A Greek restaurant owner in Chepstow could be forced to replace a sign that cost him £5,000 after council planners refused permission to keep it. Aris Priftis opened his Dip Eat Greek restaurant and takeaway in Moor Street in September last year, but shortly afterwards learned the aluminium sign with acrylic lettering and internal LED lighting had fallen foul of planning rules.
Mr Priftis said the sign is intended to catch the eye and attract customers. "It has the lighting to stand out and is a way people can find the shop, otherwise it is just one shop next to 10 others and it is not very visible," he said.
Sign details and location
The sign forms part of the shopfront and is 2.4 metres above the ground, below the first floor windows, and runs for 7.5m across the width of the building on Moor Street, Chepstow, which is not listed but is within the town's conservation area.
The business owner only became aware of any problem when contacted by the council some three or four months after opening. "I received a letter from the council about the sign which said I would have to apply for a licence," he said.
Council refusal and reasons
An application for advertising consent, and to retain the sign, has now been refused by Monmouthshire County Council planners who described the aluminium material as "inappropriate" and said the illumination caused "harm to the conservation area". The council also said the aluminium has a "shiny finish" and the modern material is at odds with its traditional setting, an "unsympathetic contemporary addition".
The sign had cost Mr Priftis around £5,000 and he had already offered to reduce its brightness as well as switch the lighting off at 10pm.
Business owner's response
"I want to work with them (the council) but I need a bit more support. We support the community as well and support local clubs and have fed the homeless," he said. "If it was a huge business I would say I can go along with it but we are a small family business trying to survive and give back to the community."
The former car mechanic, who has lived in Chepstow for nearly five years, works with his brother while the restaurant also employs two kitchen staff and two delivery drivers. "Opening a restaurant was something I always wanted to do, it was my dream, and to try and bring that Greek taste as much as we can and all our products come from Greece," said Mr Priftis.
A report by council planning officer Ryan Bentley setting out the reason for refusal stated the council's heritage officer said a "flat" sign that isn't internally illuminated and used traditional materials "would be considered more appropriate". An externally illuminated sign for a previous business was approved in 2015 and Mr Bentley said while a number of restaurants have operated from the site since none had asked for "express consent" for any of the fascia signs since the 2015 decision.
While Mr Bentley said the decision to previously approve the externally illuminated sign was "an important consideration" the council had also adopted its Chepstow Conservation Area appraisal, in 2016, which states a number of nearby buildings make a "particular or special contribution" to the conservation area. The Welsh Government had also issued a technical advice notice, in 2017, which said a council's duty to preserve or enhance a conservation area "will result, in practice, in more exacting standards" when considering applications for advertising consent.
