Agenda item

Hearing Reconvened in private session a 11:31 hours on 28 May 2026.

PRESENT: Councillors Watson (Chair), Cuthbertson, and Rose.

The Sub-Committee resolved to reject the whole or part of the application (Option 2), and in doing so the Sub-Committee granted the variation to layout of the plans as applied for as shown below, and granted the part of the application for live music subject to the following condition:

·      Live music from the hours of 23:00 to 2:00 every day (including an additional hour on Bank Holidays and New Year’s Eve) is permitted only within the Rooms marked 1-5 on the Premises Licence plan (as shown in the hearing agenda at Annex 1 of the report from the Director – Environment & Regulatory Services).

The licence is also subject to the mandatory conditions applicable to licensed premises.

Members considered an application by Mr Ze He for a determination of application for variation of a Premises Licence (Section 34 Licensing Act 2003) in respect of 61 Lawrence Street, York, YO10 3BU. In considering the application and the representations made, the Sub-Committee concluded that the following licensing objectives were relevant to the Hearing:

1.    The Prevention of Public Nuisance.

2.    The Prevention of Crime and Disorder.

In coming to its decision, the Sub-Committee took into consideration all the evidence and submissions that were presented, and determined their relevance to the issues raised and the above licensing objective, including:

1.    The application form.

2.    The papers before it including the written representations received from local residents.

3.    The Director of Environment & Regulatory Services’ Report and Senior Licensing Officer’s comments made at the Hearing.

The Senior Licensing Officer outlined the report and annexes. The Senior Licensing Officer confirmed that the premises was not located within the Cumulative Impact Area (CIA), consultation had been carried out correctly, there had been no representations from responsible authorities, and she directed members to the representations made by local residents at Annex 5 regarding the prevention of public nuisance and crime and disorder. She then advised the Sub-Committee of the options open to them in determining the application. The Senior Licensing Officer reported that the premises had held a licence since 2018 and that amendments had been sought to allow for karaoke.

In response to questions the Senior Licensing Officer confirmed that:

·      Live music has been requested indoors to allow for karaoke; Live music was only licensable from 23:00 hours.

·      During a routine visit it was found that work had already been undertaken to transform the premises and that the toilets had been relocated in order to create space for the karaoke booths.

·      The new application includes an increased licensable area of the premises.

·      Complaints had been received in July 2023 regarding the behaviour of customers outside the premises between 0100-0200 hours. Engagement had been undertaken with the Applicant, and no further issues had been experienced.

·      Although Members could not take into consideration parking issues, public nuisance caused from parking could be considered.

·      Although there was no volume limitation on live music, the applicant would still need to operate within the licensing objectives to not cause public nuisance, and noise patrol teams were on hand to instantly investigate concerns raised. The Public Protection team, as experts to the Sub-Committee on public nuisance had not submitted a representation against the application.

·      Restrictions could be added to the licence to ensure doors are closed upon entrance and egress.

The Legal Advisor to the Sub-Committee made Members aware that any condition applied to the licence must be both evidenced based and proportionate.

Mr Ze He, the Applicant, reported that the licensable area within the application was all on the ground level, there were stairs at the premises going up to the student accommodation above, and all rooms at the premises were sound proofed.

4.    The Applicant’s representation at the hearing

Mr He reported that he understood the noise and parking concerns raised within the representations made, and highlighted that he had only had one issue since opening the premises. He reported that the application for live music had been made in order to enable karaoke, all karaoke rooms had been sound proofed, and most customers were student without cars which would mitigate parking concerns.

In response to questions from the Sub-Committee, the Applicant confirmed that:

·      He would be content with being restricted to karaoke only within the 5 rooms as detailed within the application. There was no intention or room to have live bands at the premises and so karaoke was the main intention for the licence variation.

·      He was the owner of the premises but from 2018-2022 he was not the designated premises supervisor (DPS).

·      The toilets had been moved to middle of the building, and the doors on room 5 had been changed to make access and egress easier for customers.

·      Staff had been fully trained on commitments to public nuisance.

·      Restrictions on keeping emergency doors closed could be applied.

5.    The representation of Richard Bowen, a local resident, at the hearing.

Richard Bowen presented his case and noted concerns with potential noise pollution from live bands. Mr Bowen referenced ‘licence creep’ in that the use and intention of the premises could change in the future, with the premises being permitted to host live music even if none were currently planned. He then noted concerns with lack of parking and the potential issues of smoking and noise from customers waiting outside the premises.

6.    The representation of Robert Purnell, a local resident, at the hearing.

Robert Purnell presented his case and highlighted that he had not realised that karaoke was already going on at present before the application had been approved. He noted that there was no current noise issue in the area and that he had concerns over noise issues starting with this variation.

In response to questions, Mr Bowen and Mr Purnell confirmed that:

·      There were no concerns with the current opening times set until 02:00 hours and that there were concerns with the changing customer demographic frequenting the area following the variation, causing an increase in public nuisance.

Mr Bowen urged the Sub-Committee to restrict live music to rooms 1-5 as seen within the application.

Mr Bowen was then given the opportunity to sum-up, and he highlighted the importance, safety, and possibility of keeping fire escapes closed at the premises.

Mr Purnell refused the opportunity to sum-up.

The Applicant refused the opportunity to sum-up.

[The hearing adjourned and reconvened in private session at 11:00am]

The Sub-Committee resolved to reject the whole or part of the application (Option 2), and in doing so the Sub-Committee granted the variation to layout of the plans as applied for as shown below, and granted the part of the application for live music subject to the following condition:

·      Live music from the hours of 23:00 to 2:00 every day (including an additional hour on Bank Holidays and New Year’s Eve) is permitted only within the Rooms marked 1-5 on the Premises Licence plan (as shown in the hearing agenda at Annex 1 of the report from the Director – Environment & Regulatory Services).

The licence is also subject to the mandatory conditions applicable to licensed premises.