The Black Cap on Camden High Street (Image: Wikipedia Commons)
Iconic LGBT pub and cabaret venue the Black Cap today (April 8 2015) regained its place on Camden Council’s list of assets of community value, making commercial redevelopment of the site significantly harder.
The Cap was initially given asset of community value, or ACV, status in 2013 but the pub’s owners, Faucet Inn, had that listing overturned on procedural grounds.
Today’s decision to reinstate ACV status follows the council’s rejection in February of a plan by the owners to convert the pub’s first-floor bar into flats.
ACV listing means that proposed changes of use must meet higher standards to secure council approval, and that if the property is put up for sale, the community has six months to prepare a bid at market value. The owners are not obliged to accept such a bid.
Dubbed ‘the Palladium of Drag’, the Black Cap has been an LGBT pub and cabaret space for more than 50 years – since before gay sex was decriminalised in 1967.
In today’s decision, the council says it “believes that the Black Cap furthers social, cultural and recreational interests which cannot be met elsewhere” in the borough.
It continues: “The Black Cap has had iconic status for Camden’s gay community since the 1960s as a place to meet and socialise. However it is no ordinary gay pub as it also plays an important cultural role as a renowned venue for drag and cabaret performances. The pub’s heritage contributes to its continued central role in Camden and London’s gay scene and means that the community value would not be easily replicable elsewhere.
“The community value of the pub is not solely recreational and cultural. The Black Cap plays the role of a community centre for the local LGBT community in the absence of such a dedicated facility. The council has received evidence of its important social role as a meeting point for various support groups (particularly for older LGBT people and those from ethnic minorities), for hate crime outreach work and as a venue for events, consultations and forums.”
Today’s ACV listing, which stands for five years, also applies to the Black Cap’s upper floors.
In February, Camden Council threw out a proposal by Faucet Inn to convert the venue’s first-floor bar and upper floors into flats, saying it would mean “the death of this nightclub”.
No one from Faucet came to the meeting to defend the plan, which was the company’s third attempt to redevelop the site since 2012.
The pub’s owners could still appeal against February’s decision, or submit new redevelopment plans. They have until June 3 2015 to appeal against the new ACV listing.
Faucet Inn did not respond to requests for comment.
The successful new listing application was made by Camden LGBT Forum, whose director is Nigel Harris. The Cap is important, Harris said, “because it ensures our local residents have a safe space to go and meet other LGBT people. Because it holds great memories for our older members who have been visiting for decades. Because it provides a space for LGBT groups and outreach. Because it puts Camden on the map with its grand history of top talent and support for equal rights.”
Other London LGBTQ venues holding ACV status include the Royal Vauxhall Tavern, which has been bought by property developers but continues operating as usual for now, and the Joiners Arms, which closed in January but hopes to reopen as a pub and community centre.
The news about the Black Cap comes as the world-famous Camden Lock market, just minutes away, is revealed to be the latest London landmark targeted for large-scale commercial redevelopment characterised by corporate retail and luxury flats.
