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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Jonathon Hill

Last bar standing on Cardiff's once bustling nightclub hub fears threat from noise complaints

A bar owner on a Cardiff street which used to be the city’s bustling gay hub says he now owns the only hospitality venue there and he is “moaned at” weekly by residents. Haydn Price is the owner of Eagle Bar - a small gay venue on Charles Street near the city centre - which he described as now being “hemmed in by flats” thanks to constant planning approval for more residential development.

With what used to be a thriving gay scene offering clubs including popular Exit, Club X, Icon and Eagle’s sauna, Haydn says the road was “always known as a commercial and bustling street”. But now - months after Cardiff Council’s licensing committee informed Haydn he couldn’t allow his punters to drink and smoke outside - Haydn says the road is unrecognisable and his bar’s potential is being stripped away.

“I worked over the road editing a national gay magazine years ago when I saw that the unit was empty and thought about its potential as an alternative gay venue,” the former journalist told WalesOnline from his small bar in the centre of the street - now with new flats either side. If you step foot outside his bar you are greeted by a constant rumble of building work on huge new apartments towards Bridge Street.

Read more: The once thriving Cardiff street now ‘hemmed in by flats’ where the bar that remains gets complaints weekly

“I’ve been here 11 years now. It’s always been a lively street, a thoroughfare really with hundreds of students about, and it worked nicely. We were buzzing for a couple of years and never had any complaints. And back then we’d do weekly karaoke.

“But now all of those clubs have gone for whatever reason and all of the shouting, litter and broken glass is blamed on us - when in actual fact it’s not us, and we’ve never been trouble here.”

Haydn Price says he feels let down after pouring his life savings into the bar (Jonathon Hill)

He explained that sometimes the bar receives complaints for noise when they’re not open. “There are people up and down the street shouting and screaming and you see the neighbours’ curtains twitching,” he said. “Ten minutes later the police are called here, but it never comes to anything because we’re never at fault.

“We now can’t play loud music and we can’t have people drinking or smoking outside because of the residents living here. But what about the future of long-established businesses which have been here well before these residential developments?

“No bars will move in here because the buildings have been knocked down for flats. You can see it happening all around us. We’ve literally been hemmed in by flats.”

Last year Haydn was convinced he would be able to obtain a licence for outdoor drinking at the bar for the forecourt on Charles Street, but it was rejected over public nuisance concerns after going to a licensing sub committee. The sub committee did grant Haydn permission for cabaret and karaoke until 1am from Monday to Thursday and until 3am on Friday to Sunday, and also to allow entry after 2am for the annual Mardi Gras and other special occasions when agreed by South Wales Police.

Eagle Bar is now surrounded by residents and they must stick to strict noise levels (Jonathon Hill)
Haydn says he is operating under restrictions which he feels are harming his business (WalesOnline/Rob Browne)

Haydn says the decision not to allow outdoor drinking following a number of objections from residents on the street has “left our hands tied”, and that he was told by council officers that the decision was made with Cardiff city centre’s cumulative impact policy in mind.

The city centre is covered by the cumulative impact policy where any application for an alcohol licence can be rejected unless the business can show it will not increase crime and disorder. Haydn claims that despite never being fined by the council for noise disturbances or any other matter, the policy was cited when he was informed of the rejection to his outdoor drinking plan.

Haydn says he pointed out that other venues in the city centre have received permission to allow outdoor drinking despite the policy. In January licensing lawyer Matthew Phipps told WalesOnline that legal representation can improve applicants’ chances of getting a licence, but such costs may dissuade some from applying in the first place.

According to Haydn, since residents began moving in almost ten years ago his premises is also unable to play music to a certain level - which he claims is around 30 to 40 decibels quieter than LGBT+ venues at nearby Churchill Way. According to the decision notice for the application Eagle Bar did agree conditions on a maximum noise volume level and put it forward to the licensing sub committee last summer. A noise limiting device was then installed following a consultation with the public protection department.

Haydn looks at the latest development - a high rise development set to become student accommodation (Jonathon Hill)

“People leave after midnight of a weekend because we’re not allowed to play loud music,” he said. “They come here first and then they decide to go and maybe come back later on, and it’s because of the rules we have to abide by now. And yet the buildings aren’t even connected. We still get complaints over noise but it’s on an automatic cut-out if it breaches the maximum level we’re allowed. I just despair sometimes.

“Now we are having lovely summer nights, the sun shines on the bar beautifully and we have seats out the front which we can’t use because you can’t take your drinks out. The council said they can’t grant us licensing permission to allow people to drink and smoke outside the front because we can’t prove people can do it sensibly and quietly.

“The fact we’ve been here and trading for ten years in that time and had less than a handful of letters tells you all you need to know about the kind of business we are. We are the most meek and mild Eagle bar you’ll find in the UK.

“I took this place over when it was a shell of itself - not even a toilet - and I’ve put my life savings into it with my partner, and here we are being told what we can and can’t do with it. I’d never have thought that the street would be changed so drastically.”

Haydn Price, owner of Eagle bar in Cardiff (Jonathon Hill)

A spokesman for Cardiff Council said: “The council’s planning department assesses planning applications on a case-by-case basis, and we encourage good quality, mixed use developments in close proximity to public transport and active travel routes. Where possible, for these developments in the city centre, we also encourage that these buildings have plans in place for a commercial use of the ground floor, to support the vitality and viability of such important city centre locations.

“When considering proposals for residential development we consider all relevant planning considerations, including any adverse impacts on neighbouring properties and these are captured in a comprehensive officer report, before a decision is made on the application.”

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