South London jazz pub under threat

[Phil Meloy]

South London jazz pub under threat

A world renowned jazz venue in Barnes has been served with a noise abatement order that could force its closure after 45 years.

The Bull's Head, which has heard international artists playing every night of the week for years, has until February 15 to keep the sound levels down.

However, Young's brewers claim that to soundproof the Barnes pub would cost around £172,000, which they cannot afford.

A block of flats was built next door and, during the planning stages of the development, preservation of the passageway between the pub and the police station was refused.

Objections were lodged by the landlord noting that performances in the studio would be likely to disturb potential neighbours without the air gap of the passageway, Young's added.

At the same time Richmond upon Thames Council approved a change in use of the site from light-industrial to residential. One resident of the new Laing Homes development, Stephanie Fallows, complained to Richmond council about the noise last month.

Noise readings were taken and a statutory nuisance was established. A noise abatement notice was served on November 15.

The landlord of the pub for the past 23 years, Dan Fleming, said of the possible outcome: "It would be dreadful, having spent 23 years building it up and keeping it going and bringing people in from all over the world.

"All the wonderful people who have played here go back years. This is one of the biggest tourist attractions in Richmond. We have had to cancel events. We don't play loud rock music, it is acoustic music. This order has been thrust upon us and it is only one lady who has complained."

Michael Hardman, of Youngs, who the abatement order has been served on, said: "Estimates to get the pub soundproofed would be around £172,000. We just can't invest that amount of money.

"We feel very aggrieved because we have only had one complaint out of the entire population of Barnes. The jazz does not make money but it would be like taking a man's leg off.

"It is a very successful, very well run pub. I expect Dan and his wife must be heartbroken. We feel very sorry for them. We are still looking at other possibilities."

The council has confirmed that the notice required abatement of the problem within a three month period. It did not forbid the playing of live jazz, just the reduction of disturbance to people living nearby.

There are a range of ways for minimising noise emissions and the council has been in discussion with the brewery over possible measures to reduce the noise to an acceptable level. A cost of about £5,000 has been estimated by the council to replace the doors and carry out acoustic work on the ventilation, not £172,000 to soundproof the entire building.

A spokesman said: "Concerning the planning aspect, the nearby development was determined solely on its planning merits. It is not unusual to have pubs located close to residential developments and both be good neighbours."

http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/misc/pr...hp?artid=554967

[Hardbopjazz]

That's too bad if they close.

[Phil Meloy]

"Concerning the planning, the nearby development was determined solely on its planning merits.

One would have thought that in assessing any application for planning permission it would be the responsibity of the council to take into consideration any future impact a new development might have on the already existing community.

Edited December 17, 2004 by Phil Meloy

[sidewinder]

Yet another case of an area becoming trendy, planners get greedy by cramming in boxes in every available bit of real estate then the new 'locals' take issue with noise which was quite acceptable to them when they originally bought the place. The 'Bull's Head' is a stalwart of the London Jazz Scene and a huge plus to the social life of the Barnes/Richmond area, yet these jerks are doing their very best to destroy it all.