A society of residents funded by the council could \u201cdestroy Soho\u2019s reputation on the international stage\u201d as London\u2019s entertainment district by ferociously objecting to all new bar and restaurant licences, operators in the area have said.<\/p>\n
The Soho Society, a group of residents established in 1972 aimed at \u201cpreserving the character of Soho\u201d, voted in its AGM on Thursday for a new licensing mandate, meaning it will challenge all new applications for bars and restaurants in the area, including renewals of existing licences. It will also object to any venue that wishes to open beyond \u201ccore hours\u201d, which Westminster council decrees end at 11pm.<\/p>\n
The society claims the area in central London has seen an intensification of nightlife and unacceptable noise, as well as crime and litter caused by a proliferation of late-night revellers.<\/p>\n
The new mandate means it will be very difficult for businesses to open or expand in the area. The society is part-funded by Westminster city council and has a formal consultative role in relation to all planning and licensing applications in Soho.<\/p>\n
Rupert Power, the owner of Sophie\u2019s, a steak restaurant, and the underground jazz bar Jack Solomons, both on Great Windmill Street, chairs the Soho business alliance, which is made up of 150 small companies. \u201cSoho is renowned internationally for its creative activity and it is a melting pot of socialising,\u201d he said. \u201cIt would be a shame if that international reputation was trashed by a few residents.\u201d He said other cities such as Paris and New York were able to maintain more of a late-night culture than central London.<\/p>\n
Some members of the Soho Society said they felt intimidated into not voting against the mandate, because an email said any votes would be seen by the chair of the society.<\/p>\n
China Town in Soho. The Soho Society is estimated to represent about 10% of the district\u2019s residents. Photograph: Kevin Gorton\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery time they [the society] contest a licence, no matter if it is for spurious reasons, the council looks at it,\u201d another bar owner, who is also a member of the society, said. \u201cIt costs nothing for them, but thousands for us. Why have a blanket policy to say \u2018no\u2019? But, they say they can see what we vote, and I don\u2019t want them to retaliate against me by coming after my licence. They are mafia-like. So I won\u2019t vote.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brian Hannon, who owns the Super 8 restaurant company which oversees the Thai restaurant Kiln on Brewer Street and the Michelin-starred Mountain on Beak Street, said it was \u201cshocking\u201d the society would be able to see how people voted.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cBut they always have objected to all new licences. The more extreme they go the more silly and unreasonable they look.\u201d<\/p>\n
A report this week by the former cabinet minister Alan Milburn said a lack of hospitality jobs was contributing to high youth unemployment in Britain. It pointed to a halving of vacancies in the hospitality industry <\/a>over the past four years alone. Analysis shows Britain has the third-highest rate of 16- to 24-year-olds<\/a> who are not earning or learning among rich European countries.<\/p>\n Power added: \u201cIt is strangling small businesses, meaning there are less hours and jobs for young people to work. I really worry for young people. To have a minority be in a position of stifling growth that is funded by the council is not ideal.\u201d<\/p>\n