Two ice cream van owners have applied to trade on the recently vacant trading site, located on the slip road outside the Mitre Hotel on Hampton Court Way, on the first two Sundays of every month.

Both applicants are seeking permission to operate their ice cream vans at the site during the available Sundays.

The first applicant is Mr Caloghero Galletta, owner of Mr Sof Whip, who currently holds a license for this site and is trading there on all other days of the month.

He is applying for  his existing license to include the first two Sundays.

The second application is for Ms Angela Ferrante, owner of Ferrante Ices and Event Catering, who is applying for a new license to trade on those same two Sundays of each month.

In a licensing sub-committee meeting on Monday, 16 June, Mr Galletta said: "That site has been operated for 54 years with three different license holders, which we're all obviously friends – with one being my father at the time – and then through the years, my father's retired and I've taken it on from my father.

"One [trader] also then surrendered his license because he retired, and then the other applicant surrendered."

Mr Galletta says that he believes that there should only be one trader in one designated site and notes that this would make it easier when paying electricity bills.

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He added that his business is a "well-established" family business and that he is not heard of any complaints in his family's 54 years of business.

He is a sole trader with this business being his sole income. Thus, he would like to extend his operating hours to the first two Sundays of each month to increase his income.

Mr Galletta added: "To my knowledge, there has been no complaints in our 54 years of business."

Mr Galletta would also like to trade from 9am – 9pm seven days a week.

Speaking about why her application should be granted, Miss Ferrante said: "I've been in this industry my whole life. I'm very familiar with both traders and the histories that go along with those traders.

"Last year I was contacted by the Mitre Hotel that's there to put some ice cream outside their café.

"So, for me, I've seen that the vans that are there - there's two vans opposite each other which are sort of competing with each other – are both selling the same products.

"I would like to come in on those two Sundays and diversify a little bit by selling scooped ice cream, which I believe would go very well in the area. I am very familiar with the director of the hotel there, and if I'm honest, the appearance of the current van is not of the greatest."

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She continued: "I think that I could definitely improve it and put something that suits the area.

"My van would not require electricity. I have a full e-power van that has just been built by Whitney Morrisson. My van would be much more self-sufficient in terms of the emissions as the van that's existing is very dated and does, even though it's plugged in on standby just to get to its journey, produces a substantial amount of black carbon.

"I just think that the area just deserves something a little more upmarket and that's why I would like to come in on those two Sundays of the month just to provide vegan, gluten-free, and other dietary requirements in terms of the offering and just to not sort of be in competition with the trader.

"So the trader across the road is a good friend of mine and he is also very happy if I was to take those two Sundays on just so we can diversify the products and do separate offerings as opposed to having two traders virtually 20 metres apart or 50 metres apart from each other selling exactly the same products and kind of doing a bit of a competitiveness in terms of pricing."

Miss Ferrante said that she was initially going to put a scoop trailer outside the café within the hotel premises, but, she said: "obviously at the time we didn't want to conflict with the ice cream that's existing there because I know that there has been several issues in the past.

"So, this would give us the opportunity to start trialling it and to provide what the hotel is actually looking to give."

Her business is based two minutes down the road in Fallbridge Road, and she has a "whole fleet of vehicles" in the local area.

She also has several sites and does a lot of events, including at racecourses.

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She said: "I do have quite a large establishment already."

The licensing sub-committee will make a decision within five working days.