A West London council has given the green light for a ticketed birthday party event hosting up to 400 people despite objections raised by the Metropolitan Police.
The event will be held at Milan Palace, The Green, in Southall. There will be food and alcohol provided, with the event licensed until 5am on Sunday, August 24, with the event starting the night before.
The venue is typically licensed until 1:30am on a Saturday, however the Licensing Subcommittee felt the licensing conditions would be upheld by the venue and partygoers.
In a written statement, the Metropolitan Police objected due to recent nuisance caused by late night events at the same venue. The force said this ranged from loud music from cars, horns beeping, raised voices, and cars driving up and down the street.
At an event on July 13, the police say there were large groups of people leaving the venue, congregating on the street, served by a BBQ set up outside until 6am. On this occasion, it is also claimed that CCTV shows “two scuffles” between attendees.
David Dadds, representing the applicant, told the committee that this would not happen this time. He said patrons would be served food late, inside the venue, meaning they would leave satisfied and have no need to seek an early morning feast.
The Met also described another event held only a week before which it says caused public nuisance. On this occasion, food was also served by BBQ’s and a truck outside the venue well into the early morning hours.
According to police, the applicant, Miss Ursula James, said she “was not aware” of this happening outside whilst she was at the venue. PC Anu Mittu added: “It was pointed out that it was her responsibility to ensure that her events do not impact the lives of people residing around the location.
“In light of the CCTV evidence and complaints that have been lodged, the Metropolitan Police have little confidence the licensing objectives will be upheld and therefore we feel we cannot, based on the evidence we have, support this application.”
Nearby residents complain about ‘restricted sleep’
Ealing Council’s noise nuisance team also objected to the application, citing complaints made following a number of events in the last 12 months. The officer described a video which showed “individuals inhaling nitrogen dioxide whilst seating in vehicles with doors wide open, canisters scattered around them, large build up of waste, persons shouting and arguing, others trying to intervene, general chaos.”
She said: “The Noise and Nuisance Team believes that events organised at Milan Palace have had a significant negative impact on local residents who have complained of restricted sleep, due to the ongoing noise from loud amplified music emanating from the premise as well raised human voices, illegal parking and anti-social behaviour associated with people leaving the venue.”
The applicant outlined plans for stringent parking measures, enforced by three security guards at the venue, as well as their expectation that there would not be people served food from BBQs outside. This left the police feeling more confident that the event could be run smoothly.
Despite the objections raised, councillors felt the event was well placed to go ahead. Returning the decision, Councillor Tariq Mahmood added: “The subcommittee further noted the circumstances of the temporary event notice as relevant, and each temporary event notice should be considered on its own merit.”
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