A long-vacant shop in Ryde town centre could soon be brought back into use as a modern convenience store, selling alcohol from 06:00 to 01:00 daily.
Jonathan Prathab Antony Pathinathan Croos has applied for a premises licence for an off-licence called ‘Paraphernalia’, at 48 Melville Street.
Mr Croos already operates a convenience store in Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex.
The application, submitted to the Isle of Wight Council, describes the business as a modern convenience store operating as an off-licence.
The property was formerly occupied by Richwoods furniture store, which has stood empty since its closure in 2018.
If approved, the licence would permit the sale of alcohol for consumption off the premises between 06:00 and 01:00, 7 days a week.
As part of the operating schedule, the applicant has proposed a range of measures intended to promote the licensing objectives. These include comprehensive CCTV, Challenge 25, staff training on alcohol sales and conflict management, an incident logbook, refused sales register and the secure storage of premium spirits and tobacco products behind the counter or in locked display cases.
The Isle of Wight Council is expected to make a decision in the next week or so, with Mr Croos hopeful to start selling alcohol from 6th August.
It will encourage drink driving.
Opening for 133 hours a week it will be like being on the
mainland.
Yes because Ryde needs more places to buy booze doesn’t it
Lots of these ‘convenience stores’ popping up all over the country. Will ’Paraphernalia’ be selling vapes as well as alcohol? Let’s just hope this proposal receives the full and proper scrutiny it deserves, have to say though, they know their target market and location.
I wonder how many businesses on the island are a
front for other activities.
You tell us
And the car park under the flats next door becomes a den of iniquity, thereby extending the range and potential for anti social behaviour, double parking on a busy junction and noise complaints.
Does Ryde really need another drink outlet and convenience store.
I’m old enough to remember what was on that site before the furniture store: the congregational church with its tall elegant spire.
My then best mate attended the church back in the 50s as teenagers. We were drawn to it as our girlfriends went to services there!
He later married his girlfriend in the same church and I was his best man. I became very disillusioned with religion since then and no longer have any faith in any religion.
But I do consider myself to be spiritual.
Surely anything is better than a large empty shop?
The off-licence hours will probably be limited if approved.
Can you put that in the headline then, a general store containing an off-licence? Anyone looking at your headline might think it’s just an off-licence.
Yet another Asian owned business promoting vapes, alcohol, cigarettes over ridiculously long hours that reflect the unceasing work ethic pushed onto low-paid unskilled staff so the owner can rake in as much as possible for as little outlay as possible. If you could come up with the one type of business no-one wants, or needs, in the area, this is it. The only less appealing business would be yet another Turkish barbers.
Islanders don’t need, or want, mainland opening hours and another vape shop. Do a poll. No-one wants it. No-one needs it. The tenants above and neighbours opposite will have their evenings disturbed and the police will have yet another foreign owned business ~ like the kebab shops and curry houses ~ causing issues in our secular society that doesn’t require booze at 1am.
Utterly ridiculous, bound to get the licence and approval by the council who only care about the business rates and taxes.
F*** the locals and the tenants affected.
The shop has been closed since 2018, so bringing it back into use, offering work, training, vibrancy and service is a good thing. The last thing we need in Ryde, or indeed on the island, is a palpably racist, bigoted, thick, nasty wee sh&te like you. And you have the nerve to display a peace sign as your ID picture!!
The island is now entering 1970s Big Smoke
It’s a mini supermarket not just ‘an off licence.’ Feel sorry for the neighbours as they’ll have all the Ryde great and good congregating outside at antisocial hours but better than being empty.
The Island, like much of the UK has a serious problem with addiction. Drug and alcohol abuse is rife and the consequences are extremely serious. Many people mistakenly think alcohol is different from drugs. Completely wrong, Alcohol is a drug that is readily and legally available but arguably more addictive and dangerous than illicit substances. The epidemic of convenience stores that are basically off licences is furthering this problem and is now being aided and abetted by the council. This is not a very responsible attitude.
Our appropriate council departments should examine their moral compass more carefully before granting permission so freely.
A couple of years ago my husband went to the Co-op in Ryde, around 8.30am. There was a woman collapsed outside, and as a first aider, he attended to her, called me (also FA trained) to assist, until an ambulance arrived. It arrived 3.5 hours later, but that’s another story. To cut a long story short, we had issue with both the Co-op and that pancake place opposite – hubby and I were on the ground with her, under blazing sun, until the ambulance came. For 3.5 hours! At no point did anyone from the Co-op or the pancake place offer assistance, water, shade….bugger all. It turns out that she is a known local alcohol dependant person, and had bought a litre of vodka at 8am from the Co-op. A regular thing for her. We visited the shop the next day to meet the manager, and asked him why, if they knew she was a troubled soul, they had sold her the booze. His response was ‘Well, if we didn’t sell it to her, she would go somewhere else’. I was stunned. My point is, it isn’t the ‘fault’ of smaller businesses propping up the substance dependants in our town….the big businesses are just as culpable, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tescos etc. Vilifying small businesses and blaming them for exacerbating people’s addictions is an irrelevance, and, as many comments here appear to imply, is at best, small minded and doesn’t address the basic issues, it also smacks of racism, given the implications that its ’foreign people’ who are making things worse.
Not in keeping with the area. Not needed. Not wanted.