Fresh Push For New Bottle Store In ‘Worst' Location
Article – Torika Tokalau – Local Democracy Reporter
A third attempt to set up a bottle shop near three schools in south Auckland is being strongly opposed by the community and advocacy groups.
Russell Road Liquor has made an application to the District Licensing Committee (DLC) to operate a new off-licence bottle shop at 70 Russell Road, Manurewa.
The site is the old Black Bull Liquor Manurewa – which failed to reestablish a licence twice, the most recent last year.
Communities Against Alcohol Harm (CAAH) secretary and lawyer Dr Grant Hewison said they were prepared to do all they could to stop it from opening.
'This is the worst place to want to have a liquor store and a thoughtless proposal from the applicant,' Hewison said.
'This is the third time the alcohol industry has tried to open a store here since Black Bull Manurewa failed to renew their licence in 2023.'
According to Auckland Council's Local Alcohol Policy (LAP), the site for the proposed shop was in a Neighborhood Centre Zone, which has added protection against new off-licences.
Under their application, Russell Road Liquor applied to sell alcohol from Monday to Sunday, 9am to 9pm.
Their application notice was posted in community papers on March 27.
The site for the proposed bottle shop was located close to three schools – the closest, Manurewa Intermediate, was just 130m away.
There were also five alcohol outlets within a 1km radius.
'It is clear from the Auckland Local Alcohol Policy that this is absolutely the wrong place to open a liquor store, in a small set of neighbourhood shops, right next to Manurewa Intermediate, and a few doors up the road from Manurewa West Primary School,' Hewison said.
He said the CAAH have set up an online petition for objections, and organised a community protest outside the store.
'There have already been dozens of objections submitted from the community using our easy online Jotform tool.
'I would also expect the official agencies to be strongly opposed too, given the vulnerability of the locality, the proximity to sensitive sites, and the inconsistency with Auckland's Local Alcohol Policy.'
Hewison said the policy on Neighbourhood Centres in the LAP was set up to protect vulnerable communities.
'[It] was in response to community concerns about liquor stores on every corner, increasing the availability of alcohol to members of the community who are generally more at risk of alcohol harm, especially in residential areas of higher deprivation.'
The previous bottle store closed in 2023 after it failed to renew its liquor licence. Two attempts after that to get a renewal were withdrawn after strong community opposition.
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