Agenda and minutes

Councillor Benstead was elected as Chair for the meeting.

No interests were declared.

All parties noted the hearing procedure.

The Licensing Officer presented the report and outlined the application for a new Premises Licence under section 17 of the Licensing Act 2003 in respect of Diamond Grill, on the corner of Nicholson Way and Walker Court, Cambridge.  The licence was for Late Night Refreshment, from 23:00 to 00:00, from Monday to Sunday inclusive. 

The Diamond Grill van had previously parked on Arbury Road, but due to refurbishments on Arbury Road, the space was no longer available and would not be available once the work had been completed. 

Representations had been received from eight Other People. 

The Licensing Officer advised that should the Premises Licence be granted, Conditions as set out at Appendix D to the report would apply, which had been agreed with Cambridgeshire Constabulary (Condition 1) and Environmental Health (Conditions 3-5) respectively.  Conditions 2 and 6 had been offered by the applicant. 

It was noted that because the Diamond Grill van was not situated within a cumulative impact area, the legal advisor advised that the Licensing Act 2003 and the Guidance under section 182 of the Act required a Sub-Committee to come to a balanced view having taken account relevant points from both parties. 

Ms Baykal, on behalf of Mr Ince, made the following points as Applicant’s Representative:

-        Outlined the business’s longstanding presence in the area, the reasons for the move from Arbury Road, and their willingness to minimise any impact the business may have on neighbouring residential premises; 

-        The attempts undertaken by the business to minimise any nuisance e.g. by purchasing a new generator, provision of bins and litter picking, and encouraging customers (the majority of whom were families) to respect the neighbours and the environment;

-        Whilst acknowledging the concerns of those who had made representations, felt that some of the issues raised did not result from the business e.g. speeding vehicles.

In response to Member questions, the Applicant’s Representative:

-        Advised that the majority of clientele were families, with few single people.  Those coming from pubs rarely used the business as there were other similar catering businesses operating closer to the pubs;

-        Advised that the current site was preferred from the three sites offered by the Highways Authority, the other two being (i) near a junction on the Histon Road and (ii) near a junction between Arbury Road and Milton Road;

-        reiterated that they took the issues raised in representations very seriously, and had taken measures to address those concerns;

-        confirmed that their new generator had been operational on site since 03/10/16, and this was much quieter than the previous generator;

-        confirmed that they had not had any visits or issues raised by Environmental Health.

The Sub-Committee heard a representation from one “other person”, local resident, Gina Ghensi.  In her representation, she:

-        explained how the takeaway business had effectively been set up with no notice or consultation, in a residential area;

-        whilst appreciating the efforts taken by the business to pick up litter, commented that there was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 16/23/Lic