Virtual meeting to discuss bid to open new Scarborough nightclub Decades is scuppered - here's why

Frazer Jones, of Decades Bar Ltd, applied to the council earlier this year for a premises licence to run the club out of 9 Aberdeen Walk, which was previously home to the Mansion nightclub.

North Yorkshire Police subsequently objected and the council’s licensing sub-committee was scheduled to meet on Tuesday (April 14) to decide on the application.

That meeting has now been postponed. In an email, the authority said the reason was “because of initial difficulties with the remote technology”.

Due to the Covid-19 outbreak the Government has granted councils powers to hold meetings remotely, meaning councillors no longer have to be in the same room to make a decision.

Another licensing meeting into a different application scheduled for Thursday has also been postponed, the council confirmed.

Under the proposals, Decades Nightclub would be open until 4.15am Monday to Wednesday and then half an hour later on Thursday to Sundays under the plans submitted to the council.

Music would be played until 4am Monday to Wednesday and then until 4.30am for the rest of the week, with alcohol served at the same time.

In a report that had been prepared for the licensing councillors it had stated that the police had a number of concerns about the club.

The report said: “[There are] concerns regarding the late-night trading hours as customers may leave the venue at 5.45am [and] issues surrounding the Cumulative Impact Zone (CIP) in relation to the number and density of licensed premises in this location.”

The report added that the police also had concerns “regarding management’s ability to demonstrate an understanding of the problems that exist and the measures they will employ to mitigate any impact.”

A new date for the hearing has not been set.

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