A change to the time when restaurants on The Strand have to move their outdoor furniture is being sought by Tauranga City Councillors Bill Grainger and Murray Guy.
The dining to drinking change over presently happens at about 4pm – a time many restaurants find is losing them customers.
Bill and Murray on The Strand.
Some bar owners want the change to occur at 9pm to take advantage of the natural business lull that occurs at that time. This is when they say the diners leave and is before the first of the late night drinkers start arriving at about 10pm.
The present regime was introduced in 2009 to give the bars an opportunity to properly control their outside Licence to Occupy area. At that time the outside drinking areas were separated from the bars by the public footpath – a public space that bar security had no control over.
A decision was made to move the public walkway nearer the street frontage of the paved area, requiring bars to move their outdoor seating. The time set for the move was 4pm.
“Four pm reduces the amount of patronage they can have seated for a meal,” says Councillor Murray Guy.
He and fellow Tauranga City Councillor Bill Grainger were approached this week by a bar owner who reported the timing of the furniture shift was causing a loss of turnover.
In reply, the councillors say they will bring the matter up with the city council.