The Queenstown Lakes District Council has approved the resource consent for the town's first liquor store, to be build in the middle of a neighbourhood of young families.
The 333sq m Super Liquor store would be built in Lake Hāwea’s latest subdivision, Longview. The subdivision has gained traction with young families, as land prices are cheaper than Lake Hāwea’s lakefront houses.
The application was submitted by holdings company Keyrouz Holdings Limited, which plan to keep the bottle store open 12 hours a day and include a drive-through option for buyers.
The liquor store would be the first commercial business to be built in the new subdivision. Hāwea only recently gained a FreshChoice supermarket late last year.
Anxious about the impacts of the potential liquor store, some Lake Hāwea locals have come together to object to the alcohol application. Lake Hāwea has a population of roughly 2300 residents.
A Facebook group called ‘Hāwea Community for Thoughtful Development’ was formed as a way for locals to discuss how they plan to object and what they hope the outcome to be.
Concerned mother Lisa Riley started the group after being unhappy with the proposal and felt it was inappropriately placed and ill-considered.
The store would be in very close proximity to a school bus stop and playground, and she said it was unnecessary when the town already had locations for alcohol distribution.
"It's the messaging that this sends to our kids that this is our number one priority for the commercial space," Ms Riley said.
"This isn’t about banning anything. It’s about asking, how do we look after each other?"
The proposed Super Liquor would be one of four liquor distribution stores along with FreshChoice, The Hāwea Hotel and the Hāwea Store & Kitchen.
Lake Hāwea local Tracey Bell agreed with the sentiment and felt there were many other establishments the town needed before a liquor store was introduced.
"Hāwea has only just got a supermarket. It's taken a long time for that to happen, and yet a bottle store is to be granted consent in such a short time," she said.
Ms Riley got in touch with the council earlier this month before the consent was approved, attempting to raise her concerns, but communication was lacking.
QLDC responded on May 9 saying they would contact her should they consider her an affected party and give her the opportunity to provide feedback.
The consent had been approved on May 8 and Ms Riley was never contacted.
"Their email made it sound like it was still in [progress], that there might be the opportunity to provide feedback ... It was already a done deal."
The council said that under the district plan it could not prioritise types of retail activity (e.g. groceries versus liquor) within such a zone as long as the activity fell within the defined and permitted use.
In this case, the proposed development met the "retail activity" definition.
Police were aware of the application and will provide information to the process regarding harm that may be caused in the community.
Lawyer Liz Gordon from Communities Against Alcohol Harm, has also stepped in as counsel to advise the group.
She said, in her experience, having a liquor store in a small community tended to increase the risk of alcohol harm, especially amongst young people.
She said the first issue is that more licenses cause more alcohol harm. The second issue is that there are risk factors in communities, she said.
She is assisting locals in gathering objections from the community that can be submitted to the council and eventually raise a hearing.
The final day to object the Lake Hāwea Super Liquor is June 23. The group has decided to object the store and a hearing is likely.
Ms Riley is considering a petition which would then be submitted by next month.
