Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED: That Councillor Lucy Hodgson be appointed Chair.

COUNCILLOR LUCY HODGSON IN THE CHAIR.

To receive any declarations of interest.

None.

To consider an application for the grant of a static Street Trading Licence submitted by Mr Arion Zouliatis on behalf of ‘The Sweet Greeks’, to trade from a location adjacent to St Swithuns Church,The Shambles, Worcester.

The Sub-Committee considered an application for a Street Trading Licence, made by Mr Arion Zouliatis on behalf of ‘The Sweet Greeks’, to trade from a location adjacent to St Swithuns Church, The Shambles, Worcester.

At the start of the hearing, the Chair made the following statement: “Presentations to this Sub-Committee are not given under oath. However, I would like to remind all parties that the highest standards are expected and any deviation from these high standards could possibly influence any decision of the Sub-Committee.”

All parties at the hearing introduced themselves. Mr Zouliatis had chosen not to have any legal representation, but was instead accompanied by his business partner and his business advisor. Mr Zouliatis stated that he was satisfied with the proposed procedure.

The Legal Services representative summarised the matter for consideration. The matter had been referred to the Sub-Committee for determination by Worcestershire Regulatory Services as an objection had been received from the Churches Conservation Trust (CCT).

The Legal Services representative explained that in accordance with the

Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982, Schedule 4, a street trading licence application could only be refused on one of two grounds:

1) That there is not enough space in the street for the applicant to engage in the trading in which he/she desires to engage without causing undue interference or inconvenience to persons using the street; and/or

2) That there are already enough traders trading in the street from shops or otherwise in the goods in which the applicant desires to trade.

The Technical Officer (Licensing) presented the report on behalf of Worcestershire Regulatory Services. All parties were given the opportunity to ask questions of the Technical Officer (Licensing).

Mr Zouliatis was invited to address the Sub-Committee in support of the application. He explained that they had been trading from a tricycle cart for 4 months offering speciality Greek desserts, cakes and hot drinks. He believed that the Sweet Greeks offered something different to other shops and cafes in the area.

Mr Zouliatis informed the Sub-Committee that currently the Sweet Greeks were required to move the cart every 30 minutes to different locations, without returning to the same location within 3 hours. They now wished to secure a static spot from which to trade. They believed that the location adjacent to St Swithuns Church would not hinder pedestrians or vehicles, and contrary to the representations made by the Churches Conservation Trust (CCT), would not block either of the Churches’ emergency exits.

Mr Zouliatis referred to the objection from the CCT that the Sweet Greeks’ cart would have a negative aesthetic impact on the location, and responded that the cart was much more aesthetically pleasing than the hot dog/burger stand which had previously traded from the same location. Furthermore, Mr Zouliatis confirmed that the cart would be removed at 6pm each day, which would minimise any impact on evening events held at the Church.

With regard to the fire exits, Mr Zouliatis had measured the distance between the doors to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

To consider an application for the grant of a static Street Trading Licence submitted by Mr Patrick Kelly on behalf of ‘No Frickin Chicken’, to trade from a location on Friar Street, Worcester (where it meets Union Street).

The Sub-Committee considered an application for a Street Trading Licence, made by Mr Patrick Kelly of vegan food outlet ‘No Frickin’ Chickin’, to trade from a location on Friar Street, where it meets Union Street, Worcester.

At the start of the hearing, the Chair made the following statement: “Presentations to this Sub-Committee are not given under oath. However, I would like to remind all parties that the highest standards are expected and any deviation from these high standards could possibly influence any decision of the Sub-Committee.”

All parties at the hearing introduced themselves. Mr Kelly had chosen not to have any legal representation, but was instead accompanied by his partner, Ms Hannah Hughes. Mr Kelly and Ms Hughes stated that they were satisfied with the proposed procedure.

The Legal Services representative summarised the matter for consideration. The matter had been referred to the Sub-Committee for determination by Worcestershire Regulatory Services as objections had been received from local traders and residents.

The Legal Services representative explained that in accordance with the

Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982, Schedule 4, a street trading licence application could only be refused on one of two grounds:

1)   That there is not enough space in the street for the applicant to engage in the trading in which he/she desires to engage without causing undue interference or inconvenience to persons using the street; and/or

2)   That there are already enough traders trading in the street from shops or otherwise in the goods in which the applicant desires to trade.

The Technical Officer (Licensing) presented the report on behalf of Worcestershire Regulatory Services, setting out the background to the application, as detailed in the agenda report.

All parties were given the opportunity to ask questions of the Technical Officer (Licensing) regarding the report.

Mr Kelly and Ms Hughes were then offered the opportunity to address the Sub-Committee in support of their application. They provided responses to a number of the objections which had been raised, as follows:

1)   With regards to smell, the applicants argued that unpleasant odour from deep frying food was largely due to dirty oil. They committed to changing their cooking oil every two days and had installed strong extractors. They had previously operated from the same vehicle and had received no complaints regarding odour.

2)   In order to address any potential objections regarding noise, the applicants had built a sound-proof box for their generator which reduced sound emission to around 60 decibels which was the same level as normal conversation.

3)   The applicants were committed to operating in an environmentally-friendly manner, using bio-degradable packaging and bins for customers to use.

4)   The applicants did not consider that their offer would adversely impact on other traders since it was a unique food offer in Worcester. They acknowledged that the local ‘Be the Change’ café also offered vegan food but they felt No Frickin’ Chicken was sufficiently different not to affect their business.

5)   Addressing objections that No Frickin’ Chicken’s Airstream van was not in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.