Agenda item

Talybont Uchaf Farm, Talybont, Bangor, Gwynedd  LL57 3YW.

 

To consider the application

 

To adjourn making a substantive determination on the application until such time the applicants have submitted and secured planning permission for the intended use of the premises as envisaged by the premises licence application.

 

If and when secure appropriate planning permission has been granted, this Sub-committee shall reconvene to further consider the matter and make a substantive determination.

 

APPLICATION FOR PREMISES LICENCE - TALYBONT UCHAF FARM, TALYBONT, BANGOR

 

Applicant                   Simon and Caroline Higham

 

Local Member           Councillor Dafydd Meurig,

 

Local residents    Liz Watkins, Meinir Jones, David Pritchard, Grace Crowe,        Peter Green, Geraint Hughes and Jên Morris

 

Apologies were received from Nigel Pegler, Haf Jones and Tina Moorcroft (local residents) and Aneurin Rhys (Development Control Officer - Planning Service)

 

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. The Chair highlighted that all parties would be allowed up to 5 minutes to make their representations.

 

a)                   The Licensing Department's Report

 

Submitted – the report of the Licensing Manager giving details of the application for a premises licence for a converted grade II listed building to include a courtyard, party room and an indoor entertainment area.  The application was made in relation to the sale of alcohol on the premises only, live and recorded music, on and off the premises.

 

It was noted that the Licensing Authority Officers had sufficient evidence that the application had been submitted in accordance with the requirements of the Licensing Act 2003 and the relevant regulations. Reference was made to the measures that had been recommended by the applicant to promote the licensing objectives, and it was highlighted that these measures would be included on the licence.

 

Attention was drawn to the responses that had been received during the consultation period. It was noted that several objections had been received from nearby residents that were relevant to the licensing objectives of noise causing public nuisance, and concerns of a significant increase in traffic on the road leading to the premises

 

It was recommended that the Committee should approve the application in accordance with the requirements of the Licensing Act 2003. 

In considering the application, the following procedure was followed:-

·      Members of the Sub-committee and the applicant were given the opportunity to ask questions to the Licensing Manager

·      The applicant was invited to expand on the application

·      The consultees were given an opportunity to present their observations  The licensee, or their representative, was invited to respond to the observations.

·      Members of the Sub-committee were given an opportunity to ask questions of the licensee

·      Members of the Sub-committee were given an opportunity to ask questions of the consultees

Elaborating on the application, the applicants noted:

·      The intention was to create a venue that would offer unique, quality and luxurious events with accommodation.

·      That there was no such premises locally - it did not offer the same service as Hendre Hall.

·      It would give business assurance to local companies e.g. cleaners, florists 

·      That two roads lead to the premises and it was proposed to direct traffic to use one specific road.  This specific road was suitable with passing places and signage and directions would be shared with visitors to promote use

·      They lived at the premises and had a young family - they did not want to encourage noise problems. 

·      They wanted to work jointly with the community

·      They had invited nearby residents to attend a meeting to share information regarding the proposal, however, no one had turned up.

 

In response to a question regarding the frequency of having up to 150 people attending the site, it was noted that they did not know what the demand would be, however, they anticipated holding up to 15 weddings a year on a Friday or Saturday.

 

The consultees in attendance took the opportunity to expand on the observations they had submitted by letter.

 

The Local Member: Councillor Dafydd Meurig

·      There were strong local feelings against the application. 

·      Noise would disturb the everyday lives of local neighbours and additional traffic would cause problems - traffic to the premises had already increased since the establishment of the business to repair boat engines on the site 

·      There were two roads to the site and the most convenient/preferred route was very narrow

·      It was necessary to check if there was planning permission for the activity - permission had already been granted for Bed and Breakfast but this was a significantly larger enterprise

·      The company did not have any respect for local residents

·      That noise already filtered from Hendre Hall that was situated on the far side of the A55 - this enterprise would create the same type of noise  

·      He appealed to the Sub-committee to defer making a decision until planning permission had been considered

 

            Liz Watkin

·         That she had seen a significant increase in traffic on the road since she had settled down in the area in 1992 - the road was very narrow with hidden bends / blind corners?

·         Permitting the licence would lead to a further increase in traffic 

·         There was no pavement or street lighting along the road.   The hedges were high

·         No prior notice of the application had been shared and the proposed use had not been displayed in a public place

·         The serving of alcohol late at night was likely to lead to accidents

 

Meinir Jones

·         The application highlighted a total disrespect to the community - the majority of the nearby residents had objected 

·         The applicant's statement was incorrect - the road was not suitable.  The road was a narrow country lane with one 'official' passing place - the rest were field entrances.

·         Erecting signage would not alleviate the issue - the signs were not effective - the community's safety had to be considered

·         There had been a significant increase in traffic due to recent developments - this caused a public nuisance

·         Delivery lorries to the businesses blocked the road at times and damaged trees

·         Unable to enjoy going for bicycle ride or walking with a pram due to traffic.  Approving the licence for events on the weekend would make it impossible for someone to walk along the road at any time - day and night

·         Business is the applicant's only priority - she begged the Sub-committee to prioritise community safety.

 

Dafydd Pritchard

·         Noise already carried from Hendre Hall - permitting the licence would lead to creating more noise from the Talybont Farm site.

·         The noise measurements submitted were misleading - it was necessary to measure the noise of people and not the noise made by nature and machinery.

·         A notice had been posted at the last minute on a gate - this was very suspicious

 

 

Peter Green and Grace Crowe

·         Permitting the licence would maximise traffic and noise

·         Access to the premises was along a very narrow road

·         They had lived in the area since 1999 - it was a quiet and tranquil area until the appearance of the boat repair business and the bed and breakfast business at Talybont Farm.   A wedding venue would be a step too far

·         Traffic passed their house - the preferred route was not practical - no passing places

·         Current business traffic ignored the signs and guidelines to use the recommended road - they were unlikely to use the indirect route

·         Allowing music outside would add to the music that already carries from Hendre Hall - repetitive bass beat - offering to make something soundproof was not totally possible

·         That the noise measurement test conducted was not thorough enough - there was no consideration given to music and it had been conducted at a quiet time of the day.

 

Geraint Hughes

·         The area was a lovely area - he accepted this and there was a need to 'celebrate this'

·         This was a matter of opinion - he was disappointed with the Licensing Manager's recommendation.  There was also a need to consider the evidence of residents

·         It was only by chance that he had seen the notice posted on the gate of a private road - not in a public place

·         The grounds for the refusal of the application would be an increase in noise and traffic - there was a need it was necessary to ignore the noise measurement report - it was not an independent report

·         There will be a significant increase in traffic during the evenings and at the weekends (these are currently the only quiet times)

·         It was likely that there would be more than 15 weddings a year 

·         The Highways Department had not objected a recent planning application for the boat business, however, promises were made at that time by the applicant to direct traffic - this had not happened

·         Many drivers got lost when trying to reach the premises and therefore had to be re-directed.  As a result, the entrance to his property was used for turning - this was a public nuisance

·         Approving the application would change the area's character

·         Residents needed justice

 

Jên Morris

A number of people had contacted the Community Council to highlight concerns:

·         The impact of the latest proposal on them

·         Did the proposal have appropriate planning permission?

·         The nature of the traffic to the premises - delivery vans and lorries

·         The nature of people coming into the area they behaved differently - a lack of respect for the countryside 

 

 

Taking advantage of the right to summarise their case, the applicants noted the following points:

·         That they accepted the observations and feedback of the residents and reiterated their wish to work jointly with the local community to alleviate traffic and nuisance problems 

·         They had created a Whatsapp group to share information and to direct traffic - this had reduced the problem, but they promised to do more

·         The intention was to create an intimate and private venue

·         They lived on the site and they would be present to manage the site at all times - they considered the well-being of their family and the community

·         The noise measurement report submitted had been completed for the boat repair business - it was considered that the noise of a boat engine was a good comparison with the noise of a live band  

·         That they wanted to be part of the community and therefore respected every observation

 

The applicants, the consultees and the Licensing Manager withdrew from the meeting while the Sub-committee members discussed the application.

In reaching its decision, the Sub-committee considered the applicant's application form along with written comments submitted by interested parties, the Licensing Officer's report, and the oral comments from each party at the hearing.  The Council's Licensing Policy and Home Office guidelines were considered. All considerations were weighed up against the licensing objectives under the Licensing Act 2003, namely:

                                   i.          Prevention of crime and disorder

                                 ii.          Prevention of public nuisance

                               iii.          Ensuring public safety

                               iv.          Protection of children from harm

RESOLVED

 

To defer the full determination of the application until the applicant has submitted and received planning permission for the proposed use of the premises as anticipated by the premises licence application.  If, and when there is appropriate planning permission, this Sub-committee will reconvene to consider the application further, as well as reaching a full resolution

 

All parties were thanked for making representations on the application. The Sub-committee gave due consideration to all the representations. The Sub-committee disregarded observations that had been submitted, on the basis that they were not relevant to the licensing objectives

 

Specific consideration was given to the following.

 

Observations had been received from members of the public, many of them being neighbouring residents, objecting to the application referring to the licensing objectives of preventing public nuisance and ensuring public safety. In summary, concerns were expressed that granting the licence would be likely to lead to an increase in noise and parking problems. For information, no objections had been received from the Police, the Fire and Rescue Service, the Council's Public Protection Unit or the Council's Highways Department.

 

When considering the observations, it emerged that there were some serious concerns regarding road safety.  The concerns referred specifically to the fact that the road that leads to the premises is narrow, has limited passing places, has no pavement, has no street lighting and that it served other dwellings.  It also emerged that the premises in question did not have appropriate planning permission for the proposed use of the premises.

 

The Sub-committee's wish was to ask the applicant to submit an application for appropriate planning permission and to consider the outcome of that process prior to determining an application for a premises licence.  It was highlighted that the reason for this was that the planning process was a means to assess in detail the implications of road safety that would arise from the proposed use of the premises.  Receiving a decision on road safety deriving from planning permission would assist the Sub-committee to come to a firm and evidence-based decision, that the application was in keeping with the licensing objective of ensuring public safety.

 

For these reasons, the Sub-committee was of the opinion that it would be premature to make a full decision on the application.

 

The Solicitor reported, as the Licensing Authority had not determined the application, there was no right to make an appeal to the Magistrates' Court.