A bar in Hitchin town centre will be forced to close earlier at weekends after noise complaints from nearby residents.

Bridgetown Monroe in Bucklersbury had been able to play music until 2am on Friday and Saturday nights, but will now only be able to do so until midnight after North Herts Council's licensing committee decided to cut its hours.

It came after several nearby residents complained that loud music from DJ nights had left them unable to sleep, with one former resident saying that the bass had been "so powerful" she could "physically feel the vibrations within the flat".

DJ nights had been allowed once a month according to the bar's noise management plan, but the council said they were taking place every Friday and Saturday night.

Bridgetown's licence has also been suspended for 28 days or until its owner, Christopher Dodd, has been replaced as premises supervisor.

During a private section of the licensing hearing on Friday (November 6), councillors on the committee watched CCTV footage that showed Mr Dodd removing a public notice about the hearing that had been placed in Bucklersbury.

Notices were "repeatedly removed" during the required consultation period, according to the council, and Mr Dodd had told the authority that he had not removed them and did not know who had removed them.

Committee chair Cllr Alistair Willoughby said councillors were "concerned" by the incident and it had affected their "assessment of the credibility of the evidence and the level of confidence that could be placed in the management of the premises".

Joe Mannix, licensing manager at the council, said the CCTV footage showed "an offence committed of intentionally or recklessly causing public nuisance".

He said Mr Dodd had been handed a community protection warning "for interference in a public process and infringing on the rights of the public to be made aware of a licensing review".

"It brings into question the … ability to trust in the word of the licence holder," Mr Mannix added.

Mr Dodd warned councillors that operating between midnight and 2am at weekends is "what keeps the business open" and added that "an earlier closing time would end the business just as surely as suspension" of its licence.

"The overheads of a late bar with the takings of an early one, and the business is gone within weeks, and it would take a bar from Hitchin that everyone loves," he added.

He had called for the council to avoid reducing opening hours but to instead bring in conditions requiring DJ nights to end at half past midnight, with background music permitted until 2am. He also agreed to commission an acoustic survey.

Mr Dodd apologised to residents who had been disturbed by music, and said that since receiving complaints he had removed a subwoofer and speakers, installed vibration-reducing wall stands, installed a decibel reading meter, ended Friday DJ nights and ended Saturday DJ nights at half past midnight.

But Alan Stone, an environmental health officer, said noise had continued and that, over the past two weekends, music had been "clearly audible" until 2am in nearby flats.

A noise abatement notice was served in February this year, and was not appealed by Bridgetown Monroe.

Councillors on the licensing committee said that reducing the bar's opening hours at weekends would "assist in addressing many of the concerns raised by residents and responsible authorities" and "provide greater certainty for local residents regarding the cessation of noise-generating activities".

They added that Mr Dodd had "demonstrated a repeated lack of judgment and management oversight incompatible with the responsibilities expected" of a premises supervisor.

One nearby resident who spoke at the hearing, Bruce, said he had previously lived above bars and restaurants without issues, but that he had experienced bass music and shouting "almost every Friday and Saturday" since he had moved in.

He said: "Despite buying noise-reducing earplugs, sleep is impossible at a reasonable time while the bar is playing music.

"We both work full-time, and the lack of sleep has a compounding negative effect on every avenue of our lives.

"We have missed work and important family events because of it and have had to spend as much time away from our home as possible at the weekends.

"The stress we've experienced has been profound and has seriously affected our wellbeing."

Bruce said he had been "singled out" by the bar in an "online campaign", including being named in social media posts.

"We already felt unsafe entering and exiting our property while the bar is open, and the fear of a confrontation from inebriated strangers is a real worry for us," he said.

He added that Bridgetown "operates much more like a nightclub than a bar" and "no longer resembles the speakeasy cocktail bar that was put forward to the council when the licence was applied for".

Mr Dodd said he "regrets" some of the social media posts referred to by Bruce, and withdrew a previous statement in which he had suggested residents were engaging in a "vendetta" against the bar and should use ear plugs or should move out of the area.

One woman, Millie, who previously lived very close to the bar, said she was "fully aware" of its presence before moving in but said: "There is a difference between accepting the normal activity of a neighbouring bar and experiencing persistent excessive noise that makes it difficult to enjoy your own home.

"At times, the bass is so powerful that I could physically feel the vibrations within my flat. My bed would actually vibrate.

"I regularly had to wear earplugs to sleep and, on many weekends, felt that I needed to leave my own home simply to get some peace."

Millie added: "On three separate occasions, male customers made objectifying and unwelcome comments towards me late at night as I entered my home.

"These experiences left me feeling intimidated and uncomfortable, and concerned that people would identify exactly where I lived."

Another nearby resident, Andreas, said there is "regularly" broken glass near the entrance to his home, while a former resident, Aisling, said she would "often find vomit completely covering the entranceway" to her property, and that there was "a general sense of fear moving around on the weekend".

Bridgetown was named best business in Hitchin last year, but Aisling asked whether the bar had "bribed customers with a free shot if they voted for you". Committee chair Cllr Alistair said the question was not "appropriate" and refused to allow Mr Dodd to answer it.

The committee also heard from Kuljit Sangha, licensing officer at Hertfordshire police, who said there had been "a number of incidents" linked to the bar, including "allegations of assault, an ABH [actual bodily harm] and an ongoing GBH [grievous bodily harm] investigation".

She said police had issued two written warnings to the bar about breaches of their licence conditions relating to CCTV, raising "issues with CCTV retention periods and occasions where footage was unavailable when requested".

But Ms Sangha added that the bar had been "cooperative" and had made improvements, including "investment in a new CCTV system".

Councillors also heard from several speakers who supported Bridgetown, including Carli-Louan, who said she felt "safe and welcome" at the bar and that it would be "such a loss to Hitchin to lose this incredible venue".

Another supporter, Joe, said the bar makes an "important contribution" to the town and had attempted to resolve the issues faced by nearby residents.

Hitchin town centre's manager, Danny Pearson, did not attend the meeting but had told the council beforehand that Bridgetown Monroe are "good neighbours to the people along Bucklersbury" and added: "For anyone complaining about noise, I'm not sure what to say other than it is a town centre … it will be lively."