A Bath brewery which wants to host pottery classes has been given the green light to stay open late on Wednesdays, despite neighbours warning that punters were disturbing their sleep.
The brewery on a summer’s day | Photo © Electric Bear Brewing Co
Bath-based Electric Bear Brewing Co is located on the edge of the Brassmill Industrial estate in Newbridge, with its popular taproom open on Thursdays through to Sundays.
But an application to the council to open for the same hours on Wednesdays too prompted concern from locals next door on Osborne Road that the brewery was “being transformed into a public house and party venue”.
At a hearing before Bath & North East Somerset Council’s licensing subcommittee on 18th April, the brewery’s Clive Milner told councillors that people had asked to hold events such as pottery classes and film nights at the brewery, and they wanted to sometimes hold them on Wednesday nights.
He said: “This is really just to give the business the option of expanding the business and trying to make our way in the current climate.”
But Nigel Gardner, who was one of the neighbours to submit an objection, said the noise of people sat outside the taproom in summer stopped children and people who have work in the morning from getting to sleep on Osborne Road.
He said: “We are used to the noise of the industrial estate, but they don’t go on to 10 and beyond.”
He added that events such as pottery nights were “innocuous”, but reminded councillors: “If the committee gives a licence, they give a licence for the selling of alcohol through those hours, not for pottery classes.”
The brewery said they asked people to leave quietly and tried to call last orders early so the premises could close by 10pm.
Mr Milner said: “We are aware of the residents on Osborne Road and try to keep the noise as low as possible, but at the same time the taproom is an important part of our business.”
He said that they did not expect a lot of noise on Wednesdays when they held events, but there may be some from people talking as they left.
The licence application, which concerned changing its licenced hours from ending at 7pm on Wednesday to ending at 10pm, was granted by councillors, with a condition that the buildings shutter be closed from 7pm to keep noise down for neighbours.
Concerns about noise from businesses are nothing new in this part of suburban Bath, where industrial units lie right next to quiet residential streets.
In January, locals a few streets away contacted the council about sex toy company Lovehoney making too much noise at night. Neighbours said that heat pumps installed at the Bath-based company’s warehouse on Locksbrook Road were too loud.
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter
