An LGBTQ nightclub in San Jose's Qmunity District was vandalized just days after Pride festivities in the South Bay city — leading to the bar being closed all day Tuesday, the owner said.
Splash Video Dance Bar owner TJ Bruce, a gay man, told the Bay Area Reporter on August 30 that it will reopen Wednesday after repairs. The city shut off the water main after someone hit it with a blunt object in the wee hours of Tuesday morning, during business hours, according to a video Bruce shared with the B.A.R., leading to a major water leak, as seen in another video.
"Our building was vandalized and we'll be closed tonight," the nightclub stated in a Facebook Story August 29. "We'll reopen tomorrow as usual. Thanks for the patience!"
Bruce said the police were not contacted. After the initial publication of this report, a San Jose Police Department spokesperson responded to a request for comment stating that "I do not see any calls for service or submitted police report for vandalism at Splash within the past week."
Silicon Valley Pride had brought thousands of visitors to downtown San Jose on Sunday, August 27. Above the water main break is a mural about the South Bay's queer history that'd been unveiled by the Qmunity District in 2021, as the B.A.R. reported at the time.
Bruce, who owns a number of LGBTQ nightlife spaces up and down the West Coast, including Splash and Badlands Sacramento, was brought on as a co-manager of San Francisco Badlands, the B.A.R. reported last week. Bruce said it could "be open within 60 days.
Updated, 8/30/23: This article has been updated with comment from the San Jose Police Department.
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