A pizza outlet has offered to stop selling alcohol as it seeks a late-night refreshment licence allowing it to trade until 2am at weekends.
But Sussex Police and the Brighton and Hove City Council licensing team have objected to the late-night proposal from Tops Pizza, at 6 York Place, Brighton.
The business, owned by Kian Yazdi Nodoochani, 25, already has a late-night refreshment licence which allows hot food and drink sales until midnight each night.
Now, Tops Pizza Limited has offered to give up its noon to midnight drinks licence if it can sell food and soft drinks until 2am.
The application is due to be decided next week by a council licensing panel, consisting of three councillors.
Council licensing officer Emma Grant said that two complaints were made about Tops Pizza trading past its midnight closing time last summer.
She said: “These complaints relate to opening beyond their permitted hours … as well as food hygiene and noise issues.
“The premises was contacted and an agent advised them to comply with the terms of their licence.”
She said that the council objected to the application because a further late-night food outlet in the area could add to the existing levels of crime and anti-social behaviour.
Sussex Police also objected, citing high crime in the area. Sergeant Mark Redbourn said that the area already experienced a high number of incidents.
He said that most of these occurred throughout the day, with only 65 crimes reported between 11pm and 2am.
Sergeant Redbourn said: “Permitting a premises to be open in the night-time economy is likely to increase incidents in the locality which is close to The Level and London Road.
“The crime statistics, if expanded to include some of London Road, The Level and down to Grand Parade, jump to a concerning 2,388 – with 1,054 being recorded as theft.
“But there were 584 recorded crimes of violence against the person.”
Sergeant Redbourn said that the area already has many licensed businesses including pubs and bars, restaurants and late-night food venues.
In the event of the licence being granted, Sussex Police proposed draft licence conditions that would require at least one qualified member of door staff to be on duty whenever the business stayed open past midnight.
Delivery drivers would be required to park legally and quietly, without blocking the pavements.
Draft conditions agreed by Tops Pizza and the council’s environmental protection team would limit refuse and recycling collections to between 7am and 7pm.
They would also require a dedicated phone number or email address to be given to neighbours so they could contact the business if they experienced any noise or other nuisance.
The licensing panel hearing is due to start at 10am next Friday (9 January). The hearing is scheduled to be webcast.
If they can run a pizza shop late without booze then do that, but I suspect that if they get late permit until 2am then next year an application will be in to get the booze back on the menu. Start cutting the booze licences not handing them out like smarties