Documenting Kumasi MC

You’ve seen this place from Central Parkway before. The Obama mural on the south-facing side makes it instantly recognizable. This place has been empty for over a decade at the time of this writing, but before it was cleared out, it was home to the Kumasi Motorcycle Club. After a series of shootings culminated in the unsolved murder of a man outside the building in 2014, the city shut it down for good.

The owner today says the club was started by some Vietnam veterans. After some time, it became a regular hang-out for neighbors. If you search for it, you’ll come across a really good Flickr album of photos of the club and who I assume are its regulars from the mid- to late-2000s.

The first floor has a load of hand-painted murals on several walls and part of the ceiling as you walk in. Though a lot of the building’s interior has deteriorated and is in a state of renovation, the amateur quality of the remaining murals is endearing and gives you a sense of what the club used to feel like. The two floors above it are primed to receive new apartments.