
for the night club to be the scene of major crime. A well-known
gangster Ricky Oaker was shot and killed in front of the club a few
years ago and rumours abounded about the club’s links to drug
gangs.
