Bars spared permanent shutdown
POLICE ACCUSED VENUES OF ‘HORRIBLE’ DRUG CULTURE
DIAMOND Strip bars accused of a “horribly wrong” drug culture by police have had their licence suspended – but will be allowed to reopen later this year after a multimillion pound renovation.
Police had wanted to see Collingwood Street’s Floritas, Madame Koo, and House of Smith shut down for good after staff were caught taking cocaine last December, two years after the venues were closed as part of the Operation Doncaster investigation into the supply of Class A drugs in the city centre.
A Newcastle City Council hearing last week heard accusations that venues, run by the Apartment Group, have a staff culture of “normalising exploitative behaviour” and taking drugs on the premises.
But the bar owners fiercely defended their actions to tackle drug problems, labelling the police’s closure bid “grossly disproportionate” and warning that the Diamond Strip faced a “gaping void” without them.
The council has now confirmed its licensing sub-committee’s decision to spare the bars from permanent closure.
Instead, they have suspended the Apartment Group’s licence for three months and impose stricter conditions including extra security staff, more thorough monitoring of CCTV during peak trading hours, and a ban on staff from socialising at the venues.
All three bars are currently shut in any case and are undergoing a £2 million refurbishment that will see them transformed into five new venues known as the Collingwood Collection, which were due to open in September.
The committee said that there “appeared to be a culture whereby staff on the premises believed they could socialise whilst off duty and partake in drug taking without concern as to consequence”.
However, councillors added that the Apartment Group “accepted that there were issues and areas that could be improved upon”, concluding that a suspension and the tougher licence conditions were “appropriate and proportionate actions to address the causes of concern”.
Apartment Group chief operating
officer Debrah Dhugga said she was “grateful” for the committee considering the firm’s evidence and confirmed that the refurbishment project was going ahead as planned, having been plunged into jeopardy by the licensing review.
She added: “We want to invest in the city, we are putting a £2million investment in here. Hopefully that will encourage a lot more jobs in the hospitality sector at a time when it is in crisis.”
Newcastle city centre Chief Inspector Steve Wykes said he hoped the decision “sends a strong warning to other licensees”, despite the police failing in their bid to close the venues down.
He added: “Given the previous serious incidents and history of these bars, when we became aware of the recent incidents of drug use by staff and inappropriate promotional material, we felt there was no other option but to request that the licensing sub-committee revoke their licence.
“We respect the decision of the licensing sub-committee and welcome the decision to suspend the licence for the maximum of three months while also imposing further conditions on the licence for when the bars do re-open. We hope this will act as a deterrent going forward.
“We have a fantastic relationship with businesses across Newcastle city centre and will continue to work with licensees, including the Apartment Group, to safeguard those who enjoy the night-time economy.”
The three clubs were made to shut their doors for six days over Christmas and New Year 2017 under Operation Doncaster – which later saw 20 people, including doormen, promoters, a bar manager and drug dealers, jailed for a total of more than 50 years.
Police launched a new bid to permanently close the bars earlier this year, after seeing CCTV footage of four off-duty staff taking cocaine in House of Smith’s smoking area in December 2019.
They also complained that a “dangerous and offensive” promotional sign was displayed during last year’s freshers week.