Residents say downtown event space at 219 S. Washington creates late-night safety and code concerns

Matt Haslam and his husband told the Wilkes-Barre City Council on Feb. 11 that a business operating at 219 South Washington Street has created repeated late-night disturbances and public-safety risks for nearby residents.

The couple said the venue, advertised online as the “downtown art and event space” and rented for parties, appears to be subletting operations to a separate promoter, Vision to Reality Party and Event Planning. Matt Haslam said the promoter, identified in the meeting as Latoya Jones of Scranton, runs parties that often continue until 2:30 a.m. or 3 a.m., with loud music, large crowds in the shared alley, fights and arrests, and what he described as evidence of drug use and underage drinking.

“My husband and I have spent thousands to remediate infestations and spent virtually every weekend calling police,” Haslam said. He said online videos the couple found…