100 signatures reached
To: District Licensing Committee
No Bottle Store on Ellis Avenue
We, the undersigned, object to the application for a liquor licence for a new bottle store at 13-15 Ellis Avenue, .
We object to the issue of this licence as another off-licence bottle shop in the area will reduce the amenity and good order of the locality significantly.
We oppose the application for the following reasons:
- there are already plenty of off-licence alcohol stores in the area
- proximity to a number of sensitive sites such as schools, early childhood education centres, and places of worship
- existing issues around anti-social behaviour in the broader area, much of which appears to be the result of alcohol consumption
Why is this important?
Alcohol Healthwatch estimates alcohol-related harm in New Zealand costs $14.5m each day. The brunt is disproportionately on youth, Maori and Pasifika in our communities, and there is a link between high density of off-licences and the heavier drinking patterns that result in much of the harm. Harm includes the health of the drinker themselves, such as increased rates of cancer and fetal alcohol syndrome, as well as harm to others, with alcohol playing a direct or indirect role in many fire fatalities, drownings, suicide and self-inflicted harm deaths, and the growing road toll.
43% of all alcohol is sold from off-licences, like the one proposed. This new bottle store would increase the amount of alcohol in our community when we need to limit supply, and in particular reduce sales from off-licences where the liquor is then consumed in unsupervised circumstances (in contrast with on-licences).
Local schools and parks end up vandalised and littered with broken glass, as people drink alcohol purchased at bottle shops in public despite liquor bans. Resources of both council and schools have to be used to clean up the mess, when some of it could be avoided by reducing the sale of alcohol in the area.
Finally, the District Licensing Committee process allows people to make submissions to object to the application, and this petition is an important opportunity for those who can't make a submission to still be able to show their opposition. It is possible there will also be a hearing on this application, particularly if the petition is signed by a lot of locals, which will provide another opportunity for the local community to have a say.