Residents Concerned About Business Park's Event Venue Plans
Licensing application would allow large scale events to be held regularly
Events are held regular in the afternoons at Chiswick Business Park. Picture: Enjoy-Work
Residents living in the vicinity of Chiswick Business Park are concerned about plans to significantly ease restrictions on the number and duration of events that can be held there.
An application has been made to Hounslow Council by the management of the office development to extend the hours during which alcohol can be served within the business park and the amount of events that can be held. In addition the amount of people that can attend these events could be more than doubled.
At the moment the licence allows plays, films, performance of dance, live music, recorded music and anything of a similar nature on Fridays from 10am to 4pm and live and recorded music on Sundays from 10am to 4pm - limited to no more than one Sunday in any one calendar year. Capacity for any event is set at 500.
The park often hosts events during the day for staff at companies based in the park which are usually open to the general public.
A granting of the application would allow the serving of alcohol on the event plaza seven days a week from noon to 10pm. In addition events including live music would be permitted from noon to 9pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 2pm at the weekends with films being allowed to be shown up to 10pm during the week.
There would be permission for up to 12 events per year with attendance of up to 999 or more with those of more than 499 requiring risk assessment and a management plan.
The licensing changes do not affect bars and restaurants within the park which have separate permits.
A letter from Matt Coulson, the CEO of Chiswick Park Enjoy-Work has been hand delivered to some addresses in Silver Crescent indicating that the park has applied to vary the licence but with no details of the variations requested. The letter indicated that events would be “primarily taking place in their (Guests) lunchtime as well as a few early evenings”.
The West Chiswick and Gunnersbury Society (WCGS) says that there is ‘a serious mismatch’ between the reassuring tone of the letter and the application proposals. WCGS is seeking clarification from Enjoy-Work which manages the park. The Society says it is raising this matter because, when events are held on the plaza, especially those involving activities with amplified sound, they can be heard within properties in the neighbouring residential streets at a level which it believes constitutes a significant noise nuisance.
In a statement the West Chiswick and Gunnersbury Society said, “Is the Chiswick Business Park suffering from an identity crisis? It does not seem to know whether it is a business park, a spectator car park or an event venue. Following on from its planning application to provide parking for spectators at the Brentford Stadium, the Chiswick Business Park has now submitted an application to vary their premises licence to extend the hours for the existing licensable activities (plays, films, performance of dance, live music, recorded music and anything of a similar nature) and to serve alcohol. The variations requested are significant and would allow the Events Plaza (the open space between buildings 3, 4 and 5) to function as a venue for large-scale events on a regular basis.”
The society is encouraging local residents to submit comments to licensing@hounslow.gov.uk before the deadline of 13 April 2021.
We have asked the park’s management for comment but have not received a response.
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March 29, 2021