Agenda item

The licensing officer reported that the local authority had withdrawn their representations as conditions had been agreed with the applicant.  Revised police conditions were tabled and would be interleaved with the agenda papers.

 

Councillor Nicholls, ward councillor, raised concerns regarding the on and off sales in the cumulative impact zone and the anti-social behaviour in the area  There was no evidence that this premises would not add to the cumulative impact.  He raised concerns about the patrons drinking outside and the starting hours, which would allow 12 hours of drinking. He considered that, if the licence was granted, drinking be inside only, alcohol be ancillary to food and there be conditions applied regarding waste disposal.

 

The applicants stated they had been running a delicatessen in Camden and had received no complaints.  They recognised that this area was different and was a saturation area.  They had held extensive discussions with the police and as a result conditions had been agreed with them.  They would be selling fine wines and craft beers and would not be selling cheap alcohol.  The outside space had previously been used as a public lavatory.  They had replanted the area and added lighting and the anti-social behaviour had disappeared in a month.  They ran wine tastings and courses and sold artisan cheeses.  The area was jet washed each day.  This was an exciting place to be.  The applicant had a petition in support of the shop with 300 signatures. It was hoped to attract other good businesses and they wished to remain in the area.

 

In response to questions it was noted that they needed the area outside to attract custom.  They served food but were not a restaurant.  Conditions had been agreed.  There would be no vertical drinking. There was capacity for about 35/40 people inside and the same number outside.  They did not envisage selling much alcohol before midday. 

 

In summary, the ward councillor considered that off sales were not appropriate for the area and he was concerned about the number of customers outside the premises in an area where there was a high level of anti-social behaviour. 

The applicants stated that they supported the principle behind the cumulative impact policy but did not have an outlet that offered cheap booze.   They required the outside tables as the premises were not very visible and these would let people know that they were there. 

 

RESOLVED

a) That the application for a new premises licence in respect of Forks and Corks, 2-3 Archway Mall, N19 5RG be granted to permit:-

i)       The exhibition of films from 18:00 to 21:00 on Mondays

ii)      Live music from 19:00 to 22:00 Thursday to Saturday.

iii)    The sale of alcohol, on and off supplies from 10:00 until 22:00 Monday to Sunday.

iv)    To allow opening hours from 07:30 until 23:00 Monday to Saturday from 08:00 until 22:00 on Sunday.

b) Conditions detailed below shall be applied to the licence.

1.               The premises will not operate any irresponsible alcohol promotions.

2.               The premises shall operate a zero tolerance to drugs.

3.               The premises shall not admit into the premises or sell alcohol to any persons who appeared drunk or otherwise intoxicated.

4.               There shall be a member of staff on duty at the premises who has been trained in giving first aid.

5.               Children will only be allowed in the premises with a responsible adult.

6.               A refusals log shall be maintained at the premises.

7.               CCTV shall be installed, operated and maintained in agreement with the Police.  Maintained means that the system will be regularly serviced (at least once a year) and checked every two weeks to ensure that it is storing images correctly and a log kept and signed by a Supervisor to this effect.  The system will provide an identifiable full head and shoulder image of everyone entering the premises and will operate in any light conditions within the premises. The system will cover the full exterior of the premises and shall record in real time, date and time stamped and will operate whilst the premises is open for licensable activities.  The recordings will be kept for a minimum of 31 days and copies will be made available to an Authorised Officer or a Police officer (subject to the Data Protection Act 1998) within 24hrs of any request free of charge.  There will always be a member of staff on duty who can operate the system, to allow officers to view recordings and if required by a police officer, provide a copy of images immediately free of charge to assist in the immediate investigation of offences.  If the system malfunctions and will not be operating for longer than one day of business then police must be informed.

8.               An incident log shall be kept at the premises and made available on request to the police or an authorised officer which will record the following.

·        All crimes reported to the venue

·        Any complaints received

·        Any incidents of disorder

·        Any faults in the CCTV system

·        Any visit by a relevant authority or emergency service

·        All ejections of patrons

·        All seizures of drugs or offensive weapons

·        Any refusal of the sale of alcohol.

 

9.               In the event that a serious assault is committed on the premises (or appears to have been committed) the management will immediately ensure that:

a)     The police (and where appropriate, the London Ambulance Service) are called without delay

b)     All measures that are reasonably practicable are taken to apprehend any suspects pending the arrival of the police

c)     The crime scene is preserved so as to enable a full forensic investigation to be carried out by the police; and

d)     Such other measures are taken (as appropriate) to fully protect the safety of all persons present on the premises.

 

10.            The licensee will promote the designated public places order by displaying appropriate signage by the alcohol display for off-sales and by the exit doors of the premises.

 

11.            There will be no vertical drinking within the premises save for a maximum at any one time of 8 persons.

 

12.            Alcohol available for off-sales will not be displayed at the front of the premises.

 

 

13.            Staff at the premises shall receive training. The training shall cover the sale of alcohol and shall be completed prior to the staff member serving at the premises.  Staff training records shall be signed to confirm that they have understood the training.  The training records shall be kept at the premises and provided of officers from the council and police upon reasonable request.

 

14.            The licensee shall adopt the Challenge 25 and the BII National Standards Proof of Age Scheme.

 

15.            The holder of the premises licence shall subscribe to and participate fully in the local pub/club/shop watch scheme.

 

16.            Alcoholic and other drinks purchased from the premises may not be taken away from the immediate curtilage of the premises in open containers such as glasses or opened bottles.

 

17.            Drinking of alcohol will only be consumed by customers seated at the tables outside and within the curtilage of the premises and will be served in polycarbonate containers.

 

18.            Prominent, clear and legible notices must be displayed at all exits requesting the public to respect the needs of local residents and to leave the premises and the area quietly.

 

19.            Doors and windows to the premises will be kept closed, so far as practicable, at all times when noise generating regulated entertainment is taking place ie live and recorded music.

 

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 1, 2 and 3.  The premises fall under the Archway cumulative impact area.  Licensing policy 2 creates a rebuttable presumption that applications for new premises licences that are likely to add to the existing cumulative impact will normally be refused, unless an applicant can demonstrate why the operation of the premises involved will not add to the cumulative impact or otherwise impact adversely on the promotion of the licensing objectives.

 

The Sub-Committee considered that, although the capacity of the premises exceeded fifty, the nature of the operation and the hours specified would not add to the cumulative impact.  The Sub-Committee was satisfied that the premises would not be alcohol led and would operate well within the hours specified in licensing policy 8.

 

The Sub-Committee also considered licensing policy 4 regarding shops selling alcohol and licensing policy 5 regarding the designated outside drinking areas, licensing policy 7 and 8 regarding licensing hours and licensing policies 9 and 10 regarding high standards of management.

 

The Sub-Committee heard the representations of the ward councillor noting his concerns regarding the issues surrounding the redevelopment work that was being carried out in the area, his concerns regarding the provision of off sales and anti-social behaviour in the immediate vicinity of the premises.

 

The Sub-Committee noted that the police and the licensing authority had withdrawn their representations following a meeting with the applicant and the applicants having agreed to conditions suggested by the responsible authorities.

 

The Sub-Committee also noted that the applicants had experience of running similar premises and that the applicant had taken positive steps to enhance the immediate vicinity around the premises and wished to sell specialist wines and beers.

 

In accordance with licensing policy 2, the Sub-Committee was satisfied that the grant of the application with the conditions proposed would not undermine the licensing objectives and there would be no adverse impact on the cumulative impact area.