Greenwich (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The landlord of a landmark Greenwich riverside pub says there is “no glee” after winning an appeal to keep its outdoor seating, calling the inquiry unnecessary.
The benches and tables outside the Trafalgar Tavern were to be taken down by Greenwich Council.
The council felt that the seating damaged the nearby Old Royal Naval College’s historic properties and made it more difficult for bikes and pedestrians to travel along the Thames Path.
Known for its nautical theme and signal flag bunting, the nearly 200-year-old bar said that there was enough space for pedestrians to pass and that as the pathway was a footpath, cyclists’ activity should not be taken into account.
The Trafalgar also thought that its seats improved the Naval College’s tourism attraction by providing an area for guests to unwind, rest, and buy refreshments.
In March, Greenwich Council sent out an enforcement notice requesting that the pub take down the seats. On August 5, a public hearing was conducted at Woolwich Town Hall to evaluate an appeal against this notice filed by landlord Frank Dowling. Planning Inspector Lee Douglas sided with the bar and revoked the council’s enforcement notice in the appeal’s ruling, which was made public yesterday, September 24.
Despite being “thrilled” by the outcome, Mr. Dowling described his appeal victory as “bittersweet” and bemoaned the amount of money both his own and the public’s that was spent during the process.
He said:
“It shouldn’t have had to be done. Honest and earnest dialogue between parties should have resolved everything. There’s no glee about this because inherently it should have never happened.”
He was happy that the appeal win meant he would not have to lose any of his employees. He previously feared that if Trafalgar’s outdoor seating was removed, he would have to lay off 75 members of staff.
Looking forward, Mr Dowling hoped he would be able to “reset the relationship” with Greenwich Council and move on. He added:
“We want to do a lot more here. We have more space we want to bring on and we’re creators of space, we’re creators of interiors and we’re creators of employment.
Let us do what we do well, and if you’re not happy with something that you think we do badly then let’s talk. We’re going to be here for 20, 30, 40 more years. We have 100 years on our lease and we want to work together. We’re obviously very successful in what we’re doing.”
In his decision, Mr Douglas stated that the Thames Path is 1.6m wide before it joins the Trafalgar’s outdoor seating area, a stretch of the path known as The Knuckle. The Knuckle at its narrowest is 3.1m wide, nearly double the width of the adjacent section of the footpath. He said:
“For this reason, I am satisfied that a clear gap of at least 2.5m in width through The Knuckle would be sufficient to allow the reasonably safe passage of pedestrians and cyclists.”
The appeal was granted by the planning inspector with the stipulation that the Trafalgar must create a management plan outlining the operations of the pub employees on The Knuckle within three months and submit it to the municipality for approval. According to Mr. Dowling, Trafalgar would be happy to develop and implement this strategy, and it wouldn’t be a difficult undertaking.
The number and placement of umbrellas outside the pub cause “a modest level of harm” to the historic significance of the Grade II listed tavern itself by partially obscuring views of it, according to Mr. Douglas, who also found that the pub’s benches and tables did not harm the nearby Naval College in terms of heritage.
What does the council intend to control future outdoor seating proposals?
When a business wishes to put tables and chairs on publicly owned pavements or highways, they must apply for a pavement licence, which stipulates conditions to ensure access for pedestrians while also meeting safety requirements.
In some cases involving heritage, outdoor seating may also require planning permission and listed building consent to safeguard visual and architectural amenity.
Applications for outdoor seating licences will involve a consultation period for residents and stakeholders to comment on the proposals, with a particular focus on matters of noise, visual impact, and pedestrian flows.