AN application for a sex shop licence has been refused.

Dave Powley and Danny Miller, the owners of Eva Amour in Barmouth, applied for a licence for the shop in February 2020.

The application was originally delayed because the council did not have the legislation in place to assess the application. The council addressed that, but an application hearing scheduled for Wednesday, 2 February, was postponed following complaints by Mr Powley and Mr Miller who said the council wanted to use out-of-date evidence gathered last year.

Speaking to the Cambrian News then, Mr Powley said: “The whole consultation process should be run again from the start for fairness and openness, to allow people to have their say. The council is gagging the residents of Barmouth.”

The owners have spent £30,000 refurbishing the old butcher’s shop and, despite the refusal of the licence, Eva Amour will remain in Barmouth as a base for the online business.

But Mr Powley and Mr Miller want to be allowed to unlock the door to the public, let them in to do their shopping and, in doing so, employ more staff from the seaside town.

When the application was originally submitted, the shop front was not in place and there were a number of objections to opening a sex shop. But Mr Powley believes the mood has changed towards the business now that people can see what the shop front look like. If new evidence was gathered, he believes Gwynedd Council would see that there is support for Eva Amour to operate as a shop.

“People love it, and most of our customers have been locals who have nothing but praise for how the shop looks,” Mr Powley said.

“We want a licence, we always have.”

The owners set up a petition in support of their application and hoped the hearing, which finally took place last Thursday, would take that into account.

However, the council refused the application and the premises will have to continue to operate as a warehouse only, rather than as a warehouse and a shop.

A Gwynedd Council spokesperson said: “At a meeting of the council’s General Licensing Sub-Committee on 10 March, members refused an application for a sex shop licence for a premises at 6 St Anne’s Square, Barmouth.

“Having considered all the relevant regulations, policies and representations made regarding the application, members refused the application on the grounds that it would not be in keeping with the character of the relevant locality and that the location of the premises is in close proximity to premises frequented by children and vulnerable adults.”