Resolved - That Councillor Steve Niblock be appointed Chair for this meeting.

Members are asked to consider whether they have personal or prejudicial interests in connection with any item(s) on this agenda, and, if so, to declare them and state what they are.

Members were asked to consider whether they had personal or prejudicial interests in connection with any of the items on the agenda and, if so, to declare them and state what they were.

Councillor Sue Taylor declared a personal interest in the application in respect of High Society (minute 12 post) by virtue of being acquainted with the applicant.

The Director of Law, HR and Asset Management reported upon an application that had been received from Portofinos Restaurant Limited for the grant of a Premises Licence in respect of Portofinos, 18 Liscard Village, Wallasey, under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.

These premises did not currently hold a Premises Licence.  The application was for the following hours:

Supply of Alcohol

Sunday to Saturday  12:00 to 02:00

Hours Open to the Public

Sunday to Tuesday  12:00 to 02:00

Wednesday to Saturday  12:00 to 02:30

Regulated Entertainment (Live Music)

Friday and Saturday  22:00 to 01:00

Regulated Entertainment (Recorded Music)

Sunday to Saturday  12:00 to 02:00

Regulated Entertainment (Performance of Dance)

Sunday to Saturday  21:00 to 23:00

Entertainment Facilities (Facilities for Dancing)

Wednesday and Saturday  21:00 to 02:00

Following discussions with Merseyside Police, the applicant had agreed to amend the application as set out above by reducing the hours originally set out in their application.  The applicant had also agreed to amend the operating schedule to include a number of conditions as set out in the report.

In respect of this application, 14 representations had been received from local residents.  A representation had also been received from Central Liscard Residents Association.  The representations related to noise nuisance and anti-social behaviour which they stated was a current issue within the vicinity of these premises and considered this would increase if the application was granted.  Copies of the representation were available.

Ward Councillor, Karen Hayes, had also made a representation.  The representation supported the concerns expressed by local residents.  A copy of the representation was available.

Mehran Maleki, owner of the premises, attended the meeting together with Carl Radcliffe, Head Chef.

Also in attendance were Councillor James Keeley, David Hale, Mr Seddon and Mr and Mrs Paton, local residents.

The Licensing Officer confirmed that all relevant documentation had been sent and received including a written request that had been received for Councillor Keeley to speak on behalf of residents.

It was clarified that the application included the facility for dancing from Wednesday to Saturday night.

Mr Radcliffe addressed the Sub-Committee and explained that the plan was to bring more life to Liscard, that the aim was to work on the basis of providing a cabaret so that people could attend the premises for a meal and stay in a nice environment which would enable them to dance if they so wished.  He explained that they wanted to hit the high end of the market and attract all age ranges, the intention was to put shows on and get comedians in.  He explained that every measure had been taken so that the premises would be kept to a high standard.  He felt that the measures that had been put into place were more than adequate for the safety of customers and local residents.  He outlined how the premises would operate a ‘Challenge 25’ policy, strict dress code, 2 registered doorstaff and potentially another inside the premises, 16 CCTV  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

The Director of Law, HR and Asset Management reported upon an application that had been received from Home Oxton Limited for the grant of a Premises Licence in respect of Home, 62 Christchurch Road, Oxton, under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.

These premises did not currently hold a Premises Licence and were currently trading as a café.  The application was for the following hours:

Supply of Alcohol

Monday to Saturday  09:00 to 00:00

Sunday  10:00 to 00:00

Hours Open to the Public

Monday to Saturday  09:00 to 00:00

Sunday  10:00 to 00:00

A copy of the full application detailing the steps proposed by the applicant was available.

In respect of this application, eight representations had been received from local residents.  The representations related to noise nuisance from the premises late at night.  Copies of the representation were available.

Mr Ben Harrison, Director of Home and Ann Atkins, Designated Premises Supervisor attended the meeting.

Also in attendance were Mr and Mrs Lennon, local residents.

The Licensing Officer confirmed that all documentation had been sent and received and that two late representations had also been received.  The applicant had no objection to the late representations being submitted and these were therefore taken into consideration by the Sub-Committee.  Mr Lennon further submitted photographic evidence to which the applicant also had no objections.

Mr Lennon clarified that he was also representing Mr and Mrs Alig and Mr and Mrs Hinchcliffe.

Mr Harrison explained that he did not intend to open the premises beyond 5 pm as the business was a day time operation however he wanted the option for customers to have a glass of wine with their meal and also the option to open the premises for occasional functions during the evening.  Mr Harrison had owned the premises for three and a half years and also had another outlet at Woodside Ferry Terminal.  He informed Members that he worked well with the Oxton Society and had a good relationship with residents.

Mr Harrison responded to questions from Members of the Sub-Committee and Mr and Mrs Lennon.

Further discussions took place regarding hiring out the premises as a function suite.  Mr Harrison confirmed that the maximum occupancy would be about 60 people and that he would be happy to have a limit put on the number of times he may be permitted to hire the premises out.  He was also content to amend the application to reduce the hours for the supply of alcohol by half an hour from those originally applied for namely 9.00 am to 11.30 pm.

Mr Lennon addressed the Sub-Committee and expressed the concerns of residents within the immediate vicinity regarding the extension of opening hours at the premises.  He felt that this would lead to intrusive noise disruption and an influx of evening visitors to the area which would also have an impact on the already existing restricted parking facilities.  Mr Lennon informed Members that the relationship between the owners of Home and local residents  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

The Director of Law, HR and Asset Management reported upon an application that had been received from Merseyside Police for the review of a Premises Licence in respect of High Society, Argyle Street, Birkenhead, under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.

The premises currently hold a Premises Licence which allows the following licensable activities:

Supply of Alcohol

Sunday to Saturday  10:00 to 04:00

Hours Open to the Public

Sunday to Saturday  10:00 to 04:00

Regulated Entertainment (Recorded Music and Anything of a Similar Description)

Sunday to Saturday  10:00 to 04:00

Entertainment Facilities (Facilities for Making Music, Dancing and Anything of a Similar Description)

Sunday to Saturday  10:00 to 04:00

Late Night Refreshment

Sunday to Saturday  23:00 to 04:00

A copy of the Premises Licence setting out the above hours and conditions attached to the Licence was available.

The Director advised the Sub-Committee of the steps it could take for the promotion of the licensing objectives, having regard to the application for review and any relevant representations.

Sergeant Jenkins, Licensing Sergeant, Merseyside Police attended the meeting together with Constable Cottrell.  Sergeant Jenkins advised that the grounds for review were in relation to the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety and the prevention of public nuisance following a number of incidents that had occurred at the premises involving both Door Supervisors and customers of the premises.

Tom Jones, Business Development Manager, Admiral Taverns attended the meeting together with his solicitor, Mr Ashworth.

Councillor Taylor declared a personal interest in this application by virtue of being acquainted with the applicant.  No objections were made to Councillor Taylor considering the application.

The Licensing Officer confirmed that all documentation had been sent and received.

Sergeant Jenkins informed Members that it had been necessary to call the premises into review due to the high number of incidents that had occurred at the premises, he also informed Members that the premises had a history of violence and drunkenness.  He further reported that the previous Designated Premises Supervisor had not complied with any of the licensing objectives, that he had since resigned and the premises had been closed since 29 May 2010.

Sergeant Jenkins proposed that a number of conditions be attached to the Premises Licence in order to promote the licensing objectives.

Sergeant Jenkins responded to questions from Members of the Sub-Committee.

Mr Ashworth advised that he would have suggested that many of the proposed conditions by Merseyside Police be attached to the Premises Licence in any event.  He also advised that Admiral Taverns would liaise with the Police to ensure that they would be satisfied with the new Designated Premises Supervisor and doorstaff employed at the premises.  He felt that the problems had been caused by the Designated Premises Supervisor and the previous Management Team and would therefore be happy for the proposed conditions to be attached to the Premises Licence.  He gave his assurance that robust management would be in place in the future.

Mr Ashworth and Mr Jones responded to questions from  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

The Director of Law, HR and Asset Management reported upon an application that had been received from Mr Andrew McCready to vary a Premises Licence in respect of Mojo’s, 3 Dee Lane, West Kirby, under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.

The premises currently hold a premises licence and the applicant had requested to vary the Premises Licence to extend the licensed area to include the first floor for the Licensable Activities currently permitted on the licence.  A copy of the proposed plan, showing the first floor premises was available.

The applicant had also requested to remove the following conditions from the Premises Licence:

·  The premises must adopt a policy of no admission to under 21 year olds and in order to meet this requirement a ‘Think 21 Policy’ is to be adopted.

·  Whenever live entertainment is taking place, one SIA registered door person must be on duty from 20.00hrs until closing and that door person must be equipped with a hi-viz fluorescent jacket.

The applicant has proposed to include the following conditions on the Premises Licence should the variation be granted:

·  One SIA registered door person to be on duty from 22:00hrs on Thursdays

·  Two SIA registered door persons to be on duty from 22:00hrs on Fridays and Saturday

·  Implement a ‘Think 25’ policy

Mr Julian Lea, owner and Designated Premises Supervisor attended the meeting together with his fiancée and work colleague Ms Laura Twamley.

In respect of this application, a representation had been received from a local resident.  The representation related to noise nuisance from entertainment coming from the premises.  The representation also related to nuisance being caused by customers leaving the premises at a late hour.  A copy of the representation was available.

Ward Councillors, Gerry Ellis and John Hale had also made a representation.  The representations supported the concerns expressed by the local resident and Councillor Hale was in attendance to support his representation.

The Licensing Officer confirmed that all documents had been sent and received however an amendment had been received to the representation submitted by Councillor Ellis and some letters of support from the applicant had also been received.  Both parties agreed that all the extra documentation may be considered by the Sub-Committee therefore these were circulated to Members.

Mr Lea addressed the Sub-Committee, he gave a brief description of the premises, that it was a small wine bar in the middle of West Kirby that provides live entertainment once or twice a week.  The reason for the application was to enable customers to have somewhere to sit and drink outside which would hopefully make the business more profitable.  He pointed out that Environmental Health had made no representations, that he kept windows and doors shut when regulated entertainment was being provided, he had changed the live music from bands to acoustic guitars and operated a log book.  He explained that the premises was a community bar which was well run and people were respectful of that.  He reported  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.