ST. LOUIS • City officials say they are concerned about safety at a Soulard nightclub following the fatal shooting Thursday of a man after he left the bar at closing time.

After the killing Thursday, Robert Kraiberg, the city's excise commissioner, met with the lawyer for and a manager of the Social House of Soulard at 1551 South 7th Street to find out what happened inside the bar before it closed.

The Social House has been on a list of nuisance properties for more than a year because of complaints of fights, noise, property damage and rowdy behavior.

"We've had it on the radar for awhile now," said city Operations Director Sam Dotson.

One of its owners also ran the controversial downtown nightclub, Lure, that lost its liquor license in 2010 after similar complaints.

James M. Clavin, 34, was shot to death about 2:40 a.m. during an argument with men after he left the Social House, police said.

Witnesses saw Clavin walking in the 1500 block of 8th Street when he began quarreling with several men, police said. Clavin was shot in the chest and groin, then taken to a hospital where he died.

Witnesses heard several gunshots and saw the men run away, police said. Police made no arrests Thursday. St. Louis police did not have any descriptions of the men who shot him.

Police say they do not know whether Clavin fought with anyone inside the Social House before he was shot or if his killer or killers came from the nightclub.

City officials would not discuss details of Thursday's meeting but John Bouhasin, a lawyer for Social House owners Aprille Trupiano and Josh Sample, said there were no fights or arguments among any patrons before the bar closed at 2:20 a.m.

Bouhasin said the bar's two off-duty police officers who were providing security were among the first to respond to the shooting.

"This did not arise from or come out of the bar," Bouhasin said. "The shooters were not patrons of the bar."

Bouhasin said the city's nuisance ordinance is "overly broad" that puts property owners on notice after just a couple of complaints. He also said the Social House's address is often used in police reports for incidents occurring nearby the bar.

Trupiano also ran the former Lure nightclub in downtown St. Louis that lost its liquor license after being targeted by neighbors and city leaders for a flurry of violence, complaints of unruly behavior and underage drinking. That club was renamed Amnesia.

Records show St. Louis police have been called to the Social House bar 34 times in the past year for fights, property damage, a robbery, noise, auto thefts and other problems.

Last Friday, Charles Bryson, the city's director of public safety, sent a letter to Social House's owners renewing the bar's status as nuisance property and summoning its owners to a meeting aimed at reducing problems.

Clavin lived in the 8500 block of Vasel Drive in the Affton area of St. Louis County. His relatives could not be reached Thursday.

The Social House drew attention in September when a man from Columbia, Ill., was killed after a group of people left the Social House and gathered in a nearby parking lot. A fight erupted, and Gary Patch, 40, was struck by a minivan that drove into the fray, police said. The minivan tossed Patch's body into the air and dragged him down the street.

Police later arrested the man suspected of driving that minivan. Emmanuel Sanchez, 27, of Belleville, was charged with second-degree murder, assault, armed criminal action and marijuana possession.