Agenda and minutes

Venue: Town Hall, High Street, Maidstone

Contact: Committee Services  01622 602899

Items
No. Item

8.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

There were no apologies.  

9.

Notification of Substitute Members

Minutes:

There were no Substitute Members.

10.

Election of the Chairman

Minutes:

RESOLVED: That Councillor Grigg be elected as Chair for the duration of the meeting.

11.

Disclosures by Members and Officers

Minutes:

There were no disclosures by Members and Officers.

12.

Disclosures of Lobbying

Minutes:

Councillor Brindle had been lobbied on Item 7 – Application to vary a premise licence under the Licensing Act 2003 for Tap 17, 17 High Street, Staplehurst, Kent, TN27 9NH.

13.

EXEMPT ITEMS

Minutes:

RESOLVED: That all items be taken in public as proposed.

14.

Application to vary a premise licence under the Licensing Act 2003 for Tap 17, 17 High Street, Staplehurst, Kent , TN27 9NH pdf icon PDF 212 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The persons participating in the hearing were identified as follows:

Chairman – Councillor Grigg

Committee Member – Councillor Brindle

Committee Member – Councillor Naghi

Legal Advisor – Mr Robin Harris

Senior Licensing Officer – Lorraine Neale (in attendance virtually)

Democratic Services Officer – Miss Oliviya Parfitt

Applicant – Mrs Kelli Newman

All parties confirmed that they were aware of the Sub-Committee hearing procedure and had each received a copy of the hearing procedure document.

The Sub-Committee agreed to proceed in the absence of the objector and noted the additional comments received that had been distributed to the panel Members. The Sub-Committee confirmed that they had read the papers.

The Chair explained that:

· The Sub-Committee would allow all parties to put their case fully and make full submissions within a reasonable time frame.

· The procedure would take the form of a discussion led by the Sub-Committee and they would usually permit cross-examination conducted within a reasonable timeframe.

· Any person attending the hearing who behaved in a disruptive manner may be directed to leave the hearing by the Sub-Committee (including temporarily) after which, such person may submit to the Sub-Committee over the Instant messaging facilitating any information which that person would have been entitled to give orally had the person not been required to leave the meeting. If this is not possible, they may be permitted to speak at the Chair’s Invitation.

The Chair enquired whether any draft conditions had been agreed between the applicant and other parties; no draft conditions had been agreed.

The Senior Licensing Officer introduced the report and noted a correction to the premises’ address as shown, which was located in ‘Headcorn’ rather than ‘Staplehurst’. The variation application was outlined, with specific attention drawn to the objection received at Appendix 4 to the report and the further comments received via email.

The applicant was invited to make their opening statement and stated that it was not their intention to consistently keep the business open for the hours as applied for, but that the choice and flexibility to remain open was the primary aim.

The applicant had not received any complaints from any neighbours, the Parish Council or the Police in relation to the premises and felt that the business was run and managed well. There were two other premises locally that provided live music which could be heard from the applicant’s premises, with the applicant confirming that recorded music was played inside of the venue with any live music previously provided by either a solo pianist or guitarist.

The applicant intended to rearrange the outdoor seating to provide greater privacy along the shared access with the tenant living above the premises. The importance of social distancing between customers was highlighted.

The variety offered by the venue was reiterated alongside the clientele it attracted due to its small size. The growth of the surrounding village and general noise was referenced.

In response to questions from the panel, the applicant confirmed that they had live music indoors only  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.