Brewery must wait another week to see if beer garden will be allowed to open on weekends

A brewery owner will have to wait another week to find out whether he can open a beer garden on weekends.

Glenn White told councillors his company, Brew Monster, had “gone well above and beyond” in its plans to mitigate noise at the firm’s yard, on Lon Y Twyn, Caerphilly.

Several nearby residents have lodged objections to the firm’s application, arguing opening the beer garden would lead to increased disturbances.

At a meeting of Caerphilly Council’s licensing and gambling sub-committee on Tuesday October 3, Mr White said it was “unfortunate” that a “small number of local residents” opposed his plans, and alleged “some of the accusations have been a joke”.

The committee was due to make a decision on the plans in August, but allowed an extension after Brew Monster offered to install noise-dampening screens in the brewery yard.

Mr White said the installation of an acoustic insulation membrane would offer “substantial” defence against noise escaping the beer garden into nearby homes.

But neighbours and some council officers had concerns about the suitability of the material Mr White had proposed.

Committee member Cllr Shane Williams raised this with the brewery owner, asking him to “address the point… that the material you are using, or plan to use, is unsuitable for outdoor use”.

Mr White said the soundproofing material would be covered with plastic sheeting.

“We’re not going to do all this work [only to] find out it doesn’t work,” he told the committee.

Environmental health officer Kristian Jennings told the committee “I feel the noise can be mitigated” but expressed concerns about some of the details in Brew Monster’s application.

“What we need to consider is how much the noise will be reduced by”, he explained, adding that the company’s assertions about decibel reduction levels were “assumptions”.

Cllr Williams asked whether the committee could insist, via licensing conditions, that Brew Monster’s noise-proofing was effective to a certain decibel level.

“I can’t think of a condition that would be appropriate,” Mr Jennings replied.

Urging the committee to approve his company’s plans, Mr White said he would be happy to “conduct sound checks” while the beer garden was in use.

The committee will publish its decision within five working days.

Brew Monster is also awaiting a council decision on planning permission for the proposed beer garden.