Agenda and draft minutes

The Licensing Panel considered the appointment of a Chairman for the meeting.

Resolved:

That Councillor Baker be appointed Chairman for the meeting.

Members are asked to declare any interests in the items under consideration and in doing so state:-

(1) the type of interest concerned

(2) the nature of the interest concerned; and

(3) whether they have or have not sat on a Planning Committee which has previously considered a planning application in respect of a licensed premises which is also subject to consideration for a premises licence as part of the agenda for this meeting.

If any Member requires advice on declarations of interests, they are advised to contact the Head of Democratic Governance in advance of the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest on this occasion.

The Chairman of the Panel will summarise the procedure and announce the equal maximum amount of time for each party to speak for the hearing.

A.         Items 1 and 4 (b) will be undertaken in private session by the Panel and not in the Meeting Room.

B.         Items 2, 3 and 4(a) will be recommended to the Panel to be held in public.

C.         The Panel may decide to exclude the public from all or part of a hearing where it considers that the public interest in so doing outweighs the public interest in the hearing, or that part of the hearing, taking place in public. (This includes a party and any person assisting or representing a party)

The Chairman explained the procedure for the meeting including that an equal time limit of twenty minutes had been allocated for all parties.

To consider an application for a new Premises Licence for Barrons Hotel, 58-60 Hornby Road, Blackpool, FY1 4QJ.

A. Application and representations submitted. To consider the attached report.

B. Determination of the application to vary a Premises Licence – Barrons Hotel.

The Licensing Panel will indicate how the decision is to be communicated to interested parties.

The Licensing Panel considered an application for a New Premises Licence in respect of Barrons Hotel, 58-60 Hornby Road.

The application had originally requested live music (Indoors and Outdoors) Friday to Sunday 12.00 – 23.00, recorded music (Indoors and Outdoors) Monday to Sunday 08.00 – 23.00, permission to sell alcohol (for consumption on and off the premises) Monday to Sunday 00.00 – 00.00, the provision of late night refreshment (Indoors) Monday to Sunday 23.00 – 05.00. The Premises would only be open to the public Monday to Sunday 11.00 – 23.00.   The applicant had offered a number of conditions to be placed on the Premises Licence and then  additional conditions had been agreed with the Police by way of  Mediation which had included the  withdrawal of late night refreshment and the off sales of alcohol.

Mr Jose Sanchez, Director of the Applicant Cube Hotels Blackpool Limited spoke in support of the application. Mr Sanchez explained that the premises had previously held a licence which had included generally the same activities without any significant concerns from responsible authorities. Mr Sanchez explained that the licence had lapsed solely due to the previous company being dissolved. Mr Sanchez highlighted the positive working relationship with the Police and that he had been pleased to accept the additional conditions and mediation agreement as they reflected the operation of the premises primarily as a hotel with a bar-restaurant catering to those staying in the hotel or nearby. Mr Sanchez disputed some of the details of the objection and emphasised his view that concerns about crime and anti-social behaviour were not supported by evidence and highlighted the lack of objections from responsible authorities.

Councillor Mark Smith spoke in objection to the application. Councillor Mark Smith expressed satisfaction at the amendment to the licence to withdrawn late night refreshment. Councillor Smith however raised issues regarding the Licensing Objectives which had been highlighted to him from local hoteliers. Councillor Smith expressed his view that the premises’ hours for the sale of alcohol were out of step with the proposed operation and that the premises were promoted solely for the sale of alcohol rather than as a restaurant.

The Licensing Panel considered carefully the application, representation and the mediation agreement. In light of the premises previous operation and the lack of representation from the responsible authorities that it would not proportionate to apply any further restriction to the Premises Licence. It considered that the agreed conditions in mediation agreement would promote the Licensing Objectives. For clarity the Licensing Panel agreed that the sale of alcohol for non-residents (excluding those at the Tamarind Cove hotel) should only take place between 11am and 11pm.

Resolved:

That the Premises Licence for Barrons Hotel be granted as amended by the Mediation agreement and the additional step outlined above.