A Wirral cafe will be allowed to serve alcohol, despite reports of a recent fight at the premises.
Cibo, at 90 Banks Road in West Kirby, will be allowed to sell alcohol between midday and 8.30pm from Sunday to Thursday and for an hour longer on Fridays and Saturdays, with the premises open from 9am each day after Wirral Council's Licensing Panel approved its booze plans. But Michael Rose, the applicant, admitted there had been a violent incident at the premises when a man came over the road and started hitting one of his friends “totally out of the blue”.
Mr Rose said he had not fuelled the incident, but the point the two residents at the hearing wanted to make was that there had been what they described as a “fight” recently at the premises. The panel was told the business was not open when the altercation took place, although some were present as it was being used for staff training.
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Stuart Carter, one of the residents, said this incident was not a good start for Cibo. While the premises has recently opened, it has not yet served alcohol as it did not have a licence to do so until today’s verdict.
Ruth Mullins, the other local resident at the meeting, said West Kirby had changed in the nine years she has lived there and thought it was becoming a “drinking quarter”. Ms Mullins said three licensed outlets had been approved in a small block of West Kirby premises within the last four years.
She added the noise generated from the premises made them “really awful to live alongside” and that she can’t sleep at night because of the noise. Mr Carter added he felt there had been too many licensed premises approved in a short space of time and felt a “drink all day culture” was developing where gangs of drinkers would congregate.
He added his garden had been used as a toilet late at night and that he was fed up of the smells and noise issues these venues generated. But Mr Rose said he was not looking to run a late night venue and was not offering spirits.
He said a small number of drinks including one brand of beer and red and white wine would be offered to fit in with an Italian theme. Homemade pasta and pizza would be part of Cibo's menu.
Mr Rose also said there would only be 24 seats in the restaurant, meaning it would not be that big. He added he had lived in West Kirby for more than 30 years and that it was a vibrant, successful town, which made it a pleasure to be in.
But Mr Rose added he was not opening until 11pm or 11.30pm like other venues and would take into consideration the concerns of residents.
