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A few of the many residents who were fighting plans to open a Super Liquor store at 44 Matakana Valley Road.
Just days before a district licensing committee hearing into controversial plans for a new Super Liquor store in Matakana, the application has been withdrawn.
G1 & Co Ltd had applied for a new off licence at 44 Matakana Valley Road – formerly the Summer Sessions surf shop – in April, since when many in the local community had mobilised in opposition to the proposal.
More than 160 objections were filed with the Auckland District Licensing Committee and Council’s own alcohol licensing inspector, Mark Waite, had submitted a report opposing the new licence to the committee, which was due to sit on Tuesday, August 17.
Opponents were concerned that there were already more than enough licensed premises in and around Matakana, and the addition of a Super Liquor could cause a spike in noise, crime, litter and vandalism.
However, hearings advisor Wendy Stephenson yesterday circulated an email saying the applicant’s counsel had withdrawn the application, the hearing was cancelled and “the matter is at an end”.
G1 & Co is owned by Prashant and Punam Darji of Orewa, who currently run the Paper Plus shop and post office in Warkworth and before that owned the Matakana Four Square, until 2012.
Mr Darji said today that he felt it was better if he made no comment on the decision to withdraw the application.
Matakana Community Group chair Rachel Demler said she was pleased to see that common sense had prevailed.
“We appreciate the applicants withdrawing their application, as they have obviously heard and understood the many objections from the community,” she said.
“We mobilised successfully as a village to make our objections known and the number of objections was extremely high.”
John McIntyre, who was co-ordinating many of the objections made by local residents and businesses to having another licensed premises in Matakana, agreed, saying the community was delighted.
“The community’s strong opposition and expression of its concerns of the impact on good order and amenity in the village of an additional liquor outlet, along with the four existing off licences in a small village of around 500 people, has been heard loud and clear,” he said.
“Matakana is fortunate to have a strong community spirit and values that underpin our community and committees that are actively engaged, not only in addressing community issues, but developments providing benefits for all.”
However, Mr McIntyre said objectors should not rest on their laurels, as similar applications would probably be made in the future. And he was critical of the process for objecting to new licence applications, saying the rules worked against rural residents being able to have their say. “The initial rejection by the District Licencing Committee of a significant number of the 161 written objections because of a 1km threshold radius around the proposed new liquor outlet in our village, is undemocratic and a denial of community voice,” he said.
