Agenda item

The licensing officer presented their report.  Members had no questions for the licensing officer.

The applicant addressed the sub-committee.  Members had questions for the applicant.

The licensing officer representing the council as a responsible authority addressed the sub-committee and informed them that the had agreed a number of conditions with the applicant.  Members had questions for the licensing officer.

The licensing sub-committee noted that the environmental protection officer had conciliated with the applicant in advance of the meeting.

The licensing sub-committee heard from a local resident objecting to the application.  Members had questions for the local resident.

All parties were offered five minutes for summing up.

The meeting went into closed session at 1.19pm

The meeting resumed at 1.32pm.  The chair did not read out the decision of the sub-committee as nobody was present.

RESOLVED:

That the application made by Brew By Numbers Ltd for a premises licence to be granted under the Licensing Act 2003 in respect of the premises known asBrew By Numbers, Railway Arch, 75 Enid Street,  London SE16 3RA is granted as follows:

Conditions

The operation of the premises under the licence shall be subject to relevant mandatory conditions, conditions derived from the operation schedule highlighted in Section M of the application form, the conciliated conditions agreed with the responsible authorities and the following additional conditions agreed by the sub-committee:

1.  That the dispersal policy shall be kept at the premises with licence and made available for inspection by authorised officers.

2.  That clear legible signage shall be prominently displayed where it can be easily seen and read, requesting that alcohol sold as off sales should not be opened and consumed in the vicinity of the premises

3.  That no drinks in opened containers shall be allowed outside the premises, which includes the area directly outside the front exit door.

4.  That all staff shall be trained with in regards to the conditions on the licence and the four licensing objectives. The training records shall include the name of the member of staff; and the date of the training. Training records shall be kept at the premises and made available for inspection by authorised officers

5.  That the toilets located outside of the premises must be secured and not accessible for general public use outside of the hours of operation.

6.  That a maximum of 5 patrons at any one time, may stand in the area directly outside the front exit door to smoke.

7.  That any barriers erected to contain patrons within the limits of the premises must be within the limitations of the permitted land agreed with network rail and not obstruct any highways.

Reasons

The reasons for the decision are as follows:

The licensing sub-committee heard from the applicant who was able to explain that the company had been occupying another premises a number of arches down from this premises.  He stated that, in short, the business concept had become increasingly popular and as such the existing premises were no longer able to cope with the capacity of patrons regularly attending.  

He explained that the new premises would be able to accommodate the patrons inside the venue under the railway arch.  He also explained that as the venue was created for the purpose of hosting patrons, investment was being made to ensure that adequate seating was provided to patrons and following the conciliation meeting with environmental protection team they would be investing in PVC sheeting to reduce noise nuisance.  The applicant highlighted that he had acknowledged the observations and objections made by the local residents and was taking action to try and address the issues. 

The licensing sub-committee heard from the licensing responsible authority who indicated that they had met with the applicant before the meeting and had conciliated on the basis of having agreed a number of conditions with the applicant.

The licensing sub-committee noted that the environmental protection officer had conciliated with the applicant.

The licensing sub-committee heard that one of the local residents had considered the conciliated conditions agreed with EPT and as a result had withdrawn their representations. 

The sub-committee heard from one other local resident objecting to the application.  The resident stated that they were reassured that the existing premises were no longer proposing to host patrons outside and that the purpose of the new premises was to move the patrons inside with only a limited amount of individuals being permitted to use the outside area for smoking.  They did however identify that whilst the PVC sheet was a good idea, they did not anticipate it being able to stop the noise reaching local residents.

The resident also raised concerns, based on the running of the existing premises regarding the patrons using their gardens and those of their neighbours to urinate.  It was set out that whilst the premises were complying with legal guidelines by having two toilets available for the number of patrons, it was however not sufficient to prevent patrons from acting in such a manner.  It was suggested that perhaps more pro-active security staff could go a long way to prevent this being an issue.  Finally the resident set out that there is an issue regarding where and how the perimeter of the premise should be marked, it was discussed that there is an issue with patrons standing in the roads and that there was a clear safety issue. 

The applicant was able to address the concerns raised by the resident to such an extent that the resident was able to say that they felt that their concerns had been allayed.

The licensing sub-committee considered all of the oral and written representations before it and were of the opinion that in the circumstances that the licence should be granted.  They recognised the attempts made by the applicant to address concerns raised by the relevant authorities and the residents and felt that the conciliated conditions went a long way to prevent further nuisance to local residents.  A number of further conditions were also given so as to further protect the residents and the patrons themselves. 

In reaching this decision the sub-committee had regard to all the relevant considerations and the four licensing objectives and considered that this decision was appropriate and proportionate.

Appeal rights

The applicant may appeal against any decision:

a)  To impose conditions on the licence

b)  To exclude a licensable activity or refuse to specify a person as premises supervisor.

Any person who made relevant representations in relation to the application who desire to contend that:

a)  The  licence ought not to be been granted; or

b)  That on granting the licence, the licensing authority ought to have imposed different or additional conditions to the licence, or ought to have modified them in a different way

may appeal against the decision.

Any appeal must be made to the Magistrates’ Court for the area in which the premises are situated. Any appeal must be commenced by notice of appeal given by the appellant to the justices’ clerk for the Magistrates’ Court within the period of 21 days beginning with the day on which the appellant was notified by the licensing authority of the decision appealed against.