A NEW £5.5 million continental style bar development is in jeopardy after a court ruling stamped the end for new public houses in the Bradshawgate area of the town centre. The decision by Bolton licensing justices yesterday to turn down an application for a £850,000 pub in Nelson Square not only throws plans for future new pubs into doubt, but threatens the multi million pound proposals, even before the scheme gets off the ground. J D Wetherspoon, the company whose application was turned down by the magistrates, is one of three firms who had hoped to move into Nelson Square as part of the ambitious project proposed by developers Cathco Properties Ltd.

Cathco won council planning permission to turn a row of derelict shops and a car park opposite the Pack Horse Hotel into three bars and a restaurant with the aim of transforming the square.

The others, yet to be considered by magistrates, are First Leisure who want to open a late night, live music bar and Regent Inns, a traditional pub operator.

However, the plans met police opposition yesterday, when Mr Alan Fairclough, representing Bolton police, said there were enough licensed premises in the area.

Mr Timothy Randall Martin, chairman of Watford based company Wetherspoons, told the magistrates that there would be no music in the pub, smoking would be banned in a third of the area including a space around the bar, and food would be served from 11am to 10pm on weekdays and 12 noon to 9.30pm on Sundays.

Mr Martin said his company had been successful in opening similar establishments in town centre and city centre areas.

He added that it was intended to cater for all age groups but in particular for the more mature customer who over the years had been driven out of Bolton town centre and his company would spend £850,000 fitting out the pub which covered an area of 3,500 sq. ft.

But Supt Ian McLoughlin, Bolton's Police Chief for the town centre, said there were already enough licensed premises in the area from the Bradshawgate/Deansgate junction to Great Moor Street.

He added that there was a history of late night trouble in the area and on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights his officers were reinforced from outside the area, including members of the tactical aid group.

Police Constable Gregory Pickles said that troublemakers, once known as "lager louts", had now changed their dress standards to try and gain entrance to licensed premises in the town centre.

He added that other "upmarket premises" had opened in the town centre but had lowered their standards to try and win custom.

The police said that there was no doubt that the pub planned by Wetherspoons would be well conducted, but customers still had to "run the gauntlet of the streets".

PC Pickles said that sometimes troublemakers who had been refused entry to premises caused damage and assaulted innocent passers-by and added that Bradshawgate could be a violent area at night.

The application was refused and the Justices were told about the two other similar applications for licensed premises in the area that were in the pipeline.

Managing director of Cathco Properties Ltd had earlier claimed to the BEN that surveys carried out by their backers had shown a demand for such facilities in Bolton to be among the greatest in the country.

He said: "We do not understand why they are fighting such an excellent scheme and putting it in jeopardy.

"We are investing money in a derelict site, creating over 200 jobs and offering the people of Bolton an exclusive venue."

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