Agenda item
B&M, Stryd Madog, Porthmadog, LL49 9BU
To consider
the application
Decision:
DECISION
Opening Hours:
Sunday 07:00 - 23:00
Monday 07:00 - 23:00
Tuesday 07:00 - 23:00
Wednesday 07:00 - 23:00
Thursday 07:00 - 23:00
Friday 07:00 - 23:00
Saturday 07:00 - 23:00
Licensable Activities:
Supply of Alcohol: Both on and off the Premises
Sunday 07:00 - 23:00
Monday 07:00 - 23:00
Tuesday 07:00 - 23:00
Wednesday 07:00 - 23:00
Thursday 07:00 - 23:00
Friday 07:00 - 23:00
Saturday 07:00 - 23:00
To include the measures that were proposed by the applicant in the
application as conditions on the licence.
Minutes:
B&M, Stryd Madog, Porthmadog, LL49 9BU
Others invited:
·
Richard Williams (Applicant’s representative)
·
Councillor Nia Wyn Jeffreys (Local Member)
The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.
a)
The Licensing
Department's Report
Submitted – the
report of the Licensing Manager giving details of the application for a
premises licence for B&M, Stryd Madog, Porthmadog by B&M Retail. It was
noted that B&M Retail operated a chain of over 500 shops across Wales,
England and Scotland and was a shop that offered a wide range of home goods, a
mixture of food and hardware, of a good quality but at affordable prices. The
application was made requesting the right to sell alcohol to customers to be
drank 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.
As a result, the Licensing Authority recommended
that the Committee considered the observations of the responders, and response
of the applicant to the concerns, and approved the application.
b)
In considering the application, the following
procedure was followed:-
·
Members of the Sub-committee were given an
opportunity to ask questions of the Council’s representative.
·
At the Chair’s discretion, the applicant or his
representative to ask questions to the Council’s representative.
·
The applicant and / or his representative were
invited to expand on the application and to call witnesses.
·
Members of the Sub-committee were given the
opportunity to ask questions of the applicant and / or his representative.
·
At the Chair's discretion, the Council’s
representative to ask questions to the applicant or his representative.
·
Every Consultee was invited to support any written
representations.
·
The Council's representative and the applicant or
his representative were given the opportunity to summarise their case.
c)
Elaborating on the application, the applicant's
representative noted as follows:
·
The B&M shop in Porthmadog had now opened.
·
Despite the disappointment of Wilko closing, it was
good news that B&M had taken the unit
·
Accepted the observation that the opening times were
different to Wilko's opening times.
·
That evidence had not been submitted highlighting
public nuisance.
·
B&M shops existed across the country and this application for a
licence was consistent with other B&M shops.
·
That there was no intention to trade up to 23:00
every day - this was for the flexibility to open later in December. The likely
hours would be Monday to Saturday 7:00 - 21:00 and Sunday 10:00 - 16:00.
·
He did not have a response to the noise complaints.
·
That B&M was a responsible company and despite it seeming that it
was cheap, the produce / alcohol was not cheap – and compared well with other
supermarket prices.
·
That there were no alcoholic drinks ready to be
drank sold in the shop, and there were no freezers to keep cold alcoholic
drinks on the site.
·
If concerns / problems arose, then the company will
try its best to solve them.
ch) In
response to a question, the applicant's representative confirmed that the
Sunday opening hours would be from 10:00 to 16:00 and if the licence was
approved, to close at 23:00 every other night, the company would have the right
to determine closing hours (whether it be 21:00 or 23:00)
d)
The consultee in attendance took the opportunity to
expand on the observations that were submitted in written form by them.
Attention was drawn to the observations submitted by the consultees who were
not in attendance.
Councillor Nia Jeffreys (Local Member)
·
That the development
was to be welcomed and the observations did not reflect on the presence of
B&M in the town.
·
She reiterated the local resident's concerns
regarding the residents of Heol Madog.
·
That there had been problems
on the site since the nineties, with a dispersal order given to this area by
the Police in August 2020 - as a result of 'making noise in a public place'.
·
Accepted that there was no objection presented
by the Police, but that there was high demand on the Police's work now.
·
Accepted that the likely trading hours would be
21:00 and not 23:00.
·
Suggestion to the Sub-committee to approve the licence until 21:00 and if
it needs to open until 23:00, then a temporary event notice request would be
presented.
dd)
Taking advantage of the opportunity to summarise
their case, the applicant's representative noted
·
That he was not aware of the dispersal order.
·
With the shop being open later and occupied, this
would stop people from convening.
·
A CCTV will be installed inside and outside the
premises. This would be beneficial and a way to stop people from convening in
the area.
·
Submitting a temporary events notice for extending
the hours in December would be possible, but the process of doing that was
cumbersome. Keeping to 23:00 would give consistency throughout the company
(training and communication)
e)
Taking advantage of the opportunity to summarise
their case, the Licensing Manager noted that she was happy with the
observations by the applicant's representative and agreed with the opening
hours that had been suggested to mitigate the concerns of the neighbourhood.
All parties were
thanked for making observations on the application.
The respondents 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 observations submitted by interested
parties, the Licensing Officer's report, and the verbal representations from
each party at the hearing. The Council's Licensing Policy and Home Office
guidelines were considered. The Sub-committee gave due consideration to
all the observations and weighed these 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
Observations
submitted which were irrelevant to the above objectives were disregarded.
RESOLVED: To
approve the application:
Opening hours:
Sunday 07:00 – 23:00
Monday 07:00 – 23:00
Tuesday 07:00 – 23:00
Wednesday 07:00 – 23:00
Thursday 07:00 – 23:00
Friday 07:00 – 23:00
Saturday 07:00 – 23:00
Licensable Activities:
Alcohol Consumption on and off the Premises
Sunday 07:00 – 23:00
Monday 07:00 – 23:00
Tuesday 07:00 – 23:00
Wednesday 07:00 – 23:00
Thursday 07:00 – 23:00
Friday 07:00 – 23:00
Saturday 07:00 – 23:00
To include the
additional measures presented in Section M of the application, as conditions on
the licence
Particular consideration was given to the
following.
In the context of Preventing Crime and Disorder the Police had no objection to the application. No evidence had been
submitted highlighting that there were problems relating to this principle with
the premises.
In the context of Public Safety no evidence had been
submitted highlighting that there were problems relating to this principle with
the premises.
In the context of Prevention of Public Nuisance, observations
that there had been noise problems in the area since a shop opened on the site
in the nineties were received. However, the Public Protection Service did not
object the application and they had not presented any evidence of noise
problems. Appreciating the concerns expressed by the local resident, and the
Local Member, the Sub-committee was not of the opinion that there was evidence
to suggest that approving the application would lead to problems under this
heading.
It was considered that the opening hours was a Planning matter and the
observation by the applicant's representative was accepted that the normal
closing time would be 21:00 with the flexibility to open until 23:00 in
December. The Sub-committee were also aware that there were other supermarkets
in the town and their trading hours were considered to ensure consistency. The
Sub-committee also accepted that there was an intention to include conditions
on the licence noting that managers and staff would take steps to ensure that
customers did not convene outside of the premises, and contact the police if
needed.
In the context of Protecting Children from Harm, no
evidence had been submitted that related to this principle. The application
also included an explanation of the measures to ensure that alcohol would not
be sold to those under age, and the licence would include conditions to this
end.
Under the circumstances, the Sub-committee was satisfied that the
application was in keeping with the four licensing objectives, and therefore
the application was approved. On a general note, it was explained that the
Sub-committee was making its decision based on evidence and that the
legislation provided a review procedure where a request could be made for the
authority to review any aspect of the licence if necessary.
The Solicitor reported that the decision
would be formally confirmed by letter to everyone who had submitted written
observations. He added that all parties to the application had the right to
submit an appeal to Caernarfon Magistrates' Court against the Sub-committee's
decision. Any such appeal should be lodged by giving notice of appeal to the
Chief Executive, Llandudno Magistrates’ Court, Llandudno within 21 days of the
date that the appellant receives the letter (or a copy of the letter)
confirming the decision.
Supporting documents:
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