A pub, which up until 18 months ago was the scene of antisocial behaviour including fights, drug-taking and drinkers urinating in the street, begged a Cornwall Council licensing committee today (Wednesday, July 31) to drop a number of conditions, including a ban on customers entering the pub after 10pm.
The new owners of the Three Ferrets in Chapel Street in St Ives said they had turned the pub around and the restrictions were hampering business. However, residents living near the pub were fearful changes to the licence would see a return to the bad behaviour which plagued their lives for a decade.
Licensees Maria Francis and Ann Arrowsmith asked for permission to have live music in the Three Ferrets until midnight and to extend the sale of alcohol until the same time. The couple also want the removal of prior conditions, including a ban on entry after 10pm, a requirement that all doors and windows remain closed after 6pm and that windows should be covered after 9pm.
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There were no objections from relevant authorities such as the police, health and safety and public health. However, the council received representations from 15 residents against the application, while ten people sent supporting comments.
The meeting heard that the applicants have owned the premises since 2022, two months after a licensing review put the conditions in place. Ms Francis said: "We no longer have crowds of people congregating outside our premises like the pub used to have."
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She said the 10pm entry ban "has hit us hard as a business. We are turning away thousands of pounds of custom at 10pm every Friday and Saturday, and Sundays preceding a Bank Holiday Monday. It actually causes us more of an issue outside the premises, trying to explain to people why they're not allowed to come in, because it's quite an unusual condition to have. No other premises in town has this condition.
"Every temporary event we've had, we've removed this condition and it's never been an issue, even as recently as the Euros when we stayed open until 1am." Ms Francis added: "I received one complaint in the week of the Euros - not because the music was too loud, not because patrons were too noisy outside, it was because the door was squeaking.
"Out of 15 of the objections, 12 of them state how much we've improved as a business since we took over. Comments include 'positive impact', 'it's less troubled', 'the Three Ferrets is run extremely well' and 'it is so much better for the residents'."
Ms Francis said she struggled to see how objector Sherry Siefken Glossop claimed she had suffered from crime as a result of the pub as "there have been no reports of crimes". Another objector said they had phoned the police three times, but Ms Francis had checked and there had been no reports to the police since she and her partner took over the pub.
"Every single objection has pretty much got the same general consensus that they're worried it will go back to the old Ferrets. I want to make it very clear that myself and Ann have no intention of being 'the old Ferrets'. We have five children between us and we strive to make this business a success for our family."
Barrister Duncan Craig, representing objectors, then addressed the committee. "There is a broad acknowledgement that the situation has improved since October 2022. The current licence holders have to take some credit for that, but the fundamental issue that has changed with this licence application is the hours for the sale of alcohol and entertainment, which were reduced to 11pm."
He said concerns raised in 2022 - before the current owners were in place - were about incidents after 11.30pm. "So what you're being asked today is to go against the decision of the sub-committee in October 2022. You're being asked to take a leap of faith to go back to the position as it was."
Mr Craig added: "None of the people I represent have an issue with the pub being there. What they're saying is that the decision in 2022 given the location of the premises, given the layout of the pub itself, irrespective of who runs it, shows it's not suitable for a late night operation because of the proximity of the housing and the inability of anybody to control people once they've left the premises."
Committee member Cllr Rob Nolan argued that they weren't being asked to take a "leap of faith" as the applicants had run the pub successfully for 18 months and run around 30 events, including screenings of England football matches, which is a "tricky time for running a pub - if there are going to be problems, I think that's when there are going to be problems, and we're not seeing evidence of that".
Sherry Siefken Glossop told the committee that she feared the antisocial and drunken behaviours of the past would re-emerge if the licensing changes were made. She said she had made well over 25 complaints over the past 18 months to the pub, mostly about the volume of live bands and DJs.
Ms Siefken Glossop said as a resident and business owner on Chapel Street, she'd been treated "quite badly" by the past and present owners of the pub.
Rebecca Lewis, who spent £800 of her own money on the 2022 review, was critical of the process by which members of the public can complain about licensed premises, saying she had been on the phone for up to two hours to make a complaint to the police. "Just because the police don't have a record of three complaints made (about the Three Ferrets), doesn't mean that members of the public haven't phoned up," she said.
"I have to say, and I'm sorry to be rude, that the only reason that that pub was brought to review was because the licensing authority failed in their post massively. The fact that even now we are having to make our complaints directly to the pub because the licensing authority is too busy to handle our calls is also totally unacceptable."
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Addressing the applicant, she added: "I closed my holiday let business down because of the Three Ferrets because you were causing a nuisance, there was noise all the time - it's a pain in the neck. I cannot understand why you don't think it will be a problem if the doors and windows are open all day."
After deliberating, the committee announced it would drop the condition not to allow customers after 10pm as well as the ruling that windows should be covered from 9pm on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays preceding a bank holiday. However, a condition for windows and doors to be closed after 6pm would remain.
The application to extend opening hours was refused, with councillors believing allowing it would lead to a negative impact. They stated the applicant hadn't provided sufficient details about how a number of the previous issues arising again would be mitigated if all the conditions were removed and increased hours were granted.
Residents were told that if they had further complaints about The Three Ferrets they should contact the licensing authority rather than the pub.
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