Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chairman for the meeting and the Chairman to present and explain the procedure for the meeting.

Proposed by Councillor Craig Monks and seconded by Councillor Jill Haynes.

Decision: that Councillor Sarah Williams be elected as Chair for the duration of the meeting.

To receive any apologies for absence.

No apologies for absence were received at the meeting.

To disclose any pecuniary, other registrable or non-registrable interests as set out in the adopted Code of Conduct. In making their disclosure councillors are asked to state the agenda item, the nature of the interest and any action they propose to take as part of their declaration.

If required, further advice should be sought from the Monitoring Officer in advance of the meeting.

No declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests were made at the meeting.

An application has been made for a new premises licence for Rest Escapes Ltd, Meadow View, Wigbeth, Wimborne, BH21 7JH. The application has been out to public consultation.  Representations have been received. A Licensing Sub-Committee must therefore consider the application and representations at a public hearing.

The Senior Licensing Officer introduced the application which was for plays indoors from Monday to Sunday between 9:00 and 23:00, live music indoors from Friday to Sunday between 16:00 and 19:00, and alcohol sales from Monday to Sunday between 09:00 and 23:00. One relevant representation was made by a member of the public on the licensing objective of Prevention of Public Nuisance based on noise nuisance from people and music from the premises. An email had been sent by Licensing to the member of the public on behalf of the applicant, addressing the issues raised. The member of the public responded that their concerns had not been alleviated.

The applicant provided a summary of the purpose of the barn. The site was used as a platform to promote local businesses. The focus of the business was around school holidays and would extend hours during that time. The occupancy of the sight would have been varied. There were opportunities for private functions but was not the focus of the business. The applicant wanted to share a calendar with the objector well in advance and was happy to comply with the noise levels suggested by the council including the implementation of a decibel monitor. The applicant was committed to lights off at 21:00 and suggested that seating could be placed down the left-hand side of the barn during warmer months.

In response to questions from the councillors, the applicant commented that they had not received any other complaints, and that they can be contacted through phone or email and are on site 24/7. There was discussion about a proposal to change the entrance of the barn and whether there was any insulation, but the applicant needed to explore this with the owner of the building and could not agree to any changes at that moment. It was confirmed that the barn was only for guests of the park and that the max capacity was no more than 40.

The objector made his representation and explained that the noise from the barn was amplified making the sound travel further. There had been a video sent in as evidence of this. The objector explained that they were the only neighbour and so it was unlikely anyone else was concerned by this, however as the popularity of the site grew the disturbance could have increased.

A short adjournment was taken for the councillors to view the video evidence from the objector.

There was a discussion around how to alleviate the concerns such as closing the barn doors and creating an alternative entrance to prevent noise and light pollution and having an alternative seating area.

Decision:

To GRANT the Premises Licence with the usual mandatory conditions, conditions consistent with the Operating Schedule and the conditions added by the Sub-Committee set out below.

Conditions Added by the Sub-Committee:

-       A direct telephone number and email address for the manager of the premises shall be publicly available at all times the premises is open.

-       The Premises License  ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.

To consider any items of business which the Chairman has had prior notification and considers to be urgent pursuant to section 100B (4) b) of the Local Government Act 1972. The reason for the urgency shall be recorded in the minutes.

There were no urgent items to be considered.

To move the exclusion of the press and the public for the following item in view of the likely disclosure of exempt information within the meaning of paragraph 3 of schedule 12 A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended). The public and the press will be asked to leave the meeting whilst the item of business is considered.  

There are no exempt items scheduled for this meeting.  

There was no exempt business.