Restaurant secures liquor licence despite noise row

FRIDAY, MAY 27: A Hamilton bar and restaurant has won its battle with a small group of neighbours who complained about noise pollution.

Latin secured its liquor licence on Monday despite residents from a nearby block of flats taking their concerns before the liquor licensing court.

The group made representations to Senior -Magistrate Archibald Warner during two half-day hearings.

They claimed noise from late night parties at the Victoria Street venue kept them awake at night.

But the court ruled in favour of Latin and agreed to issue a new liquor licence.

Owner Phil Barnett has now vowed to work with residents to keep everyone happy.

He said: “We had a full hearing in front of the liquor licensing court.

“I had thought we would be able to come to an -agreement before it came to that but that proved -unsuccessful.

“We were told on Monday that we had secured our liquor licence for another year.

“It is a bittersweet -feeling. They are our neighbours and many are our clients.

“It was disappointing it came to this but this is an economic empowerment zone and it is our job to inject entertainment and life into the area.

“We are obviously pleased we have our licence but frustrated that we had to take the legal route.”

Mr Barnett said that Latin plans to erect a retractable awning in June, which he hopes will allay the concerns of the residents who had complained about the noise.

He added: “We want to keep working with our neighbours.

“We have a lot of exciting events in the pipeline and want to provide people who come to Latin with an exciting and vibrant experience.”