The landlord of a historic riverside pub has called the actions of a London council “childish” following a public hearing into whether the pub’s outdoor seating should be removed. Greenwich Council believes the seating outside the Trafalgar Tavern, which is on the Thames Path, impedes the movement of pedestrians and cyclists and harms the heritage assets of the adjacent Old Royal Naval College.
The Council issued an enforcement notice in March that demanded the pub—known for its naval theming and signal flag bunting—remove its outdoor seating along the path. Landlord Frank Dowling appealed against this notice, with the public hearing considering the appeal taking place at Woolwich Town Hall yesterday (Tuesday, August 5). It was chaired by a representative of the Planning Inspectorate.
During the hearing, the council argued the seating negatively impacts people’s experience of the UNESCO world heritage site, stating the “modern clutter” of the seating contradicts the “austere landscape” of the Naval College.
Meanwhile, the tavern argued that the pub’s outdoor area enhances the experience of visitors to the Naval College, offering them a place to rest, relax and purchase refreshments.
Representatives of the pub said it was “an enormous stretch” to consider that some benches and tables would compromise one’s ability to enjoy the popular tourist destination.
However, the council felt that visitors should feel “awe-struck and impressed” when viewing the Christopher Wren-designed buildings and the Trafalgar’s seating created barriers to this experience.
Local resident Paul Russell spoke in support of the tavern in this regard. He said: “For me, sitting outside the Trafalgar with a pint of beer and looking at the various buildings, that enhances the experience.
“I’ve got no doubt at all as to the many thousands of visitors who would say it adds to the experience. It doesn’t detract from it at all.”
The other key point of contention concerned highways and whether the outdoor seating was impeding the movement of pedestrians and cyclists along the Thames Path.
The council felt the movement of customers and members of staff outside the pub was an impediment to those travelling along the path and could potentially cause collisions.
David Scales, a regular user of the Thames Path, spoke at the meeting attesting to this. He said: “This area is very busy. It’s used by tourists, local residents, cyclists and groups of people walking. I have disabilities myself, and sometimes I find it difficult to get through there.”
The Trafalgar said the Thames Path was a footpath that provided no right of way for cyclists and so their impediment should not be considered.
The pub also felt that there was sufficient space for pedestrians to walk along the path unimpeded, stating the path was around 3m wide during its entirety while passing by the riverside tavern. The council believed a minimum width of 3.5m to be safe.
Planning Inspector Lee Douglas closed the hearing before conducting a site visit. It is expected that his decision will be released in the coming weeks or months.
Following the conclusion of the hearing, Mr Dowling said: “I think our arguments outweighed their arguments. I think their arguments are weak. I think their presentation was weak. I think their professionalism was not up to standard. They weren’t prepared on a lot of things.”
He felt the council was “unprofessional” for not initially having a highways representative at the hearing. It wasn’t until after the lunch break that the council found one to speak.
Mr Dowling took over ownership of the Trafalgar Tavern in 2001. He didn’t understand why the council had served the enforcement notice in March when the pub had had outside seating along the path for several years and no incidents had been reported.
He said: “This whole thing has been childish. Expensive, on my part. They wouldn’t have spent nearly as much money as me, but I’m defending peoples’ lives. We’d lose a lot of people. Our business changes.”
His main concern if the planning inspector doesn’t rule in his favour is that the pub could potentially lose 75 members of staff due to the lack of outdoor dining service space.
Mr Dowling said he was proud of the diversity and inclusivity within his workforce, and he feared for the livelihoods of his staff should the decision not go the Trafalgar’s way.
He said: “What is wrong with having tables and chairs on land that you rent, that you own?
“I just hope that the greater good for everybody outweighs the two or three people in the council’s opinion.”
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