WORCESTER -- A violent brawl in which more than 100 people were involved erupted in the Harrison and Water Street area last night around 1 a.m., resulting in three people being stabbed, two arrests, and a window of the Wycked Java store front being shattered.

Police said that many in the crowd were armed with bats, bottles and knives, and that officers were pelted with bottles as they exited their cruisers. Police also said two of the victims are known local gang members.

Officers believe the melee broke out after a New York comedian had finished a performance at The Mambo Lounge on 105 Water Street. According to people who work in the neighborhood, this is not the first time trouble has brewed outside the popular nightclub.

"There have been fights there for the past year since Mambo installed. The crowd that Mambo gets is a high-end crowd that attracts big bands from New York," Scott Fair, who renovated Wycked Java when it first opened, "The problem is that some of the local gangs like to hang out outside, they won't go in because bouncers will keep them out."

Worcester Police Department has received 44 calls in the past year regarding The Mambo Lounge.

The Mambo Lounge could not immediately be reached for comment, as they are only open Tuesday through Sunday.

Allen Fletcher, vice president of the Canal District Alliance, a non-profit committed to the revitalization of the neighborhood, said the district is being held back by a speckling of businesses that seem to attract trouble, but that progress will continue.

However, he also said that his knowledge of engagements at The Mambo Lounge were hearsay.

"It's like static. It's choppy waters that we're going to plow through. These things come and go," Fletcher said. "We could go to Mambo, but we don't have any enforcement ability. Sooner or later, if it's really bad, and if they're really the continued cause of problems ... they're going to be forced to vacate."

Michael Erlich, owner of Whiskey on Water and Perfect Game, said there is concern over the recent violence on the street where his bars are located.

"Anytime you have people getting arrested in an area where you want people to congregate and have fun, it's a problem," Erlich said.

Erlich said he feels the police are doing "as good as they can," but that it's hard to enforce against everything. Fletcher said an officer has been posted on Harrison Street for the past year to watch out for trouble in the area.

"The more it goes on, the more you risk innocent people becoming victims," Erlich said.