Residents above Camberwell nightclub forced to spend weekends in hotel
By Robert Firth, Local Democracy Reporter
A nightclub has had its opening hours slashed after the music was so loud neighbours had to move out of their homes at the weekend.
Residents living above La Estación 57 nightclub in Camberwell were forced to book hotels or stay with friends on Saturday nights because of booming reggaeton music from the basement club.
The venue, which is also known as Southbank Nightclub, will only be able to open until 11pm moving forward. Previously, it could hold parties until 5am at the weekend.
One resident, who lives three floors above the club, said he had been driven to try and buy a new property outside of Southwark to escape the noise.
A Local GP who wished to be called Tom said sleepless nights as a result of the music had forced him to give up working at a local weekend vaccine clinic.
He said: “I hope that the historical complaints going back for the past six years, as well as the most recent one this weekend, demonstrate clearly that this club can no longer remain open in its current format.
“We literally move out to stay out with friends and family or hotel every weekend. We’ve not complained since December [2021] because we haven’t bothered staying.
“I no longer do weekend clinics in the local GP services of Southwark. I am too tired and I am staying away on most days.”
His wife asked Southwark council to review La Estación 57’s licence earlier this year following months of disturbance from the venue – which specialises in bachata, reggaeton and salsa music.
The hearing, which took place over three sessions on August 2, August 18 and October 6, heard the nightclub had installed a sound limiter. But residents claimed they could still hear the music from their flats floors above.
An oral surgeon who lives in a flat above the club, said he had suffered four years’ of sleepless nights because of the venue’s booming sound system.
He had been forced to give-up seeing patients on Sundays for specialist procedures because of his disturbed sleep.
He said: “I’m having to stay at my parent’s place or with friends on a Saturday night. It’s just quite annoying that I’m unable to use my flat and enjoy my flat.
Uwa Enri Julius, who holds the licence for the venue, didn’t speak at the meeting. His representative, David Dadds, blamed Southwark council for the situation. He argued the council’s environmental health team had failed to take steps to help the venue set the noise limiter at the right level.
Mr Dadds said: “I think there’s a simple solution. And the simple solution is to set the noise limiter accordingly. This year there has only been three residents who’ve complained. Please get this into proportionality.
“Environmental health have let down these residents terribly. It’s absolutely shocking the level of negligence and undue care. If three residents have been affected by noise level then the simple solution is [to] set the noise limiter accordingly.”
Cllr Renata Hamvas, Cllr Andy Simmons and Cllr Barrie Hargrove took the decision to reduce La Estación 57’s hours on the same day.
Pictured top: La Estación 57 nightclub in Camberwell Road (Picture: Google Street View)
Not quite sure how they were ever allowed to operate as a nightclub in a busy residential area. The residents from across the road and above have been complaining for years and nothing is ever done. No noise complaints are ever investigated, it’s shocking from Southwark council. But even poorer from the owner to continue operating a nightclub on a residential street. They still operate now all hours of the night with a ‘sound limiter’ that doesn’t block out any sound… Southwark council have been provided with countless videos for many years of queues, fights and loud music throughout the night – please sort it out!