Stratford hosts concerned by Westfield late-night plans

Westfield submitted an application to Newham Council on 23 December 2011 for extended hours for its rooftop sites which it is looking to use for “private ticketed events” between April and December 2012.

However, local pubs have criticised the move as “crafty” because it has only two weeks to submit representations outlining their opposition to the move.

The temporary licence will cover the months before and after this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games which take place on the doorstep of Stratford’s pubs.

Janet Dooner, licensee of the Railway Tavern, and chair of the local Pubwatch said: “It is perfectly legal, but it is crafty. They (Westfield) gave them (the Council) one day to look into the application before they went on leave for two weeks, and it only got into the newspapers last week.

“I have looked at the application and we have got many concerns,” she added.

“It is going to impact on all the trade in the area. All of the pubs, bars and restaurants around here have the facility for private and outside catering too, and there are licensable areas in the Olympic Park itself.”

Dooner raised the issue at a local Pubwatch meeting last night (11 January) to try and convince other pubs in the area to submit their representations by 20 January.

However, King Edward VII licensee Kendall Cordes admitted that licensees may be powerless to prevent the proposals. He said: “At the end of the day Westfield has had an impact on trade already so whatever they do it is going to impact on trade even more.

“I don’t think there is any point in opposing the plans because the council get most of their money from Westfield as it is, so they are not going to bother about us.”

Laura Passam, corporate affairs executive for Westfield Stratford City, said: “We have a number of people interested in using rooftop sites and the application is only for a temporary basis. Most enquiries have been for corporate bookings so they will mainly be used for private ticketed events.

“Our clients will be activating their spaces from April so we had to give ourselves enough time to get the application in.”