Tottenham 'boat bar' licence bid rejected by councillors

The operators were accused of putting “cart before the horse” by not obtaining permission first from Canal & River Trust, reports Grace Howarth, Local Democracy Reportrer

River Lee Navigation near Tottenham (inset credit Will Stewart via Unsplash)

A ‘boat bar’ on the River Lee Navigation has had its bid to serve alcohol rejected by Haringey Councillors.

The owners of Post Bar on the Water had applied for a licence to sell alcohol on the premises of a converted boat called De Zwann.

De Zwann has a permanent mooring at the Stonebridge South mooring area but applicant The Post Tottenham Ltd, who also own and operate The Post Bar in Tottenham High Road, planned to trade on the council-managed stretch of the river.

Where space permitted, the applicant proposed setting up a number of tables and chairs near the boat during trading hours in locations such as the Hale Wharf area, where the towpath widens and there is “natural public space available”.

However, members of the council’s licensing sub-committee voted to refuse the application.

In its verdict, the committee said: “Without a major change in position by the Canal & River Trust [CRT, who manage the river] any licence granted could not be implemented.

“It [the committee] considered granting a licence conditioned to become operative only upon all relevant CRT licences and approvals being obtained, but felt that it was impractical to draft conditions to try to anticipate the form such licences and approvals would take.

“The panel was also conscious that any approval for a location other than the immediate area of Lock 17 [Hale Wharf] would potentially carry different implications for the advancement of the licensing objectives.”

Licensing team leader, Daliah Barrett, said at the hearing the owners had put the “cart before the horse” by not obtaining permission from the CRT first as it was the trust not the council who managed the river.

In its decision notice the committee also noted both the Metropolitan Police, the noise team and the CRT had also objected on the basis of public safety and “drinking near water”.

The police wanted conditions put in place including the installation of CCTV, a log book, control over the volume of music and permission from the CRT to permanently moor the vessel.

In a written response to the application, the CRT said the De Zwann was “only licensed for leisure purposes” and the trust could “not support” the owner’s bid for a roving trader license to sell alcohol.

The CRT said the only “viable model” would be a “fixed location trade boat” and they did not deem the location near Lock 17 an appropriate mooring spot.

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