The owners of a former petrol station converted into a late-night street market without proper consent to sell alcohol have been ordered to pay £25,000.
The Pump and Boneyard, in Shoreditch High Street, was ordered to stop selling alcohol from its bar, and hot food and drinks from its 11 different vendors after 11pm, at a Thames Magistrates Court hearing.
Hackney Council this week said the pop-up had subjected neighbours to “months of noise and antisocial behaviour”.
District judge Angus Hamilton on February 4 dismissed an appeal against the council’s decision to revoke the Pump and Boneyard’s licence.
Barristers for Hackney Council argued the shop and forecourt had been completely transformed from the former Texaco petrol station and minimarket into a huge drinking establishment at a four-day hearing in January.
They said the change – which had not gone through the proper licensing process – was adding to problems with antisocial behaviour already blighting the neighbourhood.
The council had received numerous complaints from people living nearby, it said. Seven of them came to give evidence in court.
Summing up, the judge said Robert Newmark from owner Le Brea Ltd had “clearly demonstrated contempt for the laws and regulations that govern the transformation of a petrol station and minimarket into a bar and eating place, selling up to £5,000 worth of alcohol a day.”
He added it was “entirely legitimate for the licensing authority to consider the issue of cumulative impact when they call in for review the licence of [...] a misbehaving licensee.”
Mr Newmark had tried and failed twice to get the licence altered so the venue could legally operate as a bar and restaurant. But the venue launched anyway, trying to comply with the alcohol restrictions by selling drinks from a former minimarket there.
Deputy Mayor Cllr Sophie Linden, said: “Residents living near the Pump and Boneyard had been subjected to months of noise and antisocial behaviour that was having a very real effect on their lives. Having the correct licence is important as it ensures the interests of residents are taken into consideration.”
La Brea could not be reached for comment.
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