Agenda item

The purpose of this report is to seek the views of the Joint Statutory Advisory Committee and Consultative Committee (SAC-CC) on the application for a premises licence to enable the organisation to deliver events effectively in Alexandra Park.

Louise Stewart, Chief Executive Alexandra Park and Palace, introduced the report as set out.  This was a proposal for the Trust to apply for a premises licence for the Park.  The role of the SAC-CC was to provide advice to the Board, who would in turn make a decision as to whether the Trust shall be allowed to apply for a licence.  The application proposed an increase in event days of 34 per year (to 43), which would not include set up or break down of events. 

The Chair asked for comments from the Committee:

a.         The Park needed investment in the infrastructure before extra events could be permitted, although it was also questioned whether it was possible for an increase in events to work in the Park.

b.         Extra events would lead to an increase in noise disturbance to local residents.  It would be important for the Trust to work with local neighbours in order to provide assurances that measures would be taken to mitigate the noise from events.

c.         Committee Members expressed concern that there would not be a balance between the number of events and public use of the Park.

d.         A Committee Member stated that local residents already experienced a number of issues around events – the stewarding, rubbish accumulation, areas of the Park being used as a toilet, lack of access to the Park during events and the impact on the Park.  Residents needed confidence that existing events would be managed better before there was any increase.

e.         Another member of the Committee expressed that they felt events were well managed.

f.          The Chair expressed his disappointment that this was the first time Committee Members had seen this proposal as a licensing application, as he felt that it could have been discussed at an earlier meeting, before submitting an application.  The Chair provided feedback from the Friends of Alexandra Park, where the main concerns were the loss of use of areas of the Park and the potential impact of this on local people, particularly where this was the only access to green space; the concerns over the constraints in the open areas of the Park if vehicles were driving through to set up or take down events, and the associated dangers with this; the cumulative impact to bio-diversity and wildlife in the Park; the damage and deterioration to existing physical infrastructure.  It was suggested that there be a substantial reduction in the number of events.

g.         Jim Jenks provided feedback from Warner Estate Residents Association – the need to generate income must be balanced with the need to maintain the resource as an area of peaceful enjoyment in a city, as well as the need to preserve the natural environment; ‘noise creep’ from any events with amplified sound needed to be addressed, with some independent mediation if required; the impact on local streets with parking overspill and crowds of people leaving events must be considered when reviewing any events in the Park.

h.        The Committee were positive about the consideration of holding smaller events in the Park, which would bring diversity in the events held.

The Trust Management provided the following in response to comments made:

i.          The Designated Premises Supervisor for the Park would be the same as it currently was for the Palace – a member of staff from the Catering department.

j.           In order to invest money into the Park, income would need to be generated, and increasing the number of events held would enable this.

k.         The number of events permitted under the licence would be the maximum number of events allowed, and it was not suggested that the maximum would be used in 2017/18.  Consideration was being given to holding events throughout the year, not just in the summertime, and also to a range of ticketed and non-ticketed events.

l.          It would not be practical to reduce the number of event days applied for, as this number may be further reduced by the Licensing Committee during the application process, if it wished to do so, and it would lead to further licence applications in the future in order to increase this number, at further cost to the Trust. 

m.       In regard to the setting up and down of events, there was no intention of this taking place overnight.

The Chair thanked the Committee for their comments and summed up the general consensus as that the Committee still had concerns over the levels of increase in activity in the Park, and that any application made for a Premises Licence should reduce the number of events as proposed.  There were also still concerns that even with good management, the impact on the local community would be too great.  The Committee requested that the Board ask Alexandra Palace for an indication of the lower level limits of events over the next few years, along with frequency and size of events.