A NEWPORT pub will be allowed to open an hour later at the weekend – despite some residents saying it makes their lives “unbearable” with noise.
Residents living near the Angel Inn at West Street had expressed concerns about the impact on noise and anti-social behaviour if the hours were extended, after Omar Qamar applied to Newport City Council’s licensing committee to extend the opening times of the pub until 12.30am on Fridays and Saturdays, and 12am on Sundays, as well as on Bank Holiday Mondays, Christmas Eve and Boxing Day.
Outlining his case to the local authority’s licensing committee, Mr Qamar said he had installed CCTV cameras on the premises, would only host private functions for over 25s, and had a decibel meter on his phone to keep the noise of the jukebox to a minimum.
“I want an extra hour because a lot of my customers are old clients,” he said.
“It’s just for the customers benefit so they don’t have to move on straight away. I wouldn’t say there’s a lot of benefits really.
“Maybe I’ll take in an extra few pounds.”
But one of the concerned residents to object was Jeff Holland, who’s lived at the nearby Blewitt Street for 11 years.
Mr Qamar had sent residents a letter assuring them about noise levels at private functions earlier this year, but Mr Holland said he could hear the jukebox’s “bass thudding” in his living room just a fortnight later.
“Two weeks later we had it all over again,” he said. “We had between 40 and 50 teenagers – 16, 17 and 18 year olds running amok on the street.
“He did have a doorman on site but when I said, ‘Can do you do something about it?’, he said to me, ‘What can I do about it? They’re off the premises, it’s a police matter.’”
Another resident to object was Sue Simpson, of West Street, who said the current noise levels of private functions already made life “unbearable”.
“He seems to think once they get out of the street, he thinks he’s got no responsibility,” she said. “All we want is a bit of peace and quiet. We don’t want much else.”
Despite these objections though, the chair of the sub-licensing committee, councillor Cliff Suller, granted Mr Qamar’s request for extended opening hours.
“You are totally responsible for what happens in your public house and to be mindful of the comfort and feelings of those who are living in and around you as well,” he warned.
“Take every possible measure you can to make it absolutely clear that you would wish them [punters] to leave the premises in an orderly fashion that does not disturb others.
“We will be monitoring the situation – have no doubt whatsoever.”
Source: South Wales Argus (23rd July 2016)
