Agenda and minutes

Councillor Seacome

Councillor Seacome

Councillor Barnes declared an interest in agenda item 13 – Allocation of Christmas Street Collection Dates as a trustee of Cheltenham Animal Shelter.  In the absence of the Vice-Chair, he indicated that he would not speak or vote but would remain in the Chamber to conduct the debate.

Councillor Walklett declared an interest in agenda item 13 – Allocation of Christmas Street Collection Dates as he had a friendship with Dancing Ken Hanks (Cheltenham Animal Shelter) and he was a Member of the Mayor’s Charity Committee.  He would not speak or vote and would leave the Chamber for consideration of this item.

None

None

Resolved that the minutes of the meeting held on 4 October 2013 be agreed and signed as an accurate record.

3 October 2013 – The Ball Room

Members stated that Sarah Farooqi was in attendance at the Sub Committee and asked for this to be amended.  Upon this amendment it was resolved that the minutes of the sub-committee meeting held on 3 October 2013 be agreed and signed as an accurate record.

That in accordance with Section 100A(4) Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the remaining items of business as it is likely that, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, if members of the public are present there will be disclosed to them exempt information as defined in paragraph 1, 2 and 7, part 1 Schedule 12A (as amended) Local Government Act 1972, namely:

Information relating to any individual,

Information which is likely to reveal the identity of an individual,

Information relating to any action taken or to be taken in connection with the prevention, investigation or prosecution of crime.

Resolved that the exempt minutes of the meeting held on 4 October 2013 be agreed and signed as an accurate record.

Mr Raviv Hadad – Falfeleat Mobile Bike

Amelia Byres, Senior Licensing Officer, introduced the report as circulated with the agenda.  An application had been received from Mr Raviv Hadad for a street trading consent to sell deli items such as breads, traditional pastries, falafel mix, harissa dressing, aubergine dip, tahini sauce and other traditional cooked salad from a mobile trike at two locations.  It was proposed that the trike would be located on the High Street outside Monsoon and Warehouse, location one, for the majority of the year.  During the Christmas period this location had historically been occupied by a hot food unit operated by Mrs Ellen Danter and a licence had already been granted for this to continue in 2013.  As such, it was proposed that the mobile trike would be located on the High Street outside Thomas Cook, location two, during the Christmas period only.  If Members were minded to grant a licence to Mr Hadad, this would only be valid until 31 March 2014 as all street trading consents must be reapplied for annually on 1 April.

In response to a query, Amelia Byres confirmed that Mrs Danter had been granted a licence which allowed her hot food unit to be situated outside Monsoon and Warehouse until 31 December 2013.  The van would be open to trade between the hours of 09:00 and 18:00 with the exception of Thursdays when this was extended to 21.00 hours to coincide with late night shopping.

Mr Hadad attended the meeting and spoke in support of his application.  He explained that, when he had started thinking about the venture two years earlier, he had tried to consider it from a licencing point of view and had been as accommodating as possible.  He had been in discussions with the licensing department about the location of the trike and he believed that it was acceptable in terms of the regulations for emergency vehicle access routes etc.  As a small operator he did not have the resources to launch a big marketing campaign and he relied heavily upon footfall and exposure which he felt would be optimum at the proposed locations.  His trike was attractive, clean and non-polluting and he felt that he would be able to offer something innovative which was suitable for all. 

Members were invited to ask questions of the applicant, during which the following points were raised:

·        A Member queried how the food would be kept hot and Mr Hadad confirmed that hot food would be cooked to order using a gas heater.  He would not be using a generator.  The size of the cooking area was minimal and, although he used a fryer, he provided assurance that smells would only arise if the oil being used was old or rancid.  The smells would be no worse than those produced by a café, particularly as the cooking would be done in the open air. 

·        A Member questioned how Mr Hadad intended to keep the trike clean and tidy to comply with health and safety regulations.  Mr Hadad  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

Mr Stephen Owens

Amelia Byres, Senior Licensing Officer, introduced the report as circulated with the agenda.  Mr Stephen Owens held a private hire driver’s licence which was due for renewal on 1 December 2015.  Mr Owens had been subject to a vehicle inspection on 15 October 2013 by the enforcement officers from the Integrated Transport Unit, Gloucestershire County Council which oversaw all school transport providers across Gloucestershire.  On inspection, the Integrated Transport Unit had found that the near side front tyre was worn below the legal limit on the outer edge, exposing the chord.  The Transport Engineering Manager had contacted the Licensing Office and the Senior Licensing Officer had immediately suspended the vehicle and telephoned Mr Owens to advise him of this.  Mr Owens had replaced the tyre and had brought it back to the Licensing Officefor inspection.  At the time of the incident, the Integrated Transport Unit had advised that this was the second time that Mr Owen had been found driving with a bald tyre, however, the first occasion had been much less serious and the County Council had chosen not to inform the Borough Council on that basis.  The Committee was reminded that it must be satisfied that Mr Owens was a fit and proper person to continue to hold a private hire driver’s licence.

A Member raised concern that this was the second time that Mr Owens had been found with a bald tyre and he sought clarification as to why the first incident had not been reported.  The Senior Licensing Officer explained that the County Council had chosen not to inform the Borough Council on the basis that it was a minor issue.  There was very little action which could be taken by the Borough Council if they were not advised of such incidents.  The Member was of the view that the first incident should not be taken into account in the review of the licence given that the County Council had not considered it significant enough to report in the first place.  Another Member disagreed with this opinion and indicated that the Police, County Council and Borough Council regularly used their discretion regarding the seriousness of offences and it was down to the Committee to decide what weight it would give to this information when determining what action should be taken.

In response to a Member query as to whether the Committee was able to require Mr Owens to attend a driver assessment course, the Senior Licensing Officer explained that, whilst the Committee did have the option of requiring Mr Owens to attend a driver assessment course, this was focused on driving and did not cover vehicle maintenance.  In 2010, the Council’s Policy had introduced an NVQ which all drivers had to complete within the first year of becoming a licensed driver, however, there was no given course which included vehicle maintenance before a licence was granted.  Members agreed that the introduction of a course covering vehicle maintenance for new applicants should be considered as part of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

Antique and Modern Fireplaces

Amelia Byres, Senior Licensing Officer introduced the report as circulated with the agenda.  Mr Martin Canning based at Antique and Modern Fireplaces, 41-43 Great Norwood Street, Cheltenham had made an application to place a straight-sided and straight-bottomed ‘A’ board at the junction of Great Norwood Street and Suffolk Road.  The ‘A’ board had previously been granted consent, however, the applicant had failed to renew this consent and a new application had been submitted as a result.  Members were advised to bear in mind that the current Policy on Measures to Control Street Scene Activities in Cheltenham covering Street Trading, Objects on the Highway and Charitable Collections had been approved on 1 April 2013.  The ‘A’ board had previously been granted consent under the old Policy  The new application does not comply with the current adopted Policy in a number of ways: the premises has shop-front at street level; the premises is not situated along a side alleyway and/or on private land which was not a public thoroughfare/right of way; the application is for a directional ‘A’ board more than 120 metres away from the premises which is contrary to condition (d) of the standard conditions attached to ‘A’ boards; and there was less than 1.8 metres of footway along the line of the board between the edge of the object and either the kerb or other highway boundary.  She reiterated that the ‘A’ board had previously been licensed, however, due to an error on the applicant’s part, it had not been renewed in time and therefore it had been brought to the Committee to determine whether the application should be granted in the conservation area where the premises was located.

A Member queried whether any similar applications had been received from other traders in the area during the time the ‘A’ board had been licenced.  The Senior Licensing Officer advised that no other applications had been received and no other ‘A’ boards located along Great Norwood Street had been granted consent.  A Member questioned whether the pavement where the ‘A’ board had been located was wider than usual and confirmation was provided that this was the case.  In response to a query as to whether any complaints had been made in relation to the ‘A’ board during the three years since it had last been granted a licence, the Senior Licensing Officer confirmed that there had been no complaints, however, there had been a number of objections from responsible authorities to the current application, as set out in the report circulated with the agenda.  She confirmed that her records dated back to 2009 at which time Mr Canning had gone through the same application process and consent had been granted by the Licensing Committee.

Mr Canning explained that the ‘A’ board had been in the same location since 1962 and all of the businesses which had previously used the premises had found that it was vital for their trade due to the shop being located 200  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

Mr Giuseppe Maurizio Licata

Amelia Byres, Senior Licensing Officer introduced the report as circulated with the agenda.  An application had been received from Mr Giuseppe Maurizio Licata for a hackney carriage driver’s licence.  Members were advised that Mr Licata had previously been a licensed hackney carriage driver with Cheltenham Borough Council until 2009 when he had received a drink-driving conviction and had surrendered his hackney carriage badge.  Mr Licata had returned with a new application in 2011 at which time he had six points on his Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) driver’s licence for using a mobile phone whilst driving and speeding on the motorway.  The application had been referred to the Licensing Committee which had subsequently been refused. The Council’s Policy on the Relevance of Convictions sets out that, where a disqualification has occurred as a result of a drink-driving offence, at least five years free from conviction from the date of the restoration of the DVLA licence should normally elapse before an applicant is considered for a licence, however, at that time the Licensing Committee had suggested that Mr Licata submit another application in two years.  Rather than waiting for that period to elapse, Mr Licata had submitted another application in March 2012 which had also been refused by the Licensing Committee.  Two years had now passed since the Licensing Committee in 2011 and Mr Licata had submitted a new application, however, it was noted that, since his last application, Mr Licata had received a caution for possessing a controlled Class B drug.  The Council’s policy in respect of drink-driving convictions continued to set out that at least five years should normally elapse before an applicant was considered for a licence, despite the Committee’s suggestion in 2011 that Mr Licata reapply in two years.  In addition, the policy set out that an application from an applicant with an isolated conviction for an offence related to the possession of drugs within the last three years would require careful consideration of the facts.  Members were required to determine whether, based on all the information, Mr Licata was a fit and proper person to hold a hackney carriage driver’s licence.

Mr Licata had attended the meeting and spoke in support of his application.  He explained that he had some old school friends visiting him during race week in 2012 and they had asked him to get hold of the drugs.  On 15 March 2012, Gold Cup day, he had been walking home at around midnight when he had been stopped by police for a spot check and found with the drugs.  In relation to his drink-driving conviction, Mr Licata advised that he had now been driving for a year in the UK and 8 months in Dubai without any points on his licence.  He wanted an opportunity to get his life back on track and was ready to get back to work and earn a living.

Members were invited to ask questions of Mr Licata, during which the following points were raised:

·        A Member  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

Amelia Byres, Senior Licensing Officer introduced the report as circulated with the agenda.  Appendix A to the report set out a schedule of street collection applications for the town centre for the months of November and December.  Paragraph 4.1 detailed which charities had made the street collection applications.  Some charities had requested more dates than allocated, however, the Licensing department had discussed directly with the charities the dates which had been allocated to them and they were all happy with the arrangements.

A Member noted that the Lion’s Club of Cheltenham had been allocated 2.5 days and she indicated that she would have liked to have seen this cut down if another application had been received from a different charity.  The Senior Licensing Officer indicated that Members were entitled to reduce the number of days if they felt that it was too much.

Upon a vote it was (unanimously)

RESOLVED that the proposed allocation of street collection dates attached at Appendix A be approved.

None

6 December 2013

6 December 2013