Agenda item

O’Neills, 23 Montpellier Walk

Amelia Byres, Senior Licensing Officer introduced the report as circulated with the agenda.  An application had been received in respect of O’Neills, 23 Montpellier Walk, Cheltenham.  The premises have two public entrances, one on Montpellier Street and the other on Montpellier Walk.  The applicant already had consent to place tables and chairs on both Montpellier Street and Montpellier Walk but were looking to extend the hours and to leave them on the highway overnight.

This application was submitted as a result of enforcement action.  All premises in this area with tables and chairs consent were written to reminding them of their consent timings and conditions.  These premises had not adhered to the condition of bringing the tables and chairs inside overnight.

Amelia Byres advised Members that the application is not to increase the number of tables and chairs on the highway but to extend the timings of the current consent and allow for the tables and chairs to remain on the highway overnight securely chained.  The current consent allows the tables and chairs to be placed on the highway between 11.00 and 23.00.

Amelia Byres confirmed there was a mistake in paragraphs 1.5 and 1.7 of the report.  The applicant requested the tables and chairs for customer use on Sunday to Wednesdays from 10.00 to 00.00 and Thursday to Saturdays from 10.00 to 01.00.  The tables and chairs would therefore remain on the highway 24 hours per day and would be chained up overnight.

Members asked the following officer questions:

• When asked, Amelia Byres confirmed the application covered both sides of Montpellier Street and Montpellier Walk.  If the application was granted it would be one consent covering the same times for both areas.
• When asked, Amelia Byres confirmed the tables and chairs would always be placed within the barriers and the barriers would be taken inside overnight

Ms Sharkey, Solicitor and Mr Paul Thomas, area manager attended the meeting and spoke in support of their application.

Ms Sharkey referred to the local residents concerns of noise and confirmed they would amend the table and chairs usage to midnight not 01.00.  The premises is open at 10.00 and would like the table and chairs usage to be brought in line with this time.  This would allow customers to sit outside from when the premise opens. 

The flower pots would be placed either side of the doorway on Montpellier Walk and would be taken in overnight with the barriers.  The tables and chairs are very heavy making them difficult to move in and out of the premises.  Moving them inside in the evening would involve customers being asked to stand outside of the premises to enable the table and chairs to be moved and stored inside.  The tables and chairs were expensive to buy and it was in their interest to ensure they were not damaged or stolen whilst being chained up overnight.

Members asked the following questions:

• When asked, Ms Sharkey confirmed the premises start serving breakfasts at 10.00 am.
• When asked, Mr Thomas said there would not be an issue with noise when chaining up the tables and chairs.  The chain was protected by a cover to ensure the tables and chairs were not damaged.  Once chained up, the tables and chairs would be stored well back against the building.  The furniture was very robust and would take a lot to move.
• When asked, Mr Thomas confirmed that the tables and chairs could not be used by passers by.  The configuration of storing the furniture had been done to deter passers by using the tables and chairs.
• When asked, Mr Thomas stated this furniture had been bought to replace light aluminium tables and chairs.  The new furniture was extremely heavy and this stopped customers moving it around.  Mr Thomas said that passer by would need a car to pull the furniture as it was so heavy.
• A Member asked about other establishments in the area and what time their table and chairs consent ceased each night.
• Amelia Byres confirmed that Strada has consent from 10.00 to 00.30, Indian Voojan has consent from midday to 23.59 and the Wine Bar has consent from 10.00 to 00.30 on Friday and Saturday, 11.00 to 11.00 on Sundays and 10.00 to 00.00 on Monday to Thursdays.
• A Member felt that midnight was a sensible time as there were residents in the area.
• A Member felt that if this consent was granted it would encourage other applications to be made resulting in additional table and chairs in this area.
• Amelia Byres reminded Members that this application had been submitted as a result of enforcement letters being sent out from the Licensing Department reminding premises to adhere to their consent times.  This was the only application that had been received at the moment requesting an extension of hours.
• When asked, Amelia Byres and Ms Sharkey confirmed the premises has public liability insurance of up to £5 million pounds.
• A Member felt there was a lack of space in Montpellier Street and was concerned about this.
• A Member asked how the applicant would enforce the consent if granted.
• Mr Thomas confirmed that the enforcement issue had not been customers using the tables and chairs after their consent time but leaving the tables and chairs outside.  The application had originally sort consent for customers to use the tables and chairs until 01.00 but had now amended this time to 00.00.  This area would be closed down at that time.
• A Member asked if the barriers were still in use and raised concern with overcrowding at night outside of the premises.
• When asked, Mr Thomas confirmed the barriers are in use and said that door staff are present at weekends to ensure customers remain inside of the barriers.

In summing up Ms Sharkey stated again that stacking the furniture up outside at night had been the fault of the premises but they had not allowed customers to use the tables and chairs after their consent time.  Since securely locking the furniture up outside at night, there had been no injuries or problems caused.  Moving the heavy furniture in at night would result in customers being asked to move outside of the premise to enable the furniture to be moved inside.

Members were advised that they had three decisions to vote for:-

1.   Upon a vote it was unanimously

RESOLVED that customers were permitted to use the table and chairs on the highway between 10.00 and midnight.

2. Upon a vote it was (9 for, 0 against, 1 abstention)

RESOLVED that two plant pots are permitted to be placed on the highway outside of the premises in Montpellier Walk.  The plant pots are to be taken inside each night.

3. Upon a vote it was (5 for, 5 against) The Chairman used his casting vote to refuse the application.

RESOLVED that the application to chain the tables and chairs overnight be refused as the application falls outside the provision of the current Street Scene Policy.

Ms Sharkey asked that the applicant is given a time allowance to arrange for the exisiting furniture to be replaced.

Members discussed the decision and the fact that the applicant would now be replacing the existing furniture with aluminium table and chairs.

The Chairman reminded Members that a vote had been taken and the decision had been made.  He advised the applicant that a new application would need to be made for the new furniture but it would only be brought to this Committee if objections were received.