Welcome To Stop The Strip Pub
On 8th March a group of nearly 100 local residents met outside Satchmo's to protest Satchmo's application.
Friday 18 July 2008
Monday 12 May 2008
Suzanne Moore's column - Mail on Sunday 11th May
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a bar, Satchmo's, near me that was applying for a licence for lap-dancing.
The pub is in a residential area and all kinds of local people were against it for all kinds of reasons.
Well, the good news is that the council refused it a licence. Protesting works sometimes. Just do it!
Friday 9 May 2008
Story in The Publican magazine
Click here to read the full story
Quote from Amanda Frayne who represented over 300 objectors at the hearing
An overwhelming majority of local people have always believed that this proposal is utterly inappropriate for the local area. The strength of local feeling has been seen from the moment Satchmo’s first made their application. As an example, 525 people objected in writing to Satchmo’s application – a new record for Hackney Council.
Local people also turned out en masse to attend the hearing. The chamber of Hackney Town Hall was filled as between 80-100 people turned out to show their objection.
At the hearing the point was made again and again that this is an area where people from all walks of life live together in peace and harmony, united in their respect for each other and their community. The hearing allowed a platform for local residents and representatives of key religious and cultural centres to explain their reasons for objecting so strongly to this application to open a strip club on a residential street. We are grateful to the Council for listening to our concerns.
Our victory shows that community is important and that communities have a right to fight for what they believe in. If any good has come of this application it is the strengthening of the bonds that already existed within our community.
We thank the committee for their appreciation of the community issues at stake and understand that there were many factors that needed to be considered. We appreciate that the Council is committed to continuing the re-generation work currently taking place in our area.
We would welcome the opportunity to work with Satchmo’s in the future to make theirs a successful local business that adds something to the local community.
Thursday 8 May 2008
Tuesday 6 May 2008
WE WON!
Thank you to everyone who voiced concerns about this issue - your opinions do matter.
More details soon...
Monday 5 May 2008
1 DAY TO GO
If you do not intend to speak and there is anything specifically that you would like to be said on your behalf at the hearing please get in touch with us at stopthestrippub@hotmail.com
Friday 2 May 2008
Friday 25 April 2008
Thursday 24 April 2008
Thursday 17 April 2008
Friday 11 April 2008
525 LETTERS OF COMPLAINT
The licensing officer stated: "That far exceeds anything that we've ever had previously".
Thank you to all who lodged a complaint - your opinions matter.
Thursday 10 April 2008
More messages of support for STSP
Very importantly too the Council has revealed the date of the hearing - 6th May at 7pm. All local residents and businesses are entitled to attend.
In light of these developments, Ken Livingstone, Diane Abbott and our ward councillors Jamie Carswell, Muttalip Unluer and Rita Krishna have sent the following messages of support urging residents to attend the hearing:
Ken Livingstone:
"The number of letters of complaint sent to Hackney Council by concerned local residents and businesses shows the strength of opposition to this proposal that runs through this community. I continue to support this residential community in its attempts to maintain the quality of life for all the families and residents who live in Stoke Newington and for everyone who works in and visits the area. It is the right of all local people to attend the Council hearing and I would urge them to do so."
Diane Abbott:
“I am very impressed with the sheer volume of objections to turning Satchmo’s into a sex establishment. The high level of complaints shows how much our community does not need such an establishment. I sincerely hope that lots of local residents make it to the license request hearing on May 6th to show these objections in the most visible way and that the Licensing Committee take this show of public objection into account.”
Ward Councillors Jamie Carswell, Muttalip Unluer and Rita Krishna:
"We wholeheartedly support this campaign. The fact that Hackney's licensing department has received well over 300 individual letters of complaint shows the overwhelming strength of opinion in the Stoke Newington community over these ridiculous proposals. The hearing on 6th May will be required to hear a balance between the mass of objectors and the application - so not everyone will get a chance to speak - but we would urge all objectors to attend to lend support to the case against this strip club."
Page 3 of The Hackney Gazette - 10th April
Monday 7 April 2008
Thursday 27 March 2008
Wednesday 26 March 2008
The deadline for complaints has now passed
Very soon we hope to be able to reveal to you exactly how many letters of complaint were received by the council. Keep checking the site for news.
Thursday 20 March 2008
Hackney Gazette reports on Mayor's support for STSP
Wednesday 19 March 2008
Campaign featured in Turkish newspaper Olay
The following article is not necessarily representative of the views of all involved in the Stop the Strip Pub campaign. Nevertheless it is a very strong indication of the multi-cultural nature of our neighbourhood and the strength of feeling against Satchmo's proposal that runs through all sections of the community.
Translation of article published in Olay:
Local residents do not want ‘Strip Club’
Local residents strongly oppose the licence application for a strip club that an entertainment establishment which is currently running a pub in the Stoke Newington area has filed before Hackney Council.
Local residents opposed to the running of a section of the pub as a strip club organized a protest in front of the pub in question last Saturday afternoon.
Several people from Turkey joined the large protest and Councilor Muttalip Ünlüer, was present and gave his full support.
Holding placards warning the Council and expressing their opposition to the proposal, the protesters made it clear that they did not want such an establishment in the neighbourhood.
In a written statement the Anatolian Cultural Centre [located 25 metres from the pub] stated: “The entertainment establishment called Satchmo’s Pub, on the corner of Stoke Newington Road and Palatine Road, has filed an application before Hackney Council to operate a strip club on the premises. As local residents we are aware that the Pub’s real purpose is quick profit and the marketing of women and we are deeply worried about this.”
The statement continued: “We consider the proposal immoral and an affront to the ordinary working people of the area, especially given the multicultural nature of the neighbourhood and the number of schools present in it.”
The statement added: “We should demonstrate to the Council that we will not allow the alienation of the local residents nor the annihilation of ordinary people’s moral values. In these times when drug dealers, prostitution, gambling and gangs try to recruit more victims for their activities, we will not tolerate those who expose our youth to drug dealing and prostitution. We attach no value to those who organise such activities. If we want to live in our neighbourhood with peace of mind, without having to lock our front doors, knowing that our daughters and sons will not be drawn into the swamp, if we want to live with honour and dignity, then we have to stand up as a strong barricade against alienation and prostitution. It is our moral imperative.”
The statement concluded: “Together with the local people, who care about their moral values, we shall not give our permission for the pub to become a den of iniquity.”
Sunday 16 March 2008
Influential Women Support STSP
Local Businesses Support STSP
Two members of the STSP campaign made a survey of local businesses on Saturday. The response was overwhelming, people thanked us for bringing the matter to their attention and rushed to sign letters of objection and petitions. Many asked their customers to sign too and put up posters in support of the campaign. We even got offered free drinks in one place!
In numbers - of the 37 businesses we found in a 200m radius of Satchmo's, 31 have now sent a letter of objection to the council. That's a staggering 84%!
Friday 14 March 2008
Another Article In The Evening Standard
This one contains two quotes from Satchmo's themselves, which I feel I can respond to:
"We are trying to reinvent ourselves as a modern, stylish cocktail bar."
During our meeting with them they said they would be aiming for a "middle ground" between places like Spearmint Rhino and the rougher kinds of strip club such as those in Shoreditch, not my definition of modern and stylish. What kind of "modern, stylish" venue needs a license for pole dancing starting at 11am?
"We believe it will be a positive thing for the area"
Particularly interesting since during our meeting they admitted they had not done any actual research into what local people want or would come to. We on the other hand have done exactly that and the overwhelming response is that local residents and businesses feel it will be a considerable negative for the area.
Thursday 13 March 2008
Support Floods In For Stop The Strip Pub
We have received the following statements of support:
Ken Livingstone, Mayor of London
"I fully support the campaign by local residents, businesses and community leaders in Stoke Newington to oppose the application by Satchmo’s public house for a strip pub licence. Residents are right to raise concerns about the potential negative impact of a strip club on the people who live and work in the area. I will work with those who oppose a strip pub at this site in order to maintain the quality of life for all the families and residents, particularly women, who live in Stoke Newington and for everyone who works in and visits the area."
Diane Abbott MP
“I am horrified at the prospect of a strip club at 97 Stoke Newington Road. This part of Stoke Newington is essentially residential with many young families. Strip clubs and “sex encounter establishments” belong in established sex industry areas like Soho. We do not need sleazy sex clubs in Stoke Newington. I will be pressing the council to oppose this planning application.”
Jules Pipe, Mayor of Hackney
"I very much support the residents' campaign to keep places like this away from where they live. The law allows for the establishment of these kind of venues, but Stoke Newington Road is not an acceptable place for them. I hope this will not be like the situation with betting shops, where the law and national regulations are more on the side of the business proprietor than local people."
Joint statement from the three ward councillors Jamie Carswell, Rita Krishna and Muttalip Unluer
"As local ward councillors, we totally support the community campaign to stop this sex license. With many schools, places of worship, and family homes nearby it is clearly a completely unsuitable location for such a use. There is a formal process that has to be gone through to receive this license, and we urge all local residents to support the campaign making the reasoned case of objection at the licensing committee."
John Taylor, Minister at Stoke Newington Baptist Church
"Speaking as one of the leaders of the Christian community in Stoke Newington with a church only a few blocks from Satchmo’s I would want to stand with other faith communities and community groups in opposing this application. Quite apart from the offence that will be given to people’s religious sensibilities, “Sex Encounter” establishments inevitably help perpetuate the illegal trafficking of vulnerable girls and young women into what is arguably the 21st century’s equivalent of the slave trade."
Tuesday 11 March 2008
Hackney Post Coverage of Protest
Our Objections
Below is a list of our objections to Satchmo’s proposal to open a Sex Encounters Establishment in our residential area.
Our campaign has the full support of Ken Livingstone (Mayor of London), Jules Pipe (Mayor of Hackney), Diane Abbott (MP for Stoke Newington) and the three ward councillors for Stoke Newington - Jamie Carswell, Rita Krishna and Muttalip Unluer
1) The potential danger of harassment and intimidation for local women
Research carried out by Eaves:
2) We have already seen evidence of harassment
A young single woman who lives on Palatine Road approached Satchmo’s for an explanation of what was being proposed. While on the premises a customer overheard the conversation and asked her if she was a dancer auditioning for a job. This is evidence already of the way in which local women will be viewed by patrons of this bar.
3) Location on a residential street
This directly contravenes the Council’s guidelines. Council Guide Lines: Sex Shops, Sex Cinemas & Sex Encounter Premises published by Hackney Council states:
"The council shall not normally grant a licence where there are residentially occupied premises, schools (including nursery groups) or places of worship, within 50 metres of the premises seeking a licence."
Currently:
- there approximately 46 residents on Palatine Road who live within 50m of Satchmo’s.
- the entrance to a further 11 flats lies directly opposite the pub.
- there are 8 residential flats above Satchmo’s.
- there are 4 residences on Palatine Avenue which lie within 50m of Satchmo’s.
4) Proximity to places of worship
- The local Mosque is approximately 85m from Satchmo’s
- Attached to Satchmo’s (at 6-8 Palatine Road) is a community centre which is used as a place of worship and education
5) Proximity to schools
Claudia Jones Saturday School is held in the community centre which is attached to Satchmo’s (at 6-8 Palatine Road). Pupils from the school are seen at the front of the group of protesters at Saturday’s photo shoot.
Princess May Primary School is approximately 175m from Satchmo’s.
There are a number of nurseries located in the area surrounding Palatine Road.
A number of child minders live on Palatine Road.
6) A strong community spirit would be eroded
This is a multi-cultural street that lives in peace and harmony. Children play in the street and there are families who have lived here happily for decades.
This community looks out for one another – as we saw when almost 100 local people turned up to our protest on 8th March.
We have a number of great community initiatives including an annual fete for children on Butterfield Green at the end of the road and a local community orchard.
This way of life would be in danger.
7) Local community workers are against it
At Saturday’s demonstration we saw a very strong turn out from representatives of the Anatolian People’s Cultural Centre (89-91 Stoke Newington Rd). When the Stop The Strip Pub team contacted them to inform them of what was happening they were outraged and immediately pledged support.
Representatives of Claudia Jones – a black women’s educational project located three doors away from Satchmo’s (103 Stoke Newington Road) – are incensed and will be opposing the application.
8) Local businesses are against it
9) This area is improving – why introduce something which will open up a whole new range of social problems?
The proposal to open a strip pub in Stoke Newington suggests that the area is on the decline. This is very, very far from the case. Why do we want this to happen?
If we examine crime statistics for Hackney (see this link) it is clear that Hackney has historically had a far higher level of crime in comparison to the national average. It is the Campaign view that to add an establishment of this type in the locality would only increase the potential for greater crime and disorder in the area.
10) Social responsibility
This is a pub that does not care about the community. It is not operating in co-operation with the local community. It is operating in spite of the local community. It is showing a blatant disregard for the feelings and wishes of the community it is supposed to serve.
At no point has Satchmo’s ever sought to communicate any of its plans with local residents. Residents have had to contact the owners to find out what is going on. Satchmo’s has done the bare minimum by simply posting one notice on the Palatine Road side of the bar.
11) Not in anyone’s back yard
This is not NIMBYism – we would argue that this type of establishment should not be located near ANY residential street.
We support recent campaigns to oppose similar venues in residential areas in Acton and in Archway – See this link.
Exactly...