Fights, racist attacks and labor sanctions: the controversial Waka Sabadell nightclub will close in April

BarcelonaThe Waka Sabadell nightclub will have to close permanently in April. This will mark the end of years of back-and-forth negotiations with the Sant Quirze del Vallès City Council—where the nightclub is located—marked by problems of coexistence and security that have plagued the club, including fights between customers and assaults by security personneloften linked to episodes of racism.

Five years ago, the Sabadell council approved a change of use affecting the nightclub, located on industrial land. With the change, the council allowed a grace period to adapt the economic activities taking place there. This period expires in April, and since Waka Sabadell has not made any changes, it will have to close its doors permanently.

Waka Sabadell is the last vestige of the former Zona Hermética, an industrial park that was also the city's nightclub district. In July 2018, the Sabadell City Council forced all the establishments to close, ending 25 years of history for the nightlife area. On the corner of the Zona Hermética (Hermetic Zone) belonging to Sant Quirze del Vallès, there were two other establishments besides Waka, which have recently reopened, adapting to Sabadell's new municipal regulations and with much smaller capacities. In recent years, no major incidents have occurred at the Waka nightclub, but it had been involved in several in the past. In 2021, security personnel assaulted a young man for racist reasons, sparking riots and a demonstration of about a thousand people—resulting in three injuries—demanding the closure of the business. Furthermore, in February 2022, two men were arrested for sexually assaulting a woman at the nightclub, and in July of the same year, another rape was reported at the venue. Additionally, in September, the Labor Inspectorate fined the establishment and three subcontracted companies €152,174 for employing bouncers without contracts and minors. And in December of the same year A video was made public on social media showing a minor performing oral sex on another minor.This led the City Council to denounce a situation of "defenselessness" due to "unsafe and problematic activity" at the nightclub.