A Cowes pub has had its music licence extended despite a neighbour’s objection bringing it before an Isle of Wight Council committee.
The Vectis Tavern on Cowes High Street has been granted permission by the authority to play music until 1.30am Monday to Saturdays, 12.30am on Sundays and 2am on special days such as Christmas Eve and Boxing Day.
Only being done to allow flexibility
While applying for the licence though, the applicants said it was only being done to allow flexibility as the tavern is still open at that time and this will allow, in some instances, background music to play or late-arriving music acts to continue playing their full set.
Complaint about music
One objector however, said music from the pub was already so loud they could not sleep and large groups of people outside, late at night, displayed anti-social behaviour.
They also said guests of a holiday property they owned had also been disturbed by noise on the street and believed the granting of the licence would ‘severely affect’ their business.
Last complaint in 2017
Officers said the objector knew the proceedings were happening today (Monday) at a meeting of the Isle of Wight Council’s licensing sub-committee but did not show up, with the last known complaint against the Vectis Tavern submitted to Environmental Health in 2017.
This complaint was not upheld
Issues often “falsely attributed to the premises”
Speaking at the meeting, for the Vectis, Anne Cook said issues of anti-social behaviour that occured on the High Street were often falsely attributed to the premises as she runs a very tight ship.
Mrs Cook said they have always had a robust approach to dealing with noise and anti-social behaviour, including employing door staff who controlled crowds and let groups in and out of the premises.
She said,
“I can only stress we are a high street location and if you are expecting to hear no noise at all [on the High Street] you are booked in the wrong location.”
Action taken immediately
Footage was shown of premises around the Vectis Tavern on the first weekend of June, where large groups had gathered and were said to be shouting, laughing and chanting.
Mrs Cook said at times like that they took action immediately, as they were ‘extremely responsible and flexible’, but people were accountable for their own actions once they left the premises and go up the High Street but it was hard to control with the pub ‘taking the rap’ for the majority of premises.
Late-night music only once a week, ‘if that’
Questioned on how often music would be played that late by chair of the committee, Cllr Daryll Pitcher, Mrs Cook said they had no intention of doing so on a regular basis but maybe only once a week, ‘if that’.
Members of the committee remarked noise was already present in that area of Cowes and granted the extended music licence as it stood with an additional condition that the noise management plan, as submitted within the application, be adhered to.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is part of. Read here to find about more about how that scheme works on the Island. Some alterations and additions may have been made by News OnTheWight. Ed
Image: Oleg Ivanov under CC BY 2.0
