Removal Of Lyttelton Hotel Licence To Bishopdale Sought

Press, Issue 30997, 1 March 1966, Page 10

Removal Of Lyttelton Hotel Licence To Bishopdale Sought

Application for the removal of the hotel premises licence of the Albion Hotel, Lyttelton, to BiShopdale was made to the Licensing Control Commission yesterday, when it resumed its review of licences in the Canterbury licensing district. Applications were also made for tavern licences for the Heathcote Arms, Islington Arms, Mitre (Lyttelton) and Belfast hotels.

When it adjourned until this morning, the commission (Mr S. T. Barnett (chairman), Major-General Sir William Gentry and Mr N. Butcher) had dealt with 71 of the 100 licences to be reviewed.

Ballins Industries, Ltd. (Mr R. E. Wylie) applied for removal of the Alibion Hotel licence to the Bishopdale shopping centre. Mr Wylie submitted that it was not thought practicable to undertake the major renovation suggested in the inspection report. If the application for removal of the licence to Bishopdale were granted, it would help to alleviate the surplus of hotel licences at Lyttelton, as claimed by the police. “Bishopdale might be a long way off,” suggested the chairman. If the Bishopdale application were declined, Baltins would seek another site, said Mr Wylie. Mr Barnett: You are going to close down in the meantime?

Mr Wylie: No. There is nothing to suggest things are as bad as to justify that. In the case of the Saxon Hotel, Lyttelton, for which the commission last year approved of removal of its licence to a 60-bed motor hotel in Pages road, Mr Wylie asked the commission to defer the decision until the new hotel was built and the licence finally removed. Drop In Demand

Applying for a tavern licence for the Heathcote Arms Hotel, the owner, Mr N. J. Wallace (Mr P. ,G. S. Penlington) said that the accommodation demand had dropped to 0.9 per cent last year. It would take about a year to alter the hotel if the tavern licence were issued.

The owners, Balling Industries, Ltd., sought tavern status for the Islington Arms Hotel, said Mr Wylie. They were unable to give detailed plans, because of uncertainty about southern motorway arterial road plans. Part of the hotel would have to be demolished for reading. A tavern licence was also sought for the Mitre Hotel, Lyttelton. There was no real demand for accommodation, said Mr A. L. Riddiford, hotels manager for Ballins Industries, Ltd., asking for a tavern licence for the Belfast Hotel. There was uncertainty about whether the northern motorway would pass in front of the hotel or go behind it. Mr L. H. Nicolle (Mr R. G. Blunt) said he had just bought the Templeton Hotel, and would take possession on March 31. As he did not know whether he could develop the accommodation business, he asked for six months’ extension of the hotel premises licence. If he found he could not justify expense on accommodation,

he would apply for • tavern licence.

Criticism ‘Surprising’

Referring to the Lyttelton Hotel, also owned by Ballins and for which a hotel premises licence was sought, Mr Wylie said that criticisms by the licensing inspector as to mad design and poor conception were surprising, as when the hotel was built nine years ago, it had been commended by the commission. The hotel-keeper, Mr R. A. Miller (Mr R. Godfrey) said it would be physically impossible to make another entrance and the car lay-out was the most suitable. Both Mr Miller and Mr A. Scott, keeper of the Canterbury Hotel, Lyttelton, said their bar customers preferred tn stand, not sit.

Plans had been prepared for total renovation of the Old part of the British Hotel, Lyttelton, said Mr E. A. Camfield, a member of the Lyttelton Borough Council (Mr J. G. Leggat). The council owns the hotel. He said that terms had been reached with the lessee company for the bearing of the expense. When the public bars in the Lancaster Park Hotel were “packed” at 5.55 p.m. on February 12, sound level tests showed the noise to be slightly more than that in a factory machine shop, according to evidence from Mr C. E. Fenwick a consulting engineer, who detailed the results of tests taken at the hotel. His evidence was to counter an inspection report

recommendation that accoustic tiles be installed in the bars. “In my opinion,” said Mr Fenwick, the noise level in all bars was quite reasonable, and slightly less than I had expected from a busy hotel. The carpeting of the floors has been a helpful factor in achieving this. The provision of tiles is quite unnecessary.” He detailed readings taken at various times in the public bars and lounges, decibel levels ranging from 76 to 84 in the bars, and from 75 to 81 in the lounges. A reading of 75, he said, was equal to a noisy restaurant, with a reading of 90 equal to a noisy factory or engine-room. The centre of Cathedral square read 70 decibels at

12.45 p.m. on February 23, with 77 decibels at the Bank of New Zealand corner. A Friendship aircraft in level flight read 83 decibels, with 86 to 88 decibels for a Viscount

Mr G. T. Mahon, for the owners of the hotel, said it was very clear the owners had made an outstanding effort to meet the commission’s standards.

Other applications for hotel premises licences were made on behalf of the following:— Esplanade (New Brighton), New Brighton, Marine (Sumner), Canterbury (Lyttelton), Royal (Lyttelton), Valley Inn (Heathcote), Yaldhurst, Lincoln, Ellesmere Arms (Tai Tapu), Halswell, Prebbleton and Royal George Hotels.