Agenda item

The interested party noted that there was no application for adult entertainment.  The applicant had amended the commencement hour for the sale of alcohol from 7.30 am to 10am following comments received by interested parties.  The licensing officer stated that the opening hour of the premises would be 7.30 am. Photographs received from the interested party regarding deliveries at 10.10pm were not outside the hours allowed for deliveries.

The interested parties raised concerns about noise from deliveries and dispersal and the cumulative impact in the area.  There were five shops in the area selling alcohol and waste collection carts late at night. They stated that the hours had been extended from the previous licence and they had considerable problems with beggars in the area. They considered that the noise reduction measures were limited and they needed assurance that the applicant would comply with Challenge 25 and be monitored.

In response to a question regarding the low number of objections the interested party responded that she could not force residents to submit representations and that it made more sense for her to make objections on their behalf. The resident stated that the premises in the area impacted daily on their lives with longer hours and more deliveries.  The noise officer reported that there had been no complaints about any restaurant in that terrace in the past year. It was noted that the applicant had proposed most conditions in the operating schedule themselves.  This was a small premise, was not alcohol led and there had been no representation from the licensing authority.

The applicant stated that this was to be a small family led bakery and the family owned a greek restaurant across the road which they had been running for one year.  They had managed a similar store in Shoreditch for five years.  She has agreed to amend the hours originally applied for.  It currently closed at 9pm on weekdays and in the summer it was hoped to open until 10pm.  Both the applicant and her partner were designated premises supervisors and they lived in the area.  They carried out robust training for staff. They operated Challenge 25 in their other premises.  They did not usually have late deliveries and were normally very quiet. They had no waste collections after 6pm and it was not their intention to upset neighbours.  Alcohol was a small part of their business.  They would not be serving inside the premises and alcohol would be sold for ‘off sales’ and for deliveries. 

In response to questions it was noted that groceries would be imported from Greece and cakes and pastries were homemade.  There would not usually be more than five customers on the premises.  There would be four members of staff and it was hoped that customers who used the restaurant would come to the shop to buy produce. 

In summary, the interested parties raised concerns that the conditions would need to be monitored.  This would be one more premises adding to the cumulative impact in the area.  Residents did not complain but they moved on.  The tenants association represented other local residents.  Concerns regarding the waste collection were also raised and the interested party stated that the photo evidence showed that deliveries happened at all hours. They would want to know what times deliveries would happen.

The noise officer stated that she had inspected the flues to the applicant’s restaurant as requested by the Licensing Sub-Committee prior to the opening and had found nothing wrong. The most recent complaint had been received about a premises at the top of Rosebery Avenue about a year ago.  Since the restaurant across the road had opened, there had been no complaints received.

The applicant stated that she was respectful of her neighbours and did not want to cause a nuisance.  She was sad to hear that neighbours were upset.  She was aware that there had been no complaints and was very careful to monitor and comply with regulations.

RESOLVED

1)     That the application for a new premises licence, in respect of The Real Hellenic Taste, 167-169 Farringdon Road, EC1R 3AL be granted to allow:-

a)    The sale by retail of alcohol, off supplies only, from 10 am to 10pm Monday to Sunday.

b)    The premises to be open to the public from 7.30am to 10pm Monday to Sunday.

2)     That conditions outlined on pages 78-81 of the agenda be applied to the licence.

REASONS FOR DECISION

The Sub-Committee listened to all the evidence and submissions and read all the material. The Sub-Committee reached the decision having given consideration to the Licensing Act 2003, as amended, and its regulations, the national guidance and the Council’s Licensing Policy.

The Sub-Committee took into consideration Licensing Policies 2 & 3.  The premises fall within the Clerkenwell cumulative impact area.  Licensing policy 3 creates a rebuttable presumption that applications for the grant or variation of premises licences which are likely to add to the existing cumulative impact will normally be refused following the receipt of representations, unless the applicant can demonstrate in the operation schedule that there will be no negative cumulative impact on one or more of the licensing objectives.

Two local resident objections had been received.  There had been no representations made by the responsible authorities.

The interested parties raised concerns regarding the cumulative impact policy and stated that there were a large number of outlets in the area which impacted on the local area and considered that the area had reached saturation point. Concerns were also raised regarding late deliveries and waste collection.

The applicant stated that this was a small family led deli/bakery.  The family owned a restaurant across the road which they had been running for the past year with no complaints.  The applicant was the designated premises supervisor and lived in the area.  Alcohol would be a small part of the business and was to be sold off sales only.  Groceries and alcohol would be imported from Greece.

The Sub-Committee noted that the hours sought were within the hours specified in licensing policy 6. The applicant had reduced the hours applied for following representations made by residents. There were conditions regarding delivery and waste collection times. The operating schedule was very robust for a small premises which was not alcohol led. The Sub-Committee noted that the application for the provision of recorded music was not necessary as music was to be background only and this was conditioned.

The Sub-Committee concluded that granting the application with the conditions outlined in the papers would not adversely impact on the cumulative impact area or otherwise impact adversely on the promotion of the licensing objectives and that the grant of the licence with the proposed conditions was reasonable and proportionate.

The Sub-Committee also took into account licensing policy 8 regarding standards of management and licensing policy 23 regarding deliveries and collections.