Decision on new Preston shisha lounge amid 'wrong crowd' concern

It will open in a vacant retail unit on Fylde Road – close to the junction with Aqueduct Street – and will also feature a restaurant, alongside its main function as a space to smoke flavoured tobacco.

Images of how the remodelled interior will look show a mixture of informal seating areas and tables.

Preston City Council planners approved the conversion of the ground floor of the two-storey building, after concluding the venture would not have any “unacceptable adverse impacts” – provided suitable odour control measures were put in place.

The outlet is expected to create nine full-time jobs and will operate until the early hours at the weekend, trading until 1am on Saturdays and Sundays and closing at midnight during the week. It will open at 2pm on weekdays and 5pm of a weekend.

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The plans, by Preston-based Shisha House Limited, attracted three objections from the public – including concerns about fumes from the extraction equipment, general noise and disturbance and the impact of the business on parking in the area.

A claim that the lounge would attract “the wrong crowd” was not considered, as it was not deemed a planning issue.

The city council’s environmental health officers stipulated that the ventilation system installed in the kitchen area must meet the ‘high level of odour control’ standard. Meanwhile, the extractor flue will have to exceed the eaves of the building by at least a metre in order to ensure “the effective dispersal of any odours”.

Highways bosses at Lancashire County Council did not object to the proposal and concluded customers arriving by car would make use of the short-term parking available in the vicinity.

However, they noted the potential for patrons to add to the problem of pavement parking on Aqueduct Street – and to the obstruction caused to pedestrians as a result. The business was advised to use signage to “discourage illegal parking and ensure pedestrian access is maintained”.