A new wine bar is set to open in Falmouth after being granted a licence despite concerns about the concentration of licensed premises in the town.

Robert Palmer had applied to Cornwall Council for a licence to open The Orgia in Church Street, Falmouth.

It is planned to be a "small wine bar and eatery, serving high quality cured meats, cheeses and small plates as well quality wines, other alcoholic drinks will be available".

Mr Palmer indicated in his application that there would be a maximum of 60 people in the venue which would be open from 8am to 11pm.

Cornwall Council's licensing committee heard that the premises is in a cumulative impact zone (CIZ) which aims to limit the number of licensed premises in an area.

Falmouth Town Council had objected to the application because of the CIZ and David Saunby from the town council said there were concerns about anti-social behaviour.

He said:

"This area of the town has suffered over the years from anti-social behaviour, smashed windows, urinating in the street…by adding another licensed business to this already problem area of the town would cause further problems with anti-social behaviour."

The committee heard from Mr Palmer that he already runs a similar business in Newquay which is also in a CIZ.

He said:

"I take my business very seriously and the licensing objectives which holds us up and as a wine bar we take it very, very seriously. We want all four pillars of the licensing objectives are followed all the time."

Mr Palmer said that he was willing to meet with neighbours and objectors to work with them to ensure the business does not cause problems.

The committee heard that Mr Palmer hoped that the new wine bar would be "a positive addition for Falmouth".

It was also highlighted that the food and drink being offered at The Orgia would "not be aimed at the student population" of Falmouth.

In answer to a question from the committee they indicated that a glass of wine would cost around £8 and said that this showed they would not be attracting people looking to get drunk.

The committee also heard that the applicants had worked with the council's licensing officers in drawing up conditions on the licence.

After discussions, the committee agreed to approve the licence and said that the applicants had demonstrated that they wanted to uphold the licensing objectives and had been keen to agree conditions to mitigate any impact.

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