Labour Gets Otahuhu its Liquor Ban

Auckland City Council’s City Development Committee has approved liquor bans of 24 hours a day, seven days a week (24/7) for all Otahuhu parks and reserves, contrary to recommendations by Council officers.

Maungakiekie-Tamaki Labour Councillor Richard Northey said, “This decision for a round-the-clock liquor ban in all of Otahuhu’s and Riverside’s parks and reserves is a great victory for the people of Otahuhu.

“The Otahuhu Steering Group, the Otahuhu Mainstreet & Commercial Association and a wide range of Otahuhu and Riverside community groups have long been concerned about problems with liquor in Seaside Park, Flat Rock Reserve and other Otahuhu parks and reserves. They have lobbied persistently to extend this liquor ban to cover daylight hours and, with the strong support of the Labour members of the Tamaki Community Board, they have finally succeeded.

“This is a great day for community safety in Otahuhu,” Richard Northey concluded.

Tamaki-Maungakiekie Labour Councillor Leila Boyle, said, “This decision from Auckland City Council’s City Development Committee is long overdue and I welcome it with open arms. Thankfully repeated and eloquent advocacy from the Tamaki community and Labour elected representatives combined with commonsense by Councillors from outside our area won on the day. We have always argued that the area of Auckland City covered by the Counties Manukau policing district should be treated differently from the Auckland policing district and, despite Council officers disagreeing with this view, we have finally won this argument.”

Tamaki Community Board Labour Deputy Chair Christine O’Brien said, “The Community Board is very pleased that the Otahuhu community’s concerns about safety and the state of its parks have been heard and finally addressed completely.

“A partial extension of liquor bans in Otahuhu last year did not address all locals’ issues and there were continuing problems from daytime drinking in the parks, including glass scattered dangerously across playing fields , perceptions of risks to public safety, and the bad messages it was sending to children moving to and from schools in the area.

“People were also attracted into Otahuhu from elsewhere in the Counties Manukau District and police will now be empowered to deal consistently across the District with people day-time drinking in our parks and reserves,” Ms O’Brien concluded.

The Counties Manukau Police district includes all of Otahuhu and almost all of the Riverside area (around Panama Road and surrounds) so parks newly covered by the 24-7 ban will include Flat Rock Reserve, Ian Shaw Park, Mt Richmond Domain, Sturges Park and Seaside Park.

The City Development Committee’s decision is final and now Auckland City Council officers will be talking to the police about how to roll this out for the community of Otahuhu.

“In the past, the date new bans take effect has been October 1,” Cr Leila Boyle noted, “but I am hopeful that with the advent of the Supercity on November 1, the October 1 date will be brought forward to September, or possibly even August.”

The Otahuhu Steering Group, Otahuhu Mainstreet & Commercial Association and other groups and individuals who commented on liquor bans will be notified of this soon and a communications plan is to be rolled out in local papers and the Council’s City Scene publication along with new signage to let the public know about the change to 24-7 bans.

ENDS

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