Councillors are set to rule on whether a “glamorous” New York-inspired cocktail bar will finally be allowed to open on Newcastle’s Diamond Strip.
Plans to bring a Manahatta bar and restaurant to the empty former Allied Irish Bank building on Collingwood Street have been in the works for years. The scheme was shelved in 2018 by operator Arc Inspirations, which also runs Banyan in Blackett Street, amid concerns from council bosses and Northumbria Police about allowing yet another drinking establishment to open at one of the city’s busiest locations.
But the Leeds-based firm has now revived the multi-million pound proposal, which came before Newcastle City Council’s licensing sub-committee on Tuesday. Arc Inspirations’ solicitor, Paddy Whur, told councillors that a £2.2m investment will be made in the bar – with building owners Portland Real Estate Group then planning to put another £4m into transforming the remainder of the vacant, grade II listed building into apartments.
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At a hearing to determine whether the site is granted a premises licence, Mr Whur said that the “vast majority” of Manahatta’s clientèle would likely stay there for their whole night out rather than being “circuit drinkers”. He also promised new lighting and CCTV would be installed to help address anti-social behaviour problems in Denton Chare and offered to bring forward the venue’s proposed closing time to 1.30am, with no entries after midnight.
Arc Inspirations CEO Martin Wolstencroft called the proposed new bar “glamorous”, saying it was aimed at young professionals and would offer “high quality” food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. However, the applicant’s pledges did nothing to convince police of the merits of allowing the bar, which would have a capacity of around 500, to open.
Chief Inspector Dave Wheeler told the committee that adding an extra large venue to Collingwood Street would “undoubtedly” cause problems in a trouble hotspot, at a time when police say the city centre is busier than ever before. He commended the “excellent” application, but said it was not exceptional enough to justify deviating from council rules that restrict the opening of new venues in areas of high stress.
Solicitor Sarah Smith, representing rival Diamond Strip bar operator Apartment Group, called it “naive at best, at worst it is misleading” for Arc Inspirations to suggest that opening Manahatta will not lead to any crime and disorder issues – when every venue on Collingwood Street has some problems. She also raised fears about the new problem of drunken revellers crossing the busy street to go between Manahatta and bars like Howlers and ChachaBuchi opposite, saying it “will inevitably lead to an accident”.
Mr Whur defended the applicant’s “faultless” record in Newcastle and said it had “significantly better” standards of management than other venues on the Diamond Strip. He added: “We will do it better than people there at the moment and we are not afraid to say that.”
It is hoped that the brand, which also operates in cities including Manchester and Leeds, would bring around 70 jobs to the city centre. The council is due to issue a decision on whether to grant the licence within five working days.
