Beer garden at Poulton's Cube Bar Kitchen boosted by planning inspector decision

The outdoor amenity at Cube Bar Kitchen, on the corner of Breck Road and Vicarage Lane, is to stay as it is thanks to the planning inspector's decision.

A recent result by the Planning Inspectorate went in favour of the busy venue -previously known as The Cube - after owner Paul Mellor appealed against a decision by Wyre Council to put restrictions on the beer garden.

Wyre issued an enforcement notice against The Cube in May last year, contending that the construction of a high wall and canopy roof at the garden amounted to a breach of planning control.

The council also decreed that a planning condition, stating that the beer garden should only be used between the hours of 9am and 6pm, had been breached.

The notice required Cube to reduce the height of each of the brick boundary walls to the western, northern and eastern boundaries of the Land to the height that they were before the "unlawful" development took place, namely to 1.65 metres.

It also ordered that the overhanging roof be removed in its entirety from the land.

The notice also included the requirement that the bar owners cease the use of the rear yard for the purposes of eating and drinking outside of the permitted hours of 9am and 6pm - and halt the presence of any customers there beyond those hours.

Wyre Council had issued the inforcement to reduce any noise disruption which might disturb the residents living closest to the beer garden.

However, planning inspector Siobhan Watson ruled that several counts of the appeal should succeed - allowing the walls and roof to remain in place, and the beer garden to be used beyond the hours decreed by the council enforcement.

Ms Watson stated: "The appellant (Mr Mellor) has demonstrated within their noise report that the canopy and wall provide noise attenuation.

"Moreover, residents .... say that the wall and canopy has improved the residents’ quality of life due to the noise attenuation it provides and it has improved residents’privacy and security."

Regarding the hoors of operation of the beer garden , the inspoector said that on the permission most recently granted for the land by the council, there was no condition on it to restrict the outside areas.

Effectively, this meant that "the whole of the site has permission to be used as a bar/restaurant with no restrictions on the outdoor

area.There are no conditions in relation to operating hours."