Beer festival where Hacienda DJ Graeme Park set to play REFUSED licence amid 'public urination' fear

Fears that too many people would turn up to a beer festival where Hacienda legend Graeme Park was set to DJ led to its cancellation.

The ‘Didsbury Craft Beer Festival’ was set to be held at Didsbury Sports Ground on Ford Lane on the late May bank holiday — from May 24 to 26 — but has been REFUSED a licence. Manchester City Council has also served a ‘counter notice’ to the organisers blocking it from going ahead.

It means the event, which was also set to feature performances from 90s electronic duo K Klass and ex-Smiths drummer Mike Joyce, will not be held. Organisers had not sold tickets for the festival yet, but had started marketing it on social media.

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Clive Szmit, appearing at a licensing meeting on Monday (April 8) said they were hoping to raise money from the festival to help meet ‘costs going through the roof’ for Didsbury Toc H rugby club and Didsbury FC, which play at the ground. They will have to rethink their plans now, with Mr Szmit telling the meeting the organisation was ‘trying to stay alive’.

“Nothing is set in stone for us,” he added at the licensing meeting. “If that means changing the acts or leaving this festival, that’s what we are happy to do.”

Both GMP and the council licensing officers objected to the Craft Beer Festival going ahead, which is not to be confused with ‘Didsbury Beer Festival’, which has been held annually for 11 years at St Catherine’s Community Centre.

Cops thought that there was a risk of ‘traffic chaos’ at the Ford Lane festival, which organisers said would be prevented by asking people to not use cars to get there. They also objected to the amount of toilets available — 25 loos for 460 ticket holders — which they thought could lead to public urination.

But their biggest fear was over ‘the calibre of the events’ acts’. “It is likely to generate a lot of interest from music lovers which will lead to more than 499 [people, the maximum for a temporary licence] at the event which would lead to calls to GMP,” PC Alan Isherwood said.

“Our concern is that through word-of-mouth, people will say ‘have you heard they are playing?’ and they will go down,” he added. “Our concern is how they will be dealt with and kept out.”

Licensing officers from the council added they worried about ‘three days of noise nuisance’ for locals with ‘the nearest property only 70m away’.

Clive Szmit addressed many of the points raised by GMP and the council, including highlighting a self-imposed 60dBa limit on noise levels and pointing speakers towards the River Mersey to minimise noise issues, staging marshals on Ford Lane to direct traffic and discourage public urination, and appealing to the ‘40s and 50s demographic’ in an effort to quell anti-social behaviour.

Despite the committee, chaired by Coun Carmine Grimshaw, ‘recognising the work you do for the community’, Mr Szmit saw the application rejected.

“That [community work] is not the concern of the committee but we know the hard work is taking place,” Coun Grimshaw went on. “However we do not feel this will uphold the licensing objectives and we are going to serve a counter notice.”

Legal adviser to the panel Paul Scott added: “The committee thoroughly considered all representations by responsible authorities and the applicant. While the purpose of the event has been recognised, the overriding objective for the committee is whether the premises regarding this event will uphold the licensing objectives.

“The committee feel there’s a lack of clarity over what’s been put forward and there’s concern over noise levels, traffic, and public safety. That’s why the decision to serve a counter notice has been made.”