Council bosses have threatened Domino’s Pizza with prosecution after more a decades’ worth of complaints about its Perth city centre take-away.
Abatement notices have been served on the US fast food giant, ordering the company to fix ongoing noise problems at the South Street establishment.
Domino’s has been warned if it fails to act, it could be found guilty of breaching the Environmental Protection Act and fined up to £5,000 – or even more if the offence continues after conviction.
Environmental health officers are now trying to block the company’s bid to extend opening hours at the take-away.
They say they have received complaints about noise since 2006, shortly after the take-away opened its doors. The main problem is an extraction unit which is just a few feet away from neighbouring flats.
The council team said the pizza shop was at the centre of an ongoing investigation and attempts made to fix the noisy ventilation system appear to have failed.
In a memo to licensing chiefs, environmental health officer Kirsty McKenzie said: “This service has received many complaints, spanning from 2006 to 2017, regarding the excessive noise from the extraction unit utilised by Domino’s Pizza, especially during the night.”
She said a cut-off switch was fitted in 2016 to ensure machinery was turned off at the 11pm closing time.
“Investigations, especially a site visit on February 7, 2017, between 11pm to 11.45pm, confirm the ventilation system serving Domino’s Pizza was in operation and producing noise which officers of this service consider to be unreasonable.”
She said that if the hours extension was granted, “it would magnify the already existing detrimental effect on residential amenity”.
A noise rating of 41 decibels was recorded from a nearby bedroom, way above the 30 decibel recommendation set out by the World Health Organisation.
A landlord has also objected to the opening hours extension.
In his letter or objection, he complained that – as well as the extraction fan – the area around Domino’s had become a “blight on Perth city centre”.
“Visitors to Perth must be shocked arriving in that area in a morning to be greeted with that mess. What a first impression for someone coming to view the city”.
Domino’s media team did not respond to requests for a comment.
A decision on opening hours will be taken by members of Perth and Kinross Council’s licensing committee on Thursday.
