Following continued breaches of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act, Tauranga’s Welcome Bay Sports Bar and Grill and the Welcome Bay Super Liquor bottle store attached to the bar are no longer able to sell alcohol.

At a recent sitting of the Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority (ARLA) in Wellington, both premises (operated by the same licensee) had their licenses cancelled with immediate effect from 18 March.

Tauranga City Council alcohol licensing inspectors sought an application to suspend the bottle store licence following a breach of the act when the licensee sold alcohol to an under aged person for a second time in November 2024, the previous breach for this offence was in November of 2023.

Police also applied to the Authority on 3 occasions to suspend or cancel the licences for the sports bar and the bottle store after repeated other breaches of the act in August and November 2024.

The Police breaches related to a named duty manager not being on premises and a staff member not having a current managers certificate. Both premises failed to have properly certified managers when alcohol was sold.

In its written decision, the Authority acknowledged that the licensee, through its counsel, conceded that “the applications are justified…and (the Authority) can, if appropriate in the Authority’s view, cancel both the on-licence and the off-licence held by the respondent”.

The decision goes on to say that the Authority would proceed on the basis that the licensee had conceded the contents and merits of the application, and cancelled both licences “by consent”.

Alcohol Licensing Team Leader Sam Kemp says that the outcome should be a timely reminder to other licensees of the possible implications for not following the rules.

“The failure to adhere to some basic procedures and work practices have had serious results for this licensee. My team is obliged to monitor for, investigate and report such failings to the Authority”, Sam says.

“While the decision and outcome ultimately lie with the Authority, the responsibility and due diligence to operate compliantly lies squarely with the operators of businesses that sell and supply alcohol”.

Sam says there have been several enquiries in relation to whether the tavern and bottle store would re-open under new ownership at some stage, and while this is a possibility, both would remain closed for the foreseeable future.

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