Agenda item

The application was for a Street Trading Consent to permit trading at the specified location between the hours of 12:00 – 20:00, Tuesday to Sunday.

The Panel carefully considered all the information presented, both written and oral, from:

• the Licensing Officer who outlined the issues;
• the Applicant,
• the Interested Parties’ written representations;

together with having reference to the appropriate provisions of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 and the Council’s own Policy for Determination of Street Trading Consents.

At the conclusion of the proceedings, all participants present confirmed that they had been given the opportunity to say all they wished to say.

The Panel noted that there had been no representations made by the Police, or any of the other Responsible Authorities.

After careful consideration, the Panel agreed that it was appropriate to grant the Street Trading Consent as applied for.

Reasons

The Panel heard from the Applicant at the Hearing and noted the three written representations which had been submitted by local residents. The representations included concerns regarding potential for an increase in littering in the surrounding area that might be a consequence of such proposed street trading at the site, which was a car park serving a park. There were also representations based on the proximity of this site to other food outlets, and the inadequate size of the car park for street trading. Some representations also raised concerns that the presence of a street trader would lead to an increase in anti-social behaviour at the site, and concerns regarding the noise of the generator used to service the trader.

The objecting residents were not present at the meeting, but the Panel took all written representations into account.

The Applicant explained his plans to trade in both sweet and savoury crepes, hot drinks and juices and commented that crepes would be a different kind of food offering to that of existing food outlets in the area. The Applicant also advised that the unit would be equipped with CCTV and that a bin would be provided for customers to use. The Applicant stated that at the end of each trading session he would litter pick in the car park. The Applicant also commented that anti-social behaviour would not be tolerated at the unit and that the unit would not be selling alcohol. While AL Crepes would be run from a petrol generator, the particular model had been selected based on the fact that it was quieter to run. It was hoped in future, the unit may run from solar power. All crepes would be cooked on gas hobs. 

Arising from the Panel’s questions, it was noted that the packaging from AL Crepes and Café would be branded in order to be identifiable compared to other street trader waste. The packaging would also be biodegradable. The waste collected by AL Crepes and Café would be stored before being collected by a waste management company, and all recycling would be separated. The applicant agreed to display a sign to tell customers to put their litter in the bin provided.

AL Crepes and Café would serve customers through collection and take-away service, and the phone number for this would be advertised.

It was noted that the unit would have a wide awning on the front to provide ventilation whilst also providing some shelter for customers.

The Panel felt that the presence of a street trader at the site may deter anti-social behaviour rather than encourage it, particularly due to the use of CCTV cameras from the trading unit.

The Panel also considered that there is sufficient parking amenity at the site for day to day usage and thus envisaged that the granting of the applied for Street Trading Consent would not adversely impact upon normal daily parking availability at the site. 

The Panel deemed that the standard Street Trading Consent conditions were appropriate in this case and also agreed that a 1 month trial period would be suitable in this case.