Row over noisy fan blows over

A noisy restaurant fan which almost cost a business owner his drinks licence has been reset to run more quietly.

And with it, a noise abatement notice served by Brighton and Hove City Council has been rescinded.

The fan prompted people living close to Cin Cin Italian Bar and Kitchen, in Western Road, Hove, to call on the council to review the premises licence.

The steps taken to resolve matters were set out in a report to a council licensing panel which is due to hold a hearing later this week.

The review of the licence was suspended while work was carried out on the fan which formed part of the restaurant’s extraction system.

The report to the licensing panel, which is due to reconvene on Friday (24 July) said that neighbours were now satisfied with the noise levels after tests were carried out.

The original hearing, on Wednesday 27 May, was adjourned after the panel was told that work was due to take place that week to deal with the problem.

At the three-hour hearing in May, neighbour Rita Congiu, who asked for the premises licence review, said that she experienced a “low-pitched, sharp mechanical humming” going on for 12 to 14 hours a day, every day.

An email redacted by the council, understood to be from Ms Congiu, has been sent to the panel to say that she is happy for no further action to be taken after the fan’s speed controller was reset.

The council had previously served a noise abatement notice on the restaurant, owned by David Toscano, 48, and that has been withdrawn.

On a visit to Ms Congiu’s home on Thursday 11 June, an environmental protection technical officer assessed the noise from the extraction system and found a setting that did not cause a “statutory nuisance”.

But the three councillors on the licensing panel – Julie Cattell, John Hewitt and Kerry Pickett – are still due to meet formally to conclude the review.

The hearing is scheduled to start at 10am on Friday (24 July) and to be webcast.