Agenda item

Comptoir Café & Wine, 21-22 Weighthouse Street, London, W1K 5LY

17/00358/LIPN

1.

Late Night Refreshment - Indoors

Standard days and times not applied for.

Seasonal Variations/Non-Standard Timings:

From 23:00 hours on New Year’s Eve to 05:00 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 considered an application by Comptoir WS Ltd for a new premises licence in respect of 21-22 Weighthouse Street, London, W1K 5LY.

The Licensing Officer provided an outline of the application to the Sub-Committee and confirmed that following the agreement of conditions the Police and the Grosvenor Mayfair Residents Association had withdrawn their representations.

Following a request for clarification from the Council’s Legal Adviser Mr Thomas, representing the applicant, confirmed that the premises opening hours would be 08:00 to 23:00 Monday to Saturday and 08:00 to 22:30 on Sundays.

Mr Thomas explained that Mr Rousset had significant experience in operating licensed premises within Westminster. He had founded the 28/50 chain of wine shops which were notable for being considered an exception to policy in Cumulative Impact Areas (CIA) as they contained holding bars. He was also a founder of the restaurant Texture which had been awarded a Michelin star. Mr Rousset was already operating a Comptoir restaurant in Marylebone which was of a similar concept.

Mr Rousset described the concept of the premises and how during the day it would operate as a place providing primarily coffee and snacks and then evolving into a wine bar in the evenings. The premises would have a large wine collection and it was considered this would be a unique offer in this particular area. The food offering would mainly consist of toasties, soups and salads with an area available for wine tastings to take place. It was confirmed that all the customers would be seated within the premises except when a wine tasting session was taking place in the basement out of view from the street.

Mr Thomas confirmed that there would be forty covers provided inside the premises and eight located externally. It was recognised that residents had objected to the application and it was felt this was partly because it was located within an area seriously affected by the Crossrail development. Residents had experienced severe disruption because of it and it was hoped this premises would help benefit the local area. It was not located within a CIA and the applicant had been sensitive with the proposed hours, which were well within core hours, and small capacity requested.

In response to a question over where the external seated area was located Mr Thomas explained that under the Council’s Licensing Policy there was an expectation not to include external seating within the licensed area as this would be dealt with through a tables and chairs licence. The Sub-Committee was informed that a tables and chairs application had been submitted to the Council, the outcome of which was expected shortly. External seating would only be provided on Weighthouse Street for a total of eight chairs. Mr Thomas suggested that the applicant would be willing to accept conditions on this area to ensure it was controlled appropriately. It was considered that the further conditions suggested in the representations were not necessary as their concerns could be addressed through the proposed conditions and also through those conditions agreed with the Planning Department. Mr Thomas showed the Sub-Committee a revised plan which highlighted where the external seating area would be located.

Ms Bolton, representing Environmental Health, confirmed that she had visited the premises and held meetings with the applicant to discuss the application in detail. There were no concerns over the hours requested and the conditions proposed would ensure the premises was appropriately managed and satisfactorily addressed any concerns raised. It was confirmed that a works condition had been proposed to be included on the licence.

The Sub-Committee queried how it was proposed to dispose of wine bottles at the premises. Mr Rousset explained that a wine bottle compactor was too large for this small premises and therefore empty bottles would be stored in the premises overnight and then properly presented and placed out for collection no earlier than thirty minutes before the scheduled collection times.

Mr Brookfield representing the Grosvenor Mayfair Residents Association expressed concern that the premises would be located within a highly residential area. Residential properties were located to either side and also at the front and back of the premises and these would potentially be affected by any noise disturbance generated. It was currently unknown what kind of drinking establishment the premises aimed to be and the proposal to have external seating would also create extra noise disturbance for residents. It was proposed that if the application was granted stringent conditions should be attached to the external area. Concern was also expressed that private gardens belonging to local residents were not lockable and allowing off sales of alcohol would result in them being used by customers leaving the premises to dispose of their empty glasses and rubbish. The introduction of Crossrail would increase the footfall in the area and it could be expected that the bar would attract more people drinking alcohol into the local vicinity. Mr Brookfield also expressed concerns over how the air conditioning units and waste disposal area would be located within the premises due to its small size. Other concerns relating to how the collection of rubbish would be achieved without affecting residents and how the premises could potentially attract pedi-cabs into the area were also detailed.

The Licensing Officer explained that Mrs Mckie had not submitted a representation for this application but with the agreement of all parties present was allowed to address the Sub-Committee. Mrs Mckie raised significant concerns over the residential nature of the area which housed lots of elderly and infirm people.

Mr Thomas confirmed that Mr Rousset would be happy to meet with local residents to address any concerns they may have. He had experience of operating premises in a sensitive manner in areas very similar and would circulate his contact number to residents. Grosvenor Estates who owned the building was recognised as a very responsible landlord. They owned the residential property above and had very carefully gone through the process with these residents to ensure any impact to them was minimised. The application had gone through the planning process and had been carefully examined with any concerns raised addressed. In terms of the concerns over pedi-cabs it was suggested that the type of clientele who frequented the premises were unlikely to use pedi-cabs which were primarily used by tourists. Public transport was readily available nearby at both Oxford Street and Bond Street.

Mr Brookfield questioned if customers would be able to purchase alcohol in a sealed container from the premises and then consume it across the street. Mr Thomas accepted that this was a possibility but in his experience this had never occurred with this type of premises.

The Sub-Committee requested clarification on what the main purpose of the premises was? In response Mr Thomas confirmed it was a small premises whose primary purpose was to operate as a restaurant/café/delicatessen. It was not located within a CIA and the following safeguards were in place to ensure it would not create any disturbance to local residents. Firstly, the residents would be able to apply for a review of the premises licence if did create a public nuisance. Secondly, Grosvenor Estates was a responsible landlord who would deal with any problem tenants through the terms of the lease. Finally, the applicant would work with Grosvenor Estates to ensure any potential noise issues would be resolved.

Mr Rousset explained that it was in his interests to be a responsible neighbour to the local residents and all staff would be trained accordingly to ensure any disruption was minimised. Mr Thomas clarified to the Sub-Committee that in terms of waste disposal the applicant would be happy to adopt the relevant model conditions.

The Sub-Committee carefully considered the application and recognised that even though the premises was located within a highly residential area it was not situated in a CIA and therefore there was no policy presumption against granting the application. The Sub-Committee noted that the Police and the Grosvenor Mayfair Residents Association had withdrawn their representations based on the conditions agreed with the applicant. It was also acknowledged that the hours applied for the sale of alcohol where within core hours. It was therefore decided to grant the application subject to the following additional conditions to ensure any disruption to local residents was minimised. The Sub-Committee resolved that the sale of alcohol had to be ancillary to the premises operating as a delicatessen/café/restaurant and alcohol could only be served to those customers seated, except if they were partaking in tasting sessions located in the basement. This would provide safeguards to residents about the nature of the premises and ensure it did not become a destination venue for the drinking of alcohol only. The Sub-Committee recognised it was unable to restrict the use of any external tables and chairs up to 23:00 hours each day but it was decided to limit the sale of alcohol in the external area to 21:00 hours each day. It was felt this would ease residents’ concerns over late night noise disturbance. The Sub-Committee was of the opinion that the additional conditions would ensure the premises would be appropriate for the local area and provide minimal disruption to residents.

The Sub-Committee agreed to amend the following conditions on the licence in order to update the licence:

• Condition 10 be amended to read “The number of persons accommodated at the premises (excluding staff) shall not exceed 40.”
• Condition 26 be amended to read “The supply of alcohol for consumption on the premises shall be by way of waiter/waitress service only to persons, who save for organised wine tasting events in the basement, shall be seated.”. This now appears as condition 11 below.
• An amended model condition 70A be added to the licence to replace conditions 11 and 12: “The supply of alcohol for consumption off the premises shall be restricted:

a)    To alcohol consumed prior to 21:00 by up to 8 persons who are seated in an area of Weighthouse Street appropriately authorised for the use of tables and chairs on the highway where the supply of alcohol is by waiter/waitress service only; or

b)    Shall be supplied in sealed containers only and not consumed in the vicinity of the premises.

This now appears as condition 12 below.

·           Model condition 65 be added to the licence in an amended form to also include collections so as to read “No deliveries to the premises or collections of waste or recycling materials (including bottles) from the premises shall take place between 20:00 and 08:00 on the following day.”

This now appears as condition 27 below.

·           Model condition 60 be added to the licence to read “The licence holder shall enter into an agreement with a hackney carriage and/or private carriage firm to provide transport for customers with contact numbers made readily available to customers who will be encouraged to use such services.”

This now appears as condition 28 below.

·           Model condition 57 be added to the licence to read “Patrons permitted to temporarily leave and then re-enter the premises, for example to smoke, shall not be permitted to take drinks or glass containers with them.”

This now appears as condition 29 below.

·           An additional condition be added to the licence to read “Licensable activities shall only be provided ancillary to the premises being used as a deli/café/restaurant.”

This now appears as condition 30 below.

·           An additional condition be added to the licence to read “No licensable activities shall take place at the premises until the premises has been assessed as satisfactory by the Environmental health Consultation Team at which time this condition shall be removed from the Licence by the licensing authority.”

This now appears as condition 31 below.

2.

Sales by Retail of Alcohol – On and Off Sales

Monday to Saturday: 10:00 – 23:00

Sunday: 12:00 – 22:30

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):

Granted, subject to conditions as set out below.

3.

Hours Premises are Open to the Public

Monday to Saturday: 08:00 – 23:00

Sunday: 08:00 – 22:30

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:

Mr Thomas, representing the applicant confirmed that the hours the premises were proposed to be open to the public were as set out above rather than the hours set out in the report and in his own application summary:

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

Granted, subject to conditions as set out below.