Agenda item

In the matter of the application for the variation of a Premises Licence, the Committee has considered the relevant representations made.

The Committee has made the following determination:

With a view to ensuring the promotion of the licensing objectives, in accordance with the provisions of the statutory guidance and the principles of our licensing policy, the application for the variation of a Premises Licence, was agreed subject to the following conditions being added to the premises licence:

 Conditions

The premises shall install and maintain a comprehensive CCTV system. All entry and exit points of the public serving area will be covered enabling frontal identification of every person entering in any light condition. The CCTV system shall continually record whilst the premises is open for licensable activities and during all times when customers remain on the premises. All recordings shall be stored for a minimum period of 31 days with date and time stamping. Recordings shall be made available upon reasonable request of Police or authorized officer throughout the preceding 31- day period.

A staff member from the premises who is conversant with the operation of the CCTV system shall be on the premises at all times when the premises are open. This staff member must be able to show a Local Authority or Police Officer recent data or footage upon reasonable request.

Notices shall be displayed advertising that CCTV is in operation

An incident log shall be kept at the premises, and made available on request to an authorized officer of the Council or the Police, which will record the following:

(a) All crimes reported to the venue.

(b) Any complaints received.

(c) Any faults in the CCTV system.

(d) Any refusal of the sale of alcohol.

(e) Any visit by a relevant authority or emergency service.

A minimum of one (1) SIA registered door supervisor must be on duty when the premises is conducting licensable activity after midnight. When open past midnight the door supervisors must be on duty from 2200hrs until closure of the premises.

A proof of age scheme, such as Challenge 25, shall be operated at the premises where the only acceptable forms of identification are (recognized photographic identification cards, such as a driving license or passport / Holographical marked PASS scheme identification cards).

A zero tolerance to illegal drugs shall be operated at the premises.

Notices shall be prominently displayed at the premises requesting clients and delivery drivers to respect the needs of local residents and businesses and leave the area quietly

Notices shall be prominently displayed at any area used for smoking requesting patrons to respect the needs of local residents and use the area quietly.

Patrons permitted to temporarily leave and then re-enter the premises (including the smoking area) e.g. to smoke, shall not be permitted to take drinks or containers with them.

Smoking will only be permitted outside the front of the premises.

Patrons will not be permitted to access the area at the back of the premises as this does not form part of the licensable area.

Bottling out will be restricted to the following hours:

Monday to Friday: 8.00am to 6.00pm

Saturday: 8.00am to 1.00pm

Any Music played must be set at a level that no noise or vibration that causes a nuisance shall be detectable outside or at any neighbouring premises.

All staff to undergo Licensing training which will be documented and provided to police / licensing authority on request. This training is to be refreshed every 12 months. All new staff must undergo this training before being allowed to sell alcohol.

When live or recorded music is being played at the premises all doors and windows are to remain closed unless to allow entry or egress.

The premises must take all reasonable steps to encourage onward journeys and ensure the customers of the premises do not loiter outside so not to cause a disturbance to the local residents and businesses.

A documented dispersal policy must be in place and reviewed annually with the metropolitan police/local authority. Egress for patrons must be at the front of the premises at all times, not the rear.

The premises license holder shall ensure all persons who work on the premises have provided satisfactory proof of identification and the right to work and have carried out checks on the home office website to verify identification, visa and the right to work documents.

All documents of members of staff will be retained for a period of 12 months post termination of employment and will be made available to the police, immigration and/or Licensing officers upon reasonable request.

All delivery drivers must not leave their engines running whilst waiting for their orders nor must they congregate on the road outside the premises.

In coming to a determination the Committee considered the following matters;

1.    The Committee noted the representations made by residents. Over the last year they had suffered noise nuisance from:

·      disposal of bottles as they are thrown into recycling bins

·      patrons loitering around the alleyway area, cars with engines running and barbeques hosted in the area.

·      noise associated with closing up procedures including closing shutters and patrons’ arrival and egress from the restaurant.

·      The noise from Music escaping from the premises.

2.   The Committee noted that the applicant runs an African restaurant. Customers attend the restaurant late and also like to eat late. When she closes her restaurant, she loses trade as customers go to a nearby restaurant with a later alcohol licence.

3    The Committee noted that the applicant has been managing the business for 18 months, and could not, therefore, be responsible for any of the problems that had been associated with the premises before then. In addition, the alleyway behind the premises is a public area and the applicant is not responsible for the anti-social behaviour that takes place in this area. Customers do not use the exit at the rear of the property.

4.   Members of the Committee noted that the conditions proposed by the Police and licensing officers had been accepted by the applicant. It was agreed that these conditions addressed the concerns of the objectors.

5.   The Committee agreed that granting this application would promote the four licensing objectives.

4.1      The Chair welcomed all parties to the meeting and introductions were made. She then invited Ms Hooper to introduce the application.

            Licensing Officer   

4.2      Ms Hooper said that members were being asked to consider this application for the variation of a premises licence for Planet 68, 68 Rushey Green SE6 4JD. She outlined the application for the licensable activities which had been made by Amoge Isabelle Okeke. Representations had been received from three local residents within relatively close proximity of the premises on the grounds of public nuisance. Conditions had been agreed between the applicant, the Licensing Authority and the Police. Ms Hooper outlined the options open to members when making their decision.

            Application

4.3      Ms Okeke said that she runs an African restaurant. Customers attend the restaurant late and also like to eat late. It was for this reason that she had applied to extend her licensable hours.

4.4      In the past, she hosted parties and applied for Temporary Event Notices to remain open beyond their licensed hours. However, she can only apply for 10 of these events in the year, and demand exceeded this.

4.5      Ms Okeke said that objectors referred to problems they had suffered in the past, but she has only run this restaurant for 18 months. These problems relate to the previous owners. She referred to an’ L’ shaped area at the back of the premises. She said that it is a public area and the activities that take place in that area were not in her control.

4.6      A party was held in the area recently that created a lot of noise. She had CCTV evidence to prove that their restaurant was closed when the party was taking place.

4.7      It was not expected that the restaurant would be open every night of the week. If there are no customers, the restaurant would be closed. The rear of the premises is not used for the delivery of food, so there would never be motorcycles at the rear of their property waiting to deliver food for the restaurant.

4.8      The Chair asked when Ms Okeke took over the business. Ms Okeke said that she has managed the restaurant since May 2018.

4.9      The Chair was advised that representations had not been received from relevant authorities.

4.10    Councillor Campbell asked whether officers had received any noise complaints. Ms Hooper said that the licensing team had not made a representation so she did not have any information to give the member upon which a decision could be made.

4.11    Councillor Campbell said that residents had complained about the noise from bottles clattering into refuse bins all hours of the night. She asked whether bottles could be disposed of at a reasonable hour. Ms Hooper said this could be included as a condition on the premises licence. Ms Okeke said that they do not dispose of bottles at night, they are packed into small boxes as they use them during the day.

4.12    Councillor Campbell asked whether a condition could be added to the licence with regard to preventing cars idling outside the premises. Ms Hooper said that there is a dispersal policy which addresses this issue.

4.13    Mr Okoye said that not every car parked at the rear of the property can be associated with Planet 68. It is a public area and there are several other eating establishments in the area that could be parking in this public area.

4.14    Councillor Howard asked whether there are any other establishments in the area operating until 03.30. Mr Amragoni said that there is a restaurant very near them, and when Planet 68 closes, patrons go to this restaurant because they have a later alcohol licence.

            Representation

4.15    Mr Dinham said that he was speaking on behalf of himself and his wife. He said that their house runs parallel to the rear access of Planet 68. He said that they oppose the extension of the hours of operation. He outlined the current hours of operation and said that these were more than generous considering the fact that it is located in a residential area.

4.16    Mr Dinham said that their key concerns were:

• Excessive noise from patrons using the courtyard area at the rear of Planet 68
• Excessive noise from patrons late in the evening and in the early hours leaving and arriving at the premises.
• Excessive noise escaping from inside the premises.

4.17    Mr Dinham said that in correspondence with Lewisham Council, he was assured that patrons of Planet 68 will not have use of the external courtyard area. They had also been advised that there were measures in place regulating patrons as they arrive and leave the premises. This includes signs being displayed and a dispersal policy.

4.18    Mr Dinham said that there was still concern regarding noise spillage from inside the premises. This has been tolerated by residents under current operating hours. He said that although the premises is situated on the main road, it is surrounded by several residential properties.

4.19    Mr Dinham said that to go beyond the current operating hours would be a risk for potential noise nuisance on local residents in the early hours of the morning. It would also draw residents, the Council and the premises into long running disputes about noise which would be time consuming for all concerned in this densely populated area. He said that they support page four of the licensing policy which outlines the necessity to balance the operation of a licensed premises with the needs of local residents and enjoyment of their homes.

4.20    In conclusion, he said that residents were happy for Planet 68 to continue trading in the area with a music and alcohol licence, but asked that this be contained within the current licensable hours.

4.21    Mr Vincent Yip addressed the Committee on behalf of Michael Yip who is a local resident with a young family. He said that Mr Yip’s premises backs onto the alleyway at the rear of Planet 68. The noise from this area is acute and affects all his family at night when trying to sleep. He said that there were 3 areas of concern:

• Bottle disposal – he had heard the applicant’s explanation of how bottles were disposed of, but Mr Yip experiences the noise of bottles dropping into a recycling bin on a regular basis. This had continued for the last year.
• Patrons loitering around the alleyway area –Planet 68 had explained that they do not have control over patrons who loiter or as they leave the area. However, a barbeque was held by staff at Planet 68 in that area in August 2019, and guests appeared to spill to the outside area. There were concerns, therefore, that this behaviour would recur.
• Closing up procedures – Mr Yip’s property is the closest to Planet 68 and noises like closing shutters causes a lot of noise nuisance. If the extension of hours is granted, these noise nuisances will affect residents a lot later during the early hours of the morning. This will affect the ability of Mr Yip and his family to sleep at night.

4.22    In conclusion, Mr Yip said that nuisance experienced by local residents has been recurrent, in a residential area, very close to residential properties and take place during a time of day when families were trying to sleep. Granting this licence would undermine the licensing objective of the prevention of a public nuisance but also protection of children from harm and he asked members not to extend the operating hours.

4.23    The Chair asked officers about the alleyway behind the premises and whether Planet 68 can operate within this area. Ms Hooper said that the area is not part of the plan and must not be used for licensable activities.

4.24    Councillor Wise asked whether the gate on the alleyway must be kept open. Ms Okeke said that the gate must be kept open because it is a fire exit.

4.25    Councillor Wise asked where the barbeque started. Ms Okeke said that she hosted a barbeque for her birthday which started at 3pm and guests were served in the alleyway. She spoke to officers in the licensing team who advised her that she does not have permission to do this so she has not held a barbeque since then.

4.26    Councillor Wise asked whether patrons exit the premises at the rear into the alleyway. Ms Okeke said that patrons exit at the front of the property. Staff leaving at the end of the evening are the only people to leave at the rear.

4.27    The Chair said that residents had referred to noise leakage, and asked whether the back door is kept closed when live music is played. Ms Hooper said that there is a proposed condition that all doors and windows are to remain closed when live music is played, unless to allow entry or egress.

 4.28   Members of the Committee then withdrew to make their decision. When they           returned it was:

RESOLVED thatthe application be granted with the hours and conditions recommended by the Police and licensing officers.

4.29    Ms Hooper said that an appeal may be made against this decision to the Magistrates Court within 21 days from the date of the decision letter which would be sent out within 5 days of the meeting.

4.30    The Chair asked the applicant to address the issues raised by the objectors, particularly with regard to the noise made when disposing of glass bottles. She reminded objectors that they could apply for the licence to be reviewed if the licensing objectives are not being upheld.