Police have cited concerns over an application for a Bexley nightclub to extend its opening hours following 10 crimes at the venue this year. The incidents included security being bitten and racially abused by a punter as well as a bouncer “ignoring” a drunken woman lying on the ground outside.
The Arcadia Lounge on Broadway in Bexleyheath has applied to extend its closing time by an hour to 3.30am at weekends, with the venue potentially closing half an hour later on Thursdays at 2am. The Metropolitan Police lodged an objection to the plans, claiming they had “serious concerns” about the impact the extended hours would have on crime and disorder in the area.
The police representative included details of ten crimes that had occurred at the site this year, as well as five arrests. One of those incidents included a drunken patron biting a security member as he was ejected from the venue, partially breaking their skin and spitting in the face of another. The person also allegedly made several racist statements to an employee.
Another incident in April this year involved a woman being punched in the mouth by another woman outside the club, resulting in a swollen lip and bleeding. Constable Kate Ellen, in her representation, said she was extremely concerned by the lack of care shown by a doorman when police were called to the premises in March.
PC Ellen said: “Police attended and a highly intoxicated female was found lying on the ground outside your premises. There was a doorman standing no more than two to three meters away who could clearly see that the female needed help but decided not to do anything. but ignore her.”
An environmental officer from Bexley Council also objected to the application due to the increased level of noise residents would experience from the later closing times. The application follows an earlier submission by the bar in May this year to extend its opening hours by the same amount and remove restrictions that had been placed on it due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Bexley Council allowed restrictions on the license to be lifted but refused to allow the extended opening hours after police representatives claimed the area directly outside the nightclub was a “violence hotspot” in the borough. The applicant argued in its latest proposal that the later opening hours would facilitate the spread of patrons and reduce congestion in the area after the closure of other nightclubs.
The new application for the nightclub to extend its opening hours will be discussed at a Bexley Council licensing meeting on October 18. Arcadia was contacted but declined to comment.
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