Leamington bar will stay open - but supervisor is told to go
A hearing is taking place this week in which Saint Bar in Warwick Street could have its licence suspended for a month. MHLC-08-05-12 Saint Bar May31
A SUPERVISOR has been removed from a controversial bar in Leamington after he admitted “taking his eye off the ball” while setting up another establishment.
Police wanted to suspend the Saint Bar’s licence for a month after noise complaints and a number of fights at the premises.
But at a licensing review hearing on Wednesday, a panel of Warwick district councillors decided not to suspend the licence, but instead remove Ulief Burton from his role as designated premises supervisor.
They had heard statements from Sgt Paul Calver of Warwickshire Police, who had requested the review, and Andrew Potts of law firm Wright Hassall, which was representing the Warwick Street bar.
Sgt Calver referred to 15 cases in which authorities had been in contact with the venue for reasons mostly due to breaches of its licence and incidents including 14 recorded assaults - all of which took place between January 2011 and March this year.
He said: “With all this in mind we request that the licensing panel takes into account all of the evidence, which in our mind is enough for a complete revocation.”
People living in the Glass House apartments adjacent to Saint Bar had complained about the ongoing noise nuisance caused by the venue, but Mr Potts argued that this issue had now been resolved.
Mr Potts said a suspension of the bar’s licence or a reduction of its licensed hours could “ruin” the operation, which pays an annual rent of £40,000.
He admitted the bar had had its shortcomings and presented a list of strict security and management conditions which its managers were willing to adhere to and asked for a period of up to six months for the establishment to prove itself.
Cllr Alan Wilkinson said it seemed as if Mr Burton had not been taking his responsibilities seriously.
Mr Burton said: “The majority of incidents came about just before Christmas which was when I took on the Glasshouse bar.
“It was a massive project for me which took my eye off the ball.”
Saint Bar will continue to operate under its normal hours but must comply with a number of stringent conditions set by the panel.
The bar has 21 days in which it can appeal against the decisions, including the removal of Mr Burton.
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Sunday 19 May 2013
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