Hartlepool shop’s booze hatch bid refused as council refuse 24-hour alcohol licence

Hartlepool Borough Council licensing sub-committee ruled there was no reason to allow ‘Hadj’s Mini Market’ at 134 York Road to sell alcohol overnight after concerns it would increase problems in the area.

The applicant Nouredin Hadj Kaddour, who did not attend the hearing, applied for a licence to sell alcohol 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and sales of alcohol between 11pm and 7am would be from a hatch in the door.

There were six objections to the plans from Cleveland Police, solicitors Tilly Bailey and Irvine LLP, the council’s licensing manager and three residents, all raising worries of crime, nuisance and public safety.

The committee instead granted the store a licence to sell alcohol on site from 9am until 10pm, in line with the council licensing policy for residential areas.

Resident Trevor Bennison, who lives near to the shop, spoke at the meeting raising concerns the shop selling alcohol 24 hours a day could cause a greater nuisance in the area.

He said: “We already have issues, particularly through the lighter nights of the summer, with people sitting right outside our house and in the park drinking until 10pm or 11pm.

“My fear with this application is now all they need to do is go round the corner and buy more booze when they run out, so that 10pm/11pm could be 2am or 3am and they’re not exactly quiet, it’s quite rowdy and it’s quite disturbing.

“I have two dogs which we walk early in the morning and it’s quite frequent we bump into drunks at 5am and 6am still wandering around very much intoxicated.

“We already in the area have a problem with anti-social behaviour, vandalism, drinking, even young kids from 10/11 upwards you see with drink, this would just give them another outlet.

“It would have a serious detrimental effect on my quality of life and the quality of life of everybody else in the area if this was allowed.”

Council licensing manager Ian Harrison supported the claim it was a residential area and said selling alcohol should be restricted to 9am until 10pm.

He said: “In the absence of any representation from the applicant explaining why the council should deviate from its licensing policy, I would ask that the sub-committee strictly apply this policy and limit licensed hours to those detailed in it.

“This being 9am until 10pm, seven days a week.”

This added to a written objection previously received from Cleveland Police, who raised concerns after a night of drinking, revellers would be able to access more alcohol, impacting people in the area.

Chair of the meeting Coun Dave Hunter ruled the shop would be granted a licence to sell alcohol from 9am until 10pm, instead of 24 hours a day.

He said: “We are satisfied the location of the premises is in a residential area.

“The evidence from the police demonstrates the location of the premises is very close to where there have been a number of violent incidents over a six month period from 29th July 2018, with all but one of the incidents being after 11pm.

“The granting of the application for the hours requested would not promote the licensing objectives relating to the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, and prevention of public nuisance.”

The application for the site in York Road stated CCTV is installed at the site with six cameras, and there was a panic button in the store with links to the police.

There was also several measures listed of how they would prevent public nuisance and ensure public safety, including assessing every individual buying alcohol and not serving people under its influence.

Sylvia Pinkney, council public protection manager, said the applicant was contacted in relation to the hearing and did not provide any further documentation.

Nic Marko , Local Democracy Reporting Service