Fears over coffee shop alcohol licence application
People living in part of Huddersfield have said they fear their streets will be plagued by “rowdy” behaviour if a coffee shop is allowed a late-night licence to sell alcohol.
The owners of Le Sorelle in Milnsbridge have applied to Kirklees Council to extend its licence to 22:00, seven days a week.
More than 20 objections were received when it made a similar request last October, and the council's licensing committee then agreed to allow sales between 10:00 and 18:00 on the condition alcohol could only be drunk on the premises.
Le Sorelle's owners said they hoped that condition would be removed in the light of their new application, but local residents said they were still worried about "drunken" behaviour.
'Public nuisance'
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, one resident said: “An alcohol and live music licence from 10am to 10pm is totally inappropriate in this residential area.
"All-day drinking lessens people's inhibitions and leads to rowdy behaviour."
They added that "42% of violent incidents are alcohol-related".
“People walking past will feel intimidated by groups of people drinking and listening to live music outside the premises. I myself would feel unsafe," they said.
Another person said: “People drinking inside and outside the cafe for 12 hours per day, seven days per week, is going to cause an unacceptable level of noise in a residential area where we live.
“We are also concerned about the behaviour of drunken people in our area and of men in particular urinating in the woods opposite the cafe, which are by the side of our road and causing a public nuisance and potential anti-social behaviour.”
Environmental health officers said their objection was to alcohol being consumed outside the coffee shop.
Kirklees Council's licensing committee was expected to determine Le Sorelle's application this week.
Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk
