Agenda item

To consider the report of the Chief Officer (Elections and Regulatory) that advises Members of an application made under section 17 of the Licensing Act 2003 ("the Act") for a new premises licence in respect of Cora, 162 High Street, Boston Spa, Wetherby, LS23 6BW.

The Chief Officer (Elections and Regulatory) submitted a report seeking Member’s considerations on an application for the grant of a premises licence, made by Co Dining Ltd, for Cora, 162 High Street, Boston Spa, Wetherby, LS23 6BW.

Some supplementary information, in the form of menus and background information, was agreed by all parties and circulated prior to the meeting.

In summary, the application requested the sole activity sale by retail of alcohol Monday – Sunday 09:00 until 23:00 hours.

The application had received representations from West Yorkshire Police and local residents. West Yorkshire Police withdrew their representation following the agreement of additional measures with the applicant prior to the meeting. Outstanding representations from residents related to noise nuisance and anti-social behaviour. There were no objectors present at the meeting.

The following were in attendance:

o  Paddy Whur – Applicant’s Representative

o  Elizabeth Cottam – Applicant (Co Dining Ltd)

Mr Whur addressed the Sub-Committee on behalf of the applicant, and informed Members of the following points:

·  The applicant has featured on Master Chef, and visions improving Kirkgate Market with her other premises HOME and The Owl;

·  The applicant is a Chef, and keen to ensure her premises are food-led by offering tasting experiences, a comprehensive wine, champagne, and dessert menu, as well as a bakery and patisserie-based breakfast, lunch and afternoon tasting experiences throughout the day;

·  The premises would not sell draught beer, and alcohol was designed to complement the food;

·  15 new employment opportunities in the local area have been created;

·  There have been no past issues promoting the licensing objectives with other premises HOME and The Owl;

·  A Temporary Event Notice for the sale of alcohol was issued for an event that had taken place at Cora and it was confirmed that the event was successful with no issues;

·  One of the additional conditions agreed with West Yorkshire Police provided reassurances that the premises would be predominantly food-led;

·  The applicant has consulted with the Parish Council.

In response to questions from Members the Licensing Sub-Committee were provided with the following information:

·  The tasting menu accommodates 45 different small plates that bring together traditional flavours of English breakfast in a fine dining way, and the premises offers a relaxed professional environment for breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner;

·  Consultation has been undertaken with residents, particularly in relation to late night entertainment concerns;

·  There is a waste management strategy in place for the premises and efforts have been made to reduce glass in HOME and The Owl, and the applicant will continue to do this. Additionally, it was noted that there was an agreement in principle to place a bin on an external piece of land and noise subject to that will be managed accordingly;

·  Smoking has never caused issues at Home and The Owl and it was confirmed that smoking will not be encouraged outside a high-quality venue;

·  The external seating area will accommodate 2 small benches to the front of the premises and is not intended to serve the tasting experiences outdoors. The external area allowed customers with dogs, and takeaway items to be seated outside;

·  Off-sales allowed specialist wine orders to be taken home;

·  The applicant has never experienced anti-social behaviour related issues at HOME and The Owl over the last 4 years, and was not expecting there to be such issues with Cora;

·  The applicant’s other premises provided a similar experience to Cora, and it was confirmed that patrons usually spend £170 per head on 14 courses with wine flight. Typically, 80% of the patrons will opt for wine flight, and there’s never been any issues related with offering the multi-course experiences;

·  Parking related issues were not foreseen as an issue, and it was noted that a proposed nearby development with planning permission would facilitate 100 parking spaces. It was noted that most of the future reservations made by patrons were from local postcodes;

·  Sprits offered at the premises would mainly be for cocktails with low alcohol content, and 1 brand of bottled beer. The wine offered will be to complement dishes on the menu;

·  There are a number staff who have acquired personal licences and could potentially act as the Designated Premises Supervisor;

·  Regulated entertainment has not been applied for.

The Chair concluded the open session of the hearing before the Sub-Committee went into private session to make their decision. All parties were informed that the decision would be sent within 5 working days.

The Licensing Sub-Committee carefully considered the report of the Chief Officer (Elections and Regulatory), the Statement of Licensing Policy and the representations submitted and made at the hearing.

RESOLVED – To grant the application as applied for.

(The meeting concluded at 10:10)