Agenda item

63-64 Frith Street, London, W1D 3JW (“The Premises”)

19/04820/LIPN

1.

Sale by Retail of Alcohol – On and Off Sales

Monday to Saturday: 10:00 to 00:00

Sunday: 12:00 to 23:30

Specific details restricting the sale and consumption of alcohol:

1. The permitted hours for the sale of alcohol are as follows:

(a)    On weekdays, other than Christmas Day and Good Friday, 10.00  to 23.00.

(b)    On Sundays, other than Christmas Day, 12.00 noon to 22.30.

(c)    On Good Friday, 12.00 to 22.30.

(d)    On Christmas Day, 12.00 to 15.00 and 19.00 to    22.30.

(e)    On New Year's Eve from the end of permitted hours on New Year's Eve to the start of permitted hours on the following day (or, if there are no permitted hours on the following day, 00.00 midnight on 31st December).

2.   Alcohol may be sold or supplied for one hour following the hours set out above (other than Christmas Day and New Year's Eve), and on Christmas Day, between 15.00 and 19.00, to persons taking table meals in the premises in a part of the premises usually set apart for the service of such persons and for consumption by such a person in that part of the premises as an ancillary to his meal. For other purposes or in other parts of the premises the hours set out above shall continue to apply.

Amendments to application advised at hearing:

None.

Decision (including reasons if different from those set out in report):

The Sub-Committee considered an application by Gladwin Brothers Enterprises Ltd (“The Applicant”) for a new premises licence in respect of 63-64 Frith Street, London, W1D 3JW.

The Licensing Officer introduced the application and confirmed that the proposed hours sought for the provision of recorded music had been reduced to between 10:00 to 00:00.

Mr Spiegler, representing the applicant, highlighted that that the establishment had benefitted from a previous premises licence. It was explained that condition 9 on this licence prohibited any intoxicating liquor from being sold or supplied in the area marked as the restaurant other than to persons taking a table meal. The Sub-Committee was advised that the original plans did not identify a designated restaurant area. It was therefore considered that this condition was unenforceable and one of the aims of the application before the Sub-Committee was to tidy up this anomaly and increase the level of control over the Premises. The existing licence had very few conditions attached to it and the applicant had only recently been made aware that it had actually lapsed under section 27 of the Licensing Act, as the existing licence holder had recently been dissolved.

The application being submitted had originally been made on the same terms as the previous licence, subject to some slight changes to the layout of the Premises. The proposed changes included the introduction of a show kitchen/coffee bar at the rear of the ground floor and a chef’s table in the basement for up to 20 persons. The new application had been submitted due to these layout changes and also as the applicant was aware that the current licence was at risk. The application had subsequently been amended and a new set of conditions were proposed which were more restrictive than those previously imposed, and which provided a greater level of control over the establishment. It included a number of the Council’s model licensing conditions, including model condition 38 which would be imposed throughout the Premises except for the hatched area designated on the new plans. Even in this hatched area however the Sub-Committee was informed that anyone consuming alcohol would have to be seated in order to prevent any vertical drinking from taking place. Mr Spiegler also confirmed that the proposed hours permitting the provision of recorded music had been scaled back to between 10:00 and 22:00 hours.

The applicants addressed the Sub-Committee and highlighted that aside from the last year, the Premises had operated as a high-quality restaurant. The application before it was seeking to bring back the high-quality nature of the establishment. The Sub-Committee noted that the applicants already operated 3 premises throughout London and were informed of the nature of these venues.

Mr Spiegler commented that no representations had been received from the Police or local residents and advised that those received by the Licensing Authority and Environmental Health (EH) were mainly based on policy issues. Paragraph 2.4.8 of the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy recognised that applications for new licences to replace licences which had lapsed due to insolvency could be considered as a possible exception to policy. Another possible exception was set out in paragraph 2.4.7 with the substitution of a licence with one which would have less impact on the area. Mr Spiegler advised that the proposed new licence would see a reduction in the hours for some licensable activities with no changes to the capacity of the Premises. Model conditions would be imposed on the licence, the hours permitting recorded music had been reduced and this was likely to result in the Premises having less impact in the Cumulative Impact Area (CIA). All conditions had been agreed with EH aside from four which related to the timings of deliveries and servicing. It was advised that this was because no such restrictions had been placed on the old licence and the applicant was not aware of any residents having raised these issues as areas of concern. It was also felt that imposing such conditions could have the effect of impacting on the delivery of fresh food to the Premises in the mornings.

Mrs Fabbricatore, representing Environmental Health, confirmed that the main outstanding issue centred on the four conditions proposed by EH regarding servicing and deliveries. There were no concerns with regards to public safety from the proposals and the applicant’s suggested conditions addressed how the Premises would operate. The servicing and deliveries conditions were the ones usually added to a new licence and this was why they had been suggested. No complaints had been submitted to EH with regards to the Premises previously and therefore it was a matter for the Sub-Committee whether to grant the application or not.

Ms Abbot, representing the Licensing Authority, confirmed that the Premises was located in a CIA and would operate as a restaurant with a bar area. Paragraph 2.5.3 of the Council’s Licensing Policy was referred to as it stated concerns that restaurants located in the CIA should not come to operate, even in part, as bars. The policy had particular concerns over vertical drinking and therefore the proposed condition requiring all customers to be seated was welcomed. The hatched area of the plans would have to be considered under policy PB2 which advised that the grant of new licences for pubs/bars in a CIA should be limited to exceptional circumstances. The Licensing Authority noted that the previous licence had lapsed on 9 July 2019, however it was emphasised that there was still a 28-day period for an interim authority notice to be submitted to the Licensing Authority to resurrect the licence. It was confirmed that as yet, no applications had been submitted. Therefore, in conclusion, the applicant had to demonstrate that the Premises would not add to cumulative impact and the Sub-Committee had to be satisfied that exceptional circumstances had been shown.

The Council’s Legal Adviser advised the Sub-Committee of potential policy considerations that needed to be taken into account because of the new application. Previously, under the old licence, the establishment was drink-led until 23:00 hours Monday to Saturday and 22:30 hours on Sundays. An additional hour was then permitted in addition to those hours for those customers then taking a table meal. There was therefore concern that for the additional hour the Premises could now be drink-led in the hatched area which was a provision which went beyond what was previously permitted. This was contrary to policy and different to the original licence. In response Mr Spiegler commentated that it was his opinion that the ambiguity on the old licence allowed the Premises to be a drink-led establishment. The new licence was more tightly controlled however and would require all customers in the Premises to be seated whether they were drinking alcohol or not. Mr Spiegler suggested that if the Sub-Committee interpreted condition 9 on the old licence as permitting the Premises to be drink-led before 23:00 then the application before it would ensure that overall there was no addition to cumulative impact in the local area.

The Council’s legal adviser indicated that, irrespective of the enforceability of condition 9 on the previous licence, there was still the overriding requirement in condition 17 that alcohol could only be sold after 23.00 on weekdays (including Saturday) and after 22.30 on Sundays to persons taking a table meal and that concession only applied to an area set apart for that purpose, which was an area that had to be identified by the licence holder. The new proposal would allow a drink led element to take place within the hatched area beyond those hours. However, it was correct to recognise that the current application (as amended) did require the sale and consumption of alcohol to be ancillary to a table meal throughout most of the Premises throughout the day. The current licence allowed the Premises to be drink led throughout until 23.00 and 22.30 on Sundays.   

In response to questions from the Sub-Committee Mr Spiegler advised that if the Sub-Committee was minded to grant the application there was no intention from the landlord to reinstate the old licence. In terms of the four servicing and deliveries conditions suggested by EH the applicants advised that it was envisaged that the deliveries of fresh produce required would take place between 04:00 and 06:000 hours. The Sub-Committee noted that deliveries would be consolidated so that there should only be one per day and they would use their best endeavours to ensure they were undertaken by electric vehicles. In terms of waste collections these would be undertaken by the Council’s waste collection services to the hours they operated to. Mrs Fabbricatore advised that the consolidation of deliveries and the use of electric vehicles was likely to minimise any potential disturbance to residents. It was recognised that EH’s proposed waste collection condition could not be complied with due to the Council’s waste collection times and therefore did not have to be considered by the Sub-Committee. Finally, the applicant confirmed that there would not be any takeaway food provision provided from the Premises.

The Sub-Committee carefully considered the application. It was noted that the Premises was located within a CIA and therefore exceptional circumstances had to be shown by the applicant as to why the application should be granted. The Premises would operate primarily as a restaurant and even though the hatched area would be drink-led, all customers in the Premises would have to be seated at all times. This provided reassurance that there would not be any vertical drinking at the Premises or that it would become a destination bar. The hours sought would permit an additional hour for customers to consume alcohol without food. However, this had to be weighed against the fact that the sale and consumption of alcohol for all parts of the premises apart from the hatched area had to be ancillary to a table meal throughout the day and this was a more restrictive requirement than the current licence. It was considered that the primary restaurant use of the premises during the day and the restrictive conditions to be placed on the licence would ensure that the overall use did not add to cumulative impact. The Sub-Committee was pleased to note that a condition was to be added to the licence requiring all outside tables and chairs to be rendered unusable by 23:00 hours each day. This offered further protection to residents in ensuring they didn’t experience any disturbance from the operation of the Premises. The agreement by the applicant to reduce the hours for the provision of recorded music to between 10:00 and 00:00 was also welcomed.

Regard was given to the fact that no residential representations had been received and the applicant’s agreement to consolidate deliveries and to try and undertake them using electric vehicles was welcomed. The waste conditions proposed by EH were considered, however they were not deemed appropriate for the application and therefore were not imposed on the licence. The conditions proposed by the applicant were considered appropriate and proportionate and provided a much tighter control over the Premises than was permitted on the previous licence. The conditions would ensure the licensing objectives were promoted and that local residents would not be adversely impacted by the proposed operation. No vertical drinking would be permitted, and the supply of alcohol would be to seated customers only. The overall proposal provided reassurance to the Sub-Committee that it would not add to cumulative impact in the local area and could be considered an exception to policy. The Sub-Committee therefore granted the application accordingly.

 2.

Late Night Refreshment – Indoors

Monday to Saturday: 23:00 to 00:30

Sunday: 23:00 to 00:00

Seasonal Variations / Non-Standard Timings:

From the end of permitted hours on New Year's Eve to the start of permitted hours on New Year's Day.

Amendments to application advised at hearing:

None.

Decision (including reasons if different from those set out in report):

The Sub-Committee granted the application (see reasons for decision in Section 1).

3.

Recorded Music – Indoors

Monday to Sunday: 00:00 to 00:00

Amendments to application advised at hearing:

The Sub-Committee was advised by the applicant that the proposed hours sought for the provision of recorded music had been reduced to between 10:00 to 00:00.

Decision (including reasons if different from those set out in report):

The Sub-Committee granted the application (see reasons for decision in Section 1).

4.

Hours Premises are Open to the Public

Monday to Saturday: 10:00 to 00:30

Sunday: 12:00 to 00:00

Amendments to application advised at hearing:

None.

Decision (including reasons if different from those set out in report):

The Sub-Committee granted the application (see reasons for decision in Section 1).