Barber’s anger at ‘being treated differently’ over plan for late-night cafe
BUSINESSMAN WANTS TO KNOW WHY APPLICATION IS SET FOR REJECTION
a month for 4 years A TURKISH barber who overcame opposition to win permission for a café conversion is now facing a battle to secure late hours.
Atakan Durna, known as Pasha, runs a barber’s salon in Beverley town centre but wants to convert it into a Mediterranean café.
Mr Durna won planning permission in March, despite planners’ concerns another café would further stifle Beverley’s shopping scene.
Now, he has applied for late-night opening hours, of 8am to 11.30pm from Monday to Thursday and 8am to 1am from Friday to Sunday and bank holidays, for the Lairgate premises.
But his application is set for rejection by East Riding Council and Mr Durna wants to know why.
Councillor Denis Healy has stepped in and asked for the application to go before the council’s planning subcommittee, so Mr Durna can put his case to councillors.
Mr Durna says: “For some reason they want to refuse me late hours, I don’t know why, I want to find out.
“There are places with late hours on both sides. On one side there’s Wetherspoons, on the other is East Riding Gin Club and Lucia’s.
“The old Prezzo in the market place will become a cowboy bar until 2am.
“There’s no residential area round here, I am shocked they want to refuse it. I believe in freedom of trade.”
Mr Durna says he is upset and just wants the same hours as surrounding businesses.
But he fears councillors may think they were being misled over his intentions, after his previous application was approved for hours of 8am to 8pm.
He insists later hours are now necessary to make the proposed café viable in difficult trading conditions.
Mr Durna says: “Now in Beverley daytime trade is not enough.
“There’s a few rumours businesses will close down, that a few cafés will close.
“I think they think we misled them because I said 8pm first and now I have asked for 1am.
“At the beginning the plan was different, I thought 8pm was fine. But now, because a few businesses are closing down, because there’s not enough business in the day time, there’s not enough time to make money.
“Rent and rates are very high in Beverley, we need nighttime trade.”
Mr Durna wants to open a late-night café where people can meet in a relaxed atmosphere.
He says: “It’s not going to be a bar with loud music. It will be a normal café with background music.
“I want to sell little nibbles and, of course, also alcohol but not like other places where they have loud music, I will do the opposite.
“If people want to go somewhere after dinner to have a drink and talk, there’s no place like this.
“I hope it will work. If it doesn’t work I will close it.”
Cllr Denis Healy, who has called for the late hours application to go before the council’s eastern area planning sub-committee, said: “Pasha needs to have his voice heard. Councillors need to explain why he is being treated differently to other shops in that area.
“I want him to be able to put his case to them because he feels he is among all these different outlets that are allowed to open late.”
“Rent and rates are very high in Beverley, we need nighttime trade Atakan Durna