Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED – Councillor Townsley was elected Chair of the meeting.

To consider any appeals in accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules (in the event of an Appeal the press and public will be excluded)

(*In accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2, written notice of an appeal must be received by the Head of Governance Services at least 24 hours before the meeting)

There were no appeals against the refusal of inspection of documents.

1)  To highlight reports or appendices which:

a)  officers have identified as containing exempt information, and where officers consider that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information, for the reasons outlined in the report.

b)  To consider whether or not to accept the officers recommendation in respect of the above information.

c)  If so, to formally pass the following resolution:-

  RESOLVED – That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of those parts of the agenda designated as containing exempt information on the grounds that it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the press and public were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information

2)  To note that under the Licensing Procedure rules, the press and the public will be excluded from that part of the hearing where Members will deliberate on each application as it is in the public interest to allow the Members to have a full and frank debate on the matter before them.

The agenda contained no exempt information.

No formal late items of business were added to the agenda, however Members were in receipt of the following supplementary information:

Item 6 The Potting Shed – additional submission from the applicant (Minute 6 refers).

Item 9 Turtle Bay – additional submission from West Yorkshire Police. On the day of the hearing, the applicant for Turtle Bay produced additional documentation relating to a previous application at the premises (Minute 9 refers).

To disclose or draw attention to any disclosable pecuniary interests for the purposes of Section 31 of the Localism Act 2011 and paragraphs 13-16 of the Members’ Code of Conduct.

There were no declarations of interest.

To consider the report of the Head of Elections, Licensing and Registration on an application for the grant of a premises licence, made by Potting Shed Trading Limited, for Potting Shed, Oxford Road, Guiseley, Leeds, LS20 8AA.

The Sub Committee considered the report of the Head of Elections, Licensing and Registration on an application made by Potting Shed Trading Limited for the grant of a Premises Licence for The Potting Shed, Oxford Road, Guiseley LS20 8AA.

In brief, the application sought the provision of live and recorded music and sale of alcohol Monday to Saturday 10.00 am until 01:00 hours, and on Sundays from 10.00 am until 23:30 hours. Late night refreshment was proposed Monday to Saturday from 23:00 until 01:30 and Sundays 23:00 until 23:30. Non-standard timings to extend hours of operation at Christmas, New Year and British Summer time were also sought.

No representations had been received from the Responsible Authorities however one member of the public had submitted a representation. The following were present at the hearing:

Mr Whur addressed the Sub Committee first and informed Members that the applicant had a number of other premises in Bingley, Beverley, Northallerton and other locations. The Guiseley venue was formerly occupied by HSBC bank, and a refurbishment of £750,000.00 to £1m was proposed to establish the business which in turn would create 50 new jobs.

Mr Whur explained that the main focus would be a “Family Friendly” food orientated venue – there would be a large seating area, waiter service and an acoustic lobby, to assist in ensuring any escape of noise from the premises would be kept to a minimum. Additionally, the live music to be offered would be largely solo or duo performers; and the external area had been orientated away from the nearest residents. A number of conditions were offered by the applicant and detailed at pages 5 to 9 of the report which sought to ensure the promotion of the licensing objectives. The applicant had also held pre application meetings with the responsible authorities – and no responsible authority had felt it necessary to make a representation in respect of the application.

In reply to a Members’ query,  who pointed out that this application sought the longest hours of operation in the area, Mr Whur stated that the requested hours mirrored those operated in the applicants other premises. The other premises, specifically the Northallerton site which had a much larger garden/external seating area, operated without incident – with the exception of one isolated incident at the Bingley premises in 2016.

The Sub Committee then heard from Mr Verge who appeared on behalf of a resident who lived 80 metres away from the proposed premises. He advised that one of the applicants other Potting Shed premises in Bingley had been the source of noise complaints. There was concern that this Guiseley premises would also be a source of noise and related issues. Mr Verge also highlighted that the external terraces and seating area had been included within the ‘red line boundary’  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To consider the report of the Head of Elections, Licensing and Registration on an application to vary an existing premises licence held by 11-13 Hirst’s Yard, Leeds, LS1 6NJ. The application seeks to vary the layout of the premises and to replace all conditions.

This application was withdrawn from the agenda prior to the meeting as the applicants and all interested parties had reached agreements on measures suggested in order to promote the licensing objectives of the city. The Premise Licence will therefore be issued by the Licensing Officer in accordance with the agreed conditions.

To consider the report of the Head of Elections, Licensing and Registration on an application to vary the premises licence held by Marstons PLC for The Leeds Club, 3 Albion Place, Leeds, LS1 6JL. The application seeks to vary the layout of the premises and amend the licensable activities and conditions attached to the existing Premises Licence

This application was withdrawn from the agenda prior to the meeting as the applicants and all interested parties had reached agreements on measures suggested in order to promote the licensing objectives of the city. The Premise Licence will therefore be issued by the Licensing Officer in accordance with the agreed conditions.

To consider the report of the Head of Elections, Licensing and Registration on an application to vary the premises licence held by Turtle Bay Restaurants Limited for Turtle Bay, Unit A14, The Light, Albion Street, Leeds, LS1 8TL. The application seeks to extend the terminal hour of each current activity along with the opening hours of the premises.

The Sub Committee considered an application to vary the premises licence held by Turtle Bay Restaurants Limited for Turtle Bay, Unit A14, The Light, Albion Street, Leeds, LS1 8TL. In brief the application sought to extend the terminal hour of each current licensable activity along with the opening hours of the premises. It was noted that the premises was located within the ‘Red Zone’ of the Leeds City Centre Cumulative Impact Area.

The application attracted representation from West Yorkshire Police and the Licensing Authority. The following attended the hearing:

Mr Lyons addressed the Sub Committee on behalf of the applicant, explaining that this premises was located partly within the “Red Zone” of Leeds City Centre Cumulative Impact area as its frontage was on Albion Street and partly within The Light which benefited from 24 hour a day, 7 day a week, security. He referred to the decision notice issued after the 2015 hearing for the original grant of the premises licence (supplementary document tabled prior to the hearing) when a licence was granted for licensable activities until 00.00, with the provision of late night refreshment until 00.30 and 1 hour for dispersal on Fridays and Saturdays.

Mr Lyons stated the applicant now sought that additional hour for the provision of licensable activities, as that was the usual trading style of the Turtle Bay brand, plus existing customers had asked to stay an extra hour. He suggested that the applicant proved the application was an exceptional case in 2015 and contrary to fears expressed then about crime and disorder and this operating as a vertical drinking outlet, the venue had been successful as a food led Caribbean themed restaurant. He confirmed that the conditions contained within the existing premises licence would remain and highlighted that there was no admittance after 00:00 midnight, the applicant sought simply to retain existing customers for longer. He stated that Turtle Bay patrons did not cause any of the issues in the area.

Turning to the supplementary information submitted by WYP which outlined the circumstances of the Section 19 Closure Notice served on the premises on 18^th February 2017, Mr Lyons commented that this submission suggested that there were issues with the premises; however there was no evidence of assaults, drunkenness, damage or thefts from person identified at Turtle Bay. He acknowledged and apologised for errors which led to the issue of the Closure - failure of the premises to have a BACIL radio and the CCTV system recording for 25 as opposed to 31 days contrary to Conditions 10 and 19 on the premises licence – but stated these were no more than errors.

Mr Lyons then drew Members attention to the positive findings at the premises during the visits undertaken by West Yorkshire Police and Entertainment Licensing Enforcement officers on 18^th February and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.