Mount businesses hit back

'Same old serial moaners,” says Mark Rundell, a gruff and staunch advocate for main street businesses at the Mount. He's just as proud of the seaside town itself.

'And there aren't many moaners,” he adds, 'so I don't understand why they've been allowed to make such a noise.”


Trish Rogers, Donna McQueen and Mark Rundell doing what they do on the Mount's main street. Photo: Tracy Hardy.

The businessman is in a huff with this reporter because of a series of stories about footpath furniture gobbling up pedestrian space down the main street at the Mount.

It culminated last week with the tale of a young Auckland visitor who, after two-and-a-half months of medical treatment, is still immobilised from an encounter with a restaurant barrier.

'Yes, and I feel very sorry for her,” says Mark. 'But we know the offending restaurant and they've been dealt with. So, as the [Tauranga City] council says, it's not a problem because there is no problem.”

That's how it works apparently. If a cafe or restaurant breaches the 1.8 metre rule – the mandatory distance between chairs and tables on the footpath – the business association waves the stick.

And if there are repeat offences, the bylaw enforcers are called in. 'We are self-policing” says Mark. 'And it works very well.”

We sit down for a chat at a kerbside table outside Artastic – his gallery in the main street.

'Is this table bone fide?” I ask. Mark eyeballs me. He isn't ready for quips. 'Don't go there,” he warns.

He's actually indignant on behalf of neighbouring business Gusto - a café next door. He has a good working relationship with the café and allows them to put their tables and chairs outside his premises.

Some people claim to have recognised the café livery in a generic main street photograph, which accompanied The Weekend Sun story. The café says some people connected the business to the woman's injuries and abused staff.

'One customer said: ‘You guys are disgusting'. They were ill-informed and didn't want to know,” says café owner Donna McQueen.

Her staff are regularly reminding diners of the rules regarding footpath furniture.

'They'll move tables out of the sun into the middle of the footpath,” she explains. 'They are not thinking. And we have to move them back again.”

The businesses say it highlights a much bigger problem down the main street – stepping out of a shop or café door into the path of a cyclist or a skateboarder.

No argument there, because right on cue a mature man blithely rides down the middle of the footpath on his bicycle. No helmet, no thought, no consideration. Anyone stepping out would have been taken out.

'If that happened to one of my elderly regulars, it could be the end for them” says Donna.

And seagulls and sparrows are also more of a problem than errant diners, according to Mark.

Again, right on cue, as if to prove his point, an enormous, aggressive and territorial southern black-back does a two-point landing on the café table right next door.

The gull picked the wrong café and the wrong guy to meddle with. There's skwarking and eye-balling and 'effing and blinding” and the black-back wisely retreats.

I understand what Mark means. Seagulls are a menace here.

Then Mark gets back to business.

'Two cruise ships will come in and 20 per cent of the 5000 people on-board will spill out onto the main street,” he says.

'It's busy, it's exciting, it's crammed; it's great. That's how it happens, it's all part of the atmosphere. Let's embrace it.”

He stands and gestures down the street. 'Look at that,” he says, 'perfect – beautiful. That's what people come here for.”

'Let's not be petty and small-minded. Let's be positive – don't let a few complainers dictate. We are a big city now, a big economy. Let's think big, let's be grown up.”

And let's not forget the businesses pay rates too – why shouldn't they have access to an amenity they own and help to maintain?

Okay, he admits, some cafes and restaurants do flout the rules governing footpath furniture, but they are quickly pulled into line.

'That's how it's worked for the six or eight years I've been in business here and it works well,” he says.

When I'm out of the gaze of Mark I check the kerbside table. There's a good two metres-plus clearance. All good.

You may also like....

10 comments

Users Pay

Posted on 20-03-2015 09:39 | By Watcher 1

Why is Council NOT charging Business owners who occupy pedestrian space with tables and chairs like many other Councils do?, example Rotorua Eat Street cafe owners are charged for area used? It appears that the User pays system is not applicable with this Council?


Why not

Posted on 20-03-2015 09:47 | By savemejeebus

Pedestrianize Mount main street and be done with it. The cafes can help fund/pay a fee towards having their cafe furniture on the newly created walkway leaving the sidewalk free of supposed clutter. A win win really seeing as in summer you cant move along the main street in a vehicle as quick as the people on the sidewalk anyway. It would make the Mount main street more of a destination, and like Mark says lets think big!


Mark's got a point

Posted on 20-03-2015 10:24 | By BullShtAlert

The rule fanatics and clipboard clutching inspector types get too much publicity in Tauranga Moana/er. As soon as people think outside the square to provide a bit of atmosphere the grizzlers strike up. Life is dangerous so perhaps they should stay at home. Second thoughts they might trip on something at home too, it's a dangerous place (ACC statistics). From the ages of reason we've now descended into the age of offence where every action and statement is analysed and criticised by pains in the . . .


Get rid of council interference

Posted on 20-03-2015 12:25 | By The Tomahawk Kid

Get RID OF COUNCIL INTERFERENCE in the private business of others ALTOGETHER. Council are nothing but parasites on the back of the productive. If council do their best to deny retaillers making a living these people will go out of business - Then council will have to SACK STAFF (now theres a good idea!) because there will be no business for them to interfere in. Get council OUT of meddling in business - Hand over the running of the main street to the RETAILERS - they are the ones who make the city vibrant and attract people - not the council. WELL SAID BullShtAlert - Im with you.


seesee

Posted on 20-03-2015 14:05 | By SeeSee

just a few weeks back there was a parking in front of a café just down on the left hand side as you enter main drag, it has orange coloured furniture on the footpath. Getting out of my car and coming around onto the footpath, a female opened an umbrella as I went to go past, one arm of it catching my glass's, and if it was not for them it would have gone straight into my eye. Thankfully the len's in my glass were in marked. So please don't tell us that there is no danger to the public with all this furniture cluttering the public's right of way. Should any one get injured by any of this apparently unlicenced furniture on the public footpath, then please do tell us just who is liable, the council or the owner of the furniture ?


Greedy money worshipers.

Posted on 20-03-2015 14:07 | By dgk

Yeah, those that get injured by rogue businesses should just be thankfull. Yeah Right. Businesses that care for the public will always do better than those who are just after the money.


Let's not forget

Posted on 20-03-2015 15:18 | By Watchdog

what started all this. A lady suffered significant injury from which apparently she has not yet healed. Where is the sympathy for her. I have seen people with a white cane trying to negotiate some of these streets and they have been puzzled because diners have moved their chairs around for a better view, or whatever and have partially blocked the footpath. If there is a clear white line painted down the footpaths, anyone over that line could be given a warning. If everyone sticks to the two meter clear rule, then fine. But think of others having to make their way through. No wonder people head to Bayfair instead. I agree with Users Pay also, that Council should charge for the footpath space on a 60% occupancy rate for the year. ONLY then should they be allowed to use that area.


I simply don't see

Posted on 20-03-2015 15:47 | By SML

why cafe owners have more rights than pedestrians? Being disabled, and having enough trouble negotiating the footpaths as it is, I take offence at being lumped in with "serial moaners", when our rights are being cast away in favour of BUSINESS rights, without the businesses paying anything for their piece of the footpath! They did it in Tauranga, on the Strand, and you can't walk under the verandahs now - that's the domain of the restaurants and cafes, not the person walking along. Why not complain? Our right to walk along the footpath, unimpeded, and without being hit, abused, or actually HURT is simply being ignored by business interests. The council had better be listening, this time!


True Capitalist

Posted on 20-03-2015 19:51 | By Conzar

@Tomahawk said like a true capitalist. I suggest you go live in China where there is virtually no regulation and enforcement. Have fun breathing their toxic air. The reason solution has been stated by @savemejeebus where cars should be prohibited to allow for outside furniture and pedestrians to walk. This will allow for a cleaner environment for those wanting to eat outside. Unless you want your air polluted like China, regulation is the only way.


Shops expanding on to pavement

Posted on 14-07-2019 08:10 | By OAP

Unfortunately many of these business premises do not monitor their outside tables ,and their customers spread all over the footpath. Trying to negotiate past them proves very difficult for my wife on a mobility scooter. Yes ,I know it adds to the atmosphere, but I think I will just have to build a bull bar on the front of her scooter, so she can bulldoze her way up the street !!.I also think the previous comment about charging is a valid one .why should these private businesses have the use of public space free of charge ?


Leave a Comment


You must be logged in to make a comment.