The Nairobi City County government has informed the Environment and Land Court that the operating license for 213 Lounge and Restaurant Limited, a popular club in Lavington, remains valid and fully up to date.
Responding to a petition filed by local resident Allan Monroe Onyango, the county administration rejected requests to revoke the establishment’s license over alleged noise pollution and public disturbance. In a replying affidavit filed on August 12, city authorities revealed that the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) previously conducted multiple inspections at the facility and verified its full compliance with environmental standards.
Nairobi County, listed as the second respondent in the suit, noted that its officers inspected the venue between July 16 and July 17 following noise complaints. During that visit, the club promptly complied with official directives to install the required noise-control measures. Asserting that Club 213 maintains permissible sound levels, county officials described the lawsuit as an attempt to force the local government into exercising its statutory powers to satisfy a single applicant’s wishes, adding that Monroe’s personal dissatisfaction does not legally oblige the county to cancel a business license.
Monroe initiated the legal challenge on August 3, telling the court that the venue plays blasting music throughout the night every day, deeply disrupting neighborhood peace. However, city authorities countered this claim by clarifying that zoning laws designate the location as a mixed-use area rather than an exclusively residential neighborhood.
Consequently, the county dismissed the petitioner’s claim that authorities unlawfully permitted a commercial bar inside a residential zone as factually and legally baseless.
City officials also pushed back against allegations that the club creates severe traffic congestion and blocks access roads with client parking. The county emphasized that the petitioner provided no independent traffic assessments or official management reports linking the local traffic conditions to the restaurant’s operations.
Despite the county’s stance, the court issued interim orders on August 10 barring the entertainment joint from playing music on the premises pending further direction. Represented by Advocate Dennis Onyango, Monroe continues to press the court for urgent relief to alleviate what he describes as ongoing misery and suffering for neighborhood residents.
