PLANS to open a new shisha cafe in Bolton town centre have been knocked back by town hall bosses.

Bolton Council said that the proposal to convert a restaurant at Marsden House would cause harm to neighbouring residents.

Refusing planning permission for the development, planning officers said: “The use of any of the interior of this building for the purposes of shisha smoking would not comply with the Smokefree Regulations 2007, forcing smokers to use the outdoor terrace.

“It is considered that noise from this outdoor activity would have an unacceptable impact on the living conditions enjoyed at the properties directly above and above the adjacent unit.

“It is not considered that this impact would be mitigated by existing vehicular noise levels or by the extremely limited evening economy activity levels nearby. Whilst the benefits of the proposal in terms of occupancy and employment are accepted, together with the lack of any significant harm to the road network, these are not considered to outweigh or justify the identified harm to living conditions.”