A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said:
“Grassroots venues are the lifeblood of London’s music scene, providing a platform for up-and-coming artists and giving audiences an opportunity to enjoy music in intimate spaces. The world-renowned Blue Note Jazz club will be a fantastic addition to the West End’s nightlife and cultural scene, and City Hall is in touch with the operators to offer any support we can.”
I asked the Mayor of London’s office to give a statement in response to the recent press stories about the problems being faced by Blue Note Entertainment with their application to start up a club in St Martin’s Lane.
They gave us the quote above.
UPDATE 17 Feb: “Jazz clubs do not cause crime.” There is now a PETITION to get Westminster to change its decision
UPDATE 18 Feb. The Petition has closed stating: “Victory! This petition made change with 1,565 supporters!“
It may not be that simple. The facts are that Westminster has “approved” a license, but has taken on board the police and residents’ objections, and NOT agreed the hours till 1am that were being requested.
UPDATE 19 Feb. We helped David West to get the petition re-opened. IT’S BACK
The press stories are based on the report from City of Westminster’s Licensing Sub-Committee, dated 6 February – there is a link to the full document, a 106-page report below.
Whereas the stories which have appeared in the past week are new, it is clear from the application that Blue Note has been looking at the idea of setting up in London for quite some time and been taking the whole process of identifying a site and looking to invest in it very seriously and professionally indeed. In addition to its base in NYC, the company has a significant international presence. It operates clubs in Hawaii, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Milan, Beijing and Shanghai.. and most recently Napa Valley…
FIVE PERSONAL REFLECTIONS:
- There is a one-sidedness and imbalance of the remit of Westminster’s Licensing Sub-Committee, which does not extend to issues of cultural value. It is solely focused on its four “licensing objectives”: Prevention of crime and disorder, Public Safety, Prevention of Public Nuisance and Protection of Children from Harm. So I am pleased that the statement from City Hall counterbalances that.
- The narrow remit has allowed open season for residents (whose names are redacted in the report) to repeatedly make baseless claims such as alleging that the club will be a “drink-led establishment”. Here is an important international operator looking to invest and show belief in our jazz scene and in London.. and to take risks. They deserve more encouragement.
- The unsubstantiated claims in the report from Westminster’s Environmental Health Department bring back personal memories of the saving of the Bull’s Head, in which I was active when I was running the Jazz Development Trust in 2004/5. Two decades ago, the convenient little lies of a Richmond Council officer were exposed, live, on the BBC Radio 4 Today Programme, an event which was to prove decisive in saving the club.
- I am surprised that the police’s evidence is so broad-brush and doesn’t look at specific comparable establishments as benchmarks.
- The fact that casinos (can someone point to ANY cultural value in casinos??!) are exempt from Licensing Act Legislation but only to the Gambling Act 2005 which gladly allows them 24/7 opening is a risible anomaly.
8 responses
Great article and quotes. Jazz clubs do not cause crime. The Met could learn something from this.
Great video post on the petition too, Gerard!
I suggest if the Met and others really want to control/ close down ‘dens of iniquity’ they start with the Houses of Parliament eg all night ‘sittings’ theft, lies and drunkenness for starters.
Well done Seb. The police are living in the 1920’s. “Good heavens officer, this music could lead to dancing”. I may have missed it or it wasnt mentioned but the venue will be an attraction for tourists. My only caveat is the booking programme – what percentag of bands and musicians will be from the UK?
Every pub in the country is a ‘drink-led establishment’. Call me literal-minded, but in my experience a jazz club is a jazz-led establishment. I recall a memorable comment by Humph in a similar situation (if anyone can remember/source it accurately, please do) to the effect that he could not think of an occasion when people had spilled out onto the streets after one of his gigs to ’cause mayhem’. Of course, one has to sympathise with the police; throttling nascent music venues is of course far easier than catching actual criminals, many of whom seemingly don’t want to be caught.
I find it quite remarkable that so-called connections are being claimed between a jazz establishment and the areas of crime, provided by some diligent computer operatives with a plethora of complex data, etc etc when the two cannot, in all seriousness be linked. The fact that casinos have twenty four hour status, beggars belief! If assumptions are going to be made, how about this one — a person has just lost a good deal of money – from a weeks shopping to something even more serious. (Does the government get any of that, I wonder? Never let it be said!) As he, or she, staggers out into the night, I wonder what state that one will be in? Surely, this is a circumstance that might encourage crime among those getting desperate to gain some of their losses back. As for our police, i am sure there are many jazz enthusiasts among those who must be wondering what on earth is going on, here! B.W.
Call me cynical but I don’t think it’s the Met, I believe it’s the Council….. the fact that this doesn’t make sense means that there is a hidden agenda
JF
Chris Firmin has commented by email:
“Absolutely disgusted with Met Police’s attempted intervention advising Westminster not to grant a late-hours license for the proposed Blue Note Club. The most important issue is that a police force is interfering in the provision of music and entertainment in the West End on the grounds of assumptions about the behaviour of the would be patrons. The Met apparently think some of the customers will emerge from the club ‘worse for wear’ at closing time – what a patronising , ignorant assumption – and also that hordes of criminals will be there to take advantage of the more vulnerable. As if this frequently happens outside Ronnie Scott’s or Pizza Express Dean Street ??! The Met ‘s job is to monitor the area at closing time to ensure the peace is maintained. This is the West End of one of the biggest cities in the world. The police obviously think it’s just a town with too much going on and they want the easiest time possible. London has lost enough late night music clubs and venues without the police trying to close another one and impinging on civil liberties.”