Agenda, decisions and minutes

Nominations for a Chairman of the Licensing Sub Committee were sought and it was

Resolved:

To elect Councillor Ian Thorn as Chairman for this meeting only.

To receive any apologies for absence and to note any substitutions.

There were no apologies or substitutions.

The Chairman explained the procedure to be followed at the hearing, as contained within the “Wiltshire Licensing Committee Procedural Rules for the Hearing of Licensing Act 2003 Applications” detailed in the agenda papers.

The Chairman gave details of the exits to be used in the event of an emergency.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

There were no interests declared.

To consider and determine an Application for a variation of a Premises Licence by Whitehall Garden Centres Ltd in respect of Whitehall Garden Centre, Corsham Road, Lacock, Chippenham, SN15 2LZ.  The report of the Public Protection Officer (Licensing) is attached.

Application by Whitehall Garden Centre Ltd for a variation of a Premises Licence at Whitehall Garden Centre, Corsham Road, Lacock, Chippenham, SN15 2LZ.

The Licensing Officer, Jemma Price, introduced the purpose and scope of the variation application, the premises to which it related and the key issues for consideration including the four licensing objectives and the representations received. The existing Premises Licence has been in place since 24 November 2005.

The initial application sought to amend the existing licence as follows:

·       To amend the current ON Sales hours to mirror those of the OFF Sales,08:00hrs to 23:00hrs Monday to Saturday, 12:00hrs to 22:30hrs Sunday.

·       Include the Lavender Lodge for the sale of alcohol ON Sales.

·       Include the Ice Rink Café for sale of alcohol ON Sales – October to January.

·       To allow a pop up bar in the garden for ON Sales one weekend in April,

·       May, June, July, August and September.

·       To remove the current Non Standard Timings for ON Sales;

a)    On Good Friday, 12:00hrs to 22:30hrs.

b)    On Christmas Day, 12:00hrs to 15:00hrs and 19:00hrs to 22:30hrs.

c)    On New Year’s Eve, (except on a Sunday) 10:00hrs to 23:00hrs.

d)    On New Year’s Eve (on a Sunday) 12:00hrs to 22:00hrs.

e)    On New Year’s Eve from the end of permitted hours on New Year’s Eve to the start of permitted hours on the following day.

·       For OFF Sales;

a)    Good Friday 08:00hrs to 22:30hrs

b)    Christmas Day 12:00hrs to 15:00hrs - 19:00hrs to 22:30hrs

The variation was subsequently amended by the applicant as follows:

·       To withdraw the provision to allow a pop up bar.

·       To reduce the proposed hours for the Ice-Rink sale hours to 0900-1930 Monday-Saturday, and 1030-1630 on Sunday.

·       Acceptance of additional conditions as detailed in the agenda pack.

In accordance with the procedure detailed in the agenda, the Applicant and those who had made a Relevant Representation were given the opportunity to address the Sub Committee.

Key points raised by Mr Peter Self of Whitehall Garden Centre Ltd, including in response to questions raised by the Sub-Committee and questions from Cllr Ben Anderson on behalf of those making a relevant representation were:

·           The variation was to cover two buildings on the site, the Lavender Lodge and the Ice-Rink, which was a season activity. The alcohol offering was intended to be glasses of wine, prosecco, mulled wine, liquored chocolate beverages and similar other options, not full-scale bars.

·           Alcohol was already available from the main restaurant on the site, which could be carried to the other areas.

·           The proposals were to add to the existing experiences on the site as a compliment to the existing offer, not attract a new clientele. The site was a family attraction in a rural location, not suitable for general drinking activity, and the proposals were about diversifying the offer for those already attending, particularly with retail offers struggling more than food and beverage sales.

·           Traffic management on the site itself had been adjusted to mitigate traffic flow and parking  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.