DCC acuity: ‘Let’s shift Octagon taxi ranks, Again —near dire drinking holes #whatswrongwiththispicture

[click to enlarge]
Octagon taxi rank [dunedin.govt.nz] – orange overlay by whatifdunedin (drinking holes / hospitality)

Dunedin City Council – Media Release
New trial site for evening taxi rank

This item was published on 22 Aug 2016

A new location for the evening taxi rank in the Octagon will be trialled for three months. From tomorrow, the evening taxi rank will move from outside the Municipal Chambers and Civic Centre to the central lane of the Octagon, where tour bus parking has been provided. The rank will operate from 7pm to 7am, Monday to Sunday. During the day time, the taxi rank will operate from the current location outside the Municipal Chambers and Civic Centre. Dunedin City Council Acting Group Manager Transport Richard Saunders says the covered walkway will provide shelter for people waiting for taxis. There will also be a sign to show where the taxi stand is and the area is monitored by CCTV.

“This proposal has been discussed with taxi companies, local businesses and the Police, and there is a lot of support for the trial. The trial site has several advantages over the current site and we expect it to be popular with the public too.” –Saunders

DCC staff have talked with the mobile traders who use that space during the day and the trial will not affect their use of the area. Mr Saunders says at the end of the trial, staff will discuss the results with taxi companies, the Police and local businesses before deciding whether to make it a permanent move.

Contact Richard Saunders, Acting Group Manager Transport on 03 477 4000.

DCC Link

█ 22.8.16 ODT: Taxi rank trial in Octagon

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Previously published comment (2.5.16):

C E N T R A L ● C I T Y ● V I O L E N C E

Mon, 2 May 2016
ODT: Stabbing: ‘What is this place coming to?’
The stabbing of a 21-year-old man in central Dunedin early yesterday has left the man who rushed to his aid questioning the state of his city. Detective Sergeant Chris Henderson said the victim was taken to Dunedin Hospital after being stabbed in the neck and back outside the The Bottle-O store on the corner of Princes St and Moray Pl about 3.30am.

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DUNEDIN IS UP THERE (2015 statistics)

### newshub.co.nz Mon, 2 May 2016 at 4:45 p.m.
NZ’s most violent city spots revealed
By Lisa Owen
A Newshub investigation has revealed Auckland neighbourhoods dominate a leaderboard of the most violent city hot spots in the country. Statistics New Zealand has mapped 2015 police crime data, released to Newshub under the Official Information Act, to show the areas with the highest number of assaults, sexual assaults and robberies in public places. The crimes include anything from rape to being beaten up or being robbed of your cellphone at knife-point. Three of the five most violent city areas (precincts where there are more than 3000 residents) are in Auckland’s CBD. […] *By overlaying population data in the zones where crime has occurred, Statistics NZ has been able to work out the national average for incidents of public place violence. *Article uses 2015 statistics of victimisations by assault, sexual assault and robbery in public places.
Read more + VIDEO

█ Dunedin = No. 7 on New Zealand’s top ten most violent city hot spots
The only South Island hotspot, the area running north from the Octagon.
Newshub

█ For more, enter the term *octagon* in the search box at right.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Election Year. This post is offered in the public interest.

University of Otago student mayhem continues, another LOSS for Harls

Star reporter David Beck notes feral practices and bully-tactics.

### ODT Online Sun, 1 Nov 2015
Students undergo hazing rituals for flats
By David Beck – The Star
Dunedin tertiary students who have secured flats in popular areas such as Castle St and Hyde St are being put through hazing rituals by tenants leaving the flats. Flat initiations are particularly common for students securing a flat for their second year of study and generally involve excessive amounts of alcohol.
Read more

█ Students needing support and advice in this area can contact Student Health, Campus Watch and staff at the university colleges.

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### ODT Online Sun, 1 Nov 2015
Red cards a booze-fuelled tradition
By David Beck – The Star
The scarfie tradition of red cards is all about doing something new and having a good time, a university graduate says. Each person in a flat is allowed to pull one red card during the year. On the day they decide to use it, the rest of the flat has to participate in whatever alcohol-fuelled activity the holder has decided on.
Read more

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### ODT Online Sun, 1 Nov 2015
Police out in numbers in student area
Police have turned out in numbers in the student area of Dunedin this morning after a disruptive night combining Halloween and Rugby World Cup final celebrations.
Read more

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One practice David Beck has missed (see various
student-authored social media reports) is sexual predation visited on young women by feral young men, read Students —recently brought to the attention of What if? Dunedin.

(Frankly, practically) None of this is helped by ultra short skirts and visible G-strings worn by ‘accessible’ young women, to Dunedin night venues and popup parties. YES that is a non-PC statement but hey.

It’s hard to report sexual assault if you’ve been surrounded (while you’re drunk or drugged, or not) on the dance floor by young men exercising pack instinct and intent. The case of whose finger was it anyway. YES, this in Your Swill Town.

The University, Police and Council authorities wouldn’t have a clue about what/who/how to manage the manifold risks posed to vulnerable young people studying at Dunedin —outstanding ignorance, blindness and naïveté pertain within the Establishment, whose business (MARKETING) it has been to play down the more unsavoury aspects of Student party life here.

The University of Otago and NZ Police FAIL to monitor, DO NOT investigate, and DO NOT offer strong guidance on Student use of social media at Dunedin. These ‘encounters’ make the recent Roast Busters case at Auckland seem trivial if not ephemeral. The ‘Stewards of Dunedin’ reside in the Dark Ages, a place not enlightened by smartphone use for good or bad. There is BAD. Despite the law change based on the outcome of the Roast Busters investigation, sadistic criminal behaviours at Dunedin go unpoliced. And unreported to Police.

Keep partying why not. Sell more drinks, more party drugs?
No-one wants to talk about it. Jolly the young sweet things along.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

*Image: samsunghdwallpaper.com – The Best Doll wallpaper for Samsung smartphone

Law Courts Hotel #sad

An institution. Great precinct and location for accommodation, what happened.
Enhance building performance, perfect for retrofitting and adaptive reuse.

### dunedintv.co.nz February 19, 2015 – 5:42pm
Law Courts Hotel in liquidation
The Law Courts Hotel in central Dunedin has been placed in liquidation. The hotel’s situated in lower Stuart Street, beside the Dunedin Courthouse. It’s been placed in the hands of liquidators by the High Court. Creditors owed money by the company have until the end of March to file claims. The sole director of the Law Courts Hotel is Mornington resident Leslie Scott. A financial report on the state of the business has yet to be made public. It was formally placed in liquidation last week.
Ch39 Link [no video available]

█ Wikipedia: Law Courts Hotel [edited]
‘One of the city’s most historic public houses and hostelries, the Law Courts Hotel, is located close to the Dunedin Law Courts (the courthouse) in Lower Stuart Street, in a large corner building with an Art Deco style facade (not the original frontage), directly opposite the Allied Press Building (the offices of the city’s main newspaper, the Otago Daily Times). Listed by Heritage New Zealand as a Category II historic place (List No: 2189). The prime location of this hotel near these two premises has greatly contributed to its history, as has its longevity (having originally been founded as the Auld Scotland Hotel in 1863).’ Link

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

*Image: wikimedia.org – ‘deco-tweaked’ by whatifdunedin

Dunedin’s draft local alcohol policy (Lap) —submissions, real story outs

District licensing commissioner received direct reports of enticements to survey submitters.

### ODT Online Tue, 11 Nov 2014
Dunedin bars ‘offered punters cheap drinks to fill in surveys’
By Debbie Porteous
Dunedin bars offered punters cheap drinks to fill in surveys in support of licensees position against a draft liquor licensing policy for the city, Dunedin district licensing commissioner Colin Weatherall says. Mr Weatherall kicked off the first day of Lap hearings in Dunedin with the bombshell accusation.
Read more

Other ODT articles:
10.11.14 Fallout over liquor plan
8.11.14 Alcohol policy: Plenty to pore over
8.11.14 Portal use saves $10,000
6.11.14 Alcohol policy piques

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Dunedin City council – Media Release
Draft Local Alcohol Policy Hearings Underway

This item was published on 11 Nov 2014

Residents’ views on the sale, supply and consumption of alcohol in the community will be aired at hearings underway in Dunedin. Today is the first of seven days of public hearings on the Dunedin City Council’s draft Local Alcohol Policy, with the last day being Thursday, 4 December. About 280 people are scheduled to speak at the hearings. Two days have been set aside later in December for the Hearings Committee’s deliberations.

The Dunedin City Council’s draft Local Alcohol Policy (LAP) attracted 4262 submissions. Of these, 79% (3,382 submissions) were submitted on forms developed by Hospitality NZ and the Dunedin Inner City Licensing Forum, a group of inner city licensed premises. Of the remainder, 19% (789) were made by individuals and 2% (91) of submissions came from organisations and businesses representing the hospitality, retail, health, tertiary and social sectors, as well as the Police.

The draft LAP suggests a range of changes to current practices, including rules about how close new premises may be to places such as schools and early childhood centres, a one-way door policy from 1am, licensing footpath space outside licensed premises until 11pm and banning the serving of shots from midnight. Some of these proposed changes have been opposed by a range of submitters.

DCC General Manager Services and Development Simon Pickford says, “The purpose of the draft was to get a conversation going with the community and we’re really pleased that has happened. It’s important that all sectors of our community, from businesses to individuals, tell us their views as we work to establish what is acceptable to Dunedin residents in terms of the sale, supply and consumption of alcohol.”

Under the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, the draft LAP must take into account issues such as the number of licences of each kind held for premises in its district, and the location and opening hours of each of the premises, the demography of residents and of tourists or holidaymakers who visit the district, the overall health indicators of the district’s residents and the nature and severity of the alcohol-related problems arising in the district.

Mr Pickford says, under the Act, the Hearings Committee is not able to take into account matters such as the economic impact of the suggested changes on businesses.

The membership of the Draft Local Alcohol Policy Hearings Committee is Mayor of Dunedin Dave Cull (Chairperson) and Councillors Aaron Hawkins, Mike Lord, Jinty MacTavish, Neville Peat, Andrew Whiley and Lee Vandervis.

Mr Pickford says the Committee will make recommendations to the full Council which will make the final decision on the LAP.
For more details or to view the draft LAP submissions, visit http://www.dunedin.govt.nz/lapsubs.

Contact General Manager Services and Development on 03 477 4000.
DCC Link

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Dunedin City Council
Draft Local Alcohol Policy —Consultation Hearing details

Submissions closed: 10/10/2014
Hearing: 11, 12, 13, 19 Nov and 2, 3, 4 Dec 2014
Contact person: Kevin Mechen

The purpose of a Local Alcohol Policy (LAP) is to ensure that the sale, supply and consumption of alcohol occurs in a safe and responsible way and that any adverse effects are minimised. The intention is to create an enabling policy that reflects all community aspirations, but finding the balance between various interests is a challenge.

To view the submissions received go to the Draft Local Alcohol Policy submissions information page

● Draft Local Alcohol Policy Hearings Agenda
● Draft Local Alcohol Policy Hearings Speaking Times Listing
● Draft Local Alcohol Policy Report to Hearings Committee
● Schedule of breaks during Hearings Committee

Related documents:
Draft Local Alcohol Policy (PDF, 231.4 KB)
The purpose of a Local Alcohol Policy (LAP) is to ensure that the sale, supply and consumption of alcohol occurs in a safe and responsible way and that any adverse effects are minimised.

Summary of Background Information (PDF, 269.8 KB)
This policy is to be read in conjunction with the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 and the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Regulations 2013.

Local Alcohol Policy – Statement of Proposal (PDF, 187.3 KB)
This Statement of Proposal has been prepared to fulfil the requirements of sections 83 and 87 of the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA) and section 79 of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 (the Act).

DCC Link

█ Ministry of Health | http://www.health.govt.nz/your-health/healthy-living/addictions/alcohol-and-drugs

█ NZ Drug Foundation | https://www.drugfoundation.org.nz/alcohol

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Thoughts on marketing

Received from Hype O’Thermia
Sun, 8 Jun 2014 at 11:11 am

Strategy guru, Harvard Business School professor Michael Porter was speaking at the World Business Forum in Sydney on Wednesday and highlighted two key features of a good business strategy.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/10127196/The-value-of-unhappy-customers

“….1. Choose a distinctive value proposition.

Porter says leaders must decide which customers they are serving and then work out what are the needs of those customers that the business is a “master” at fulfilling.

“We can be pretty good at some things, but what are we going to stand out on? Customer services? Product design? Customisation? Which particular needs of that set of customers do we really want to meet and what price will we ask?”

Leaders should decide what the value proposition is and how it compares with competitors.

“Because, unless we have a unique value proposition, unless we have different answers to these questions than our competitors, then we have no strategy. We are just competing on operational effectiveness,” he says…..”

The university / rugby / stadium would do well to look at that and ask how their “marketing” lines up with that sensible advice.

Tourists and other visitors do not come here for a stadium. Some come here to watch a game, a concert. Where it is held is of little importance. When it’s what they want to see – it’s what they want to see.

Over-filling accommodation and eats and drinks venues once in a while is poor business. It’s a big boom, long bust strategy. It’s temp staff working their guts out, then days and weeks, possibly months, of having short hours and thin paydays.

Amusements as an attraction to students is likely to attract young people who are more interested in prolonged privileged adolescence than the quality of the teaching and research available. Fostering these people as bar clients is an effective way of parting them from their money, at some cost to the rest of us in terms of messy antisocial behaviour, and isn’t doing them any long-term favours. We have seen something in the drive to cater to students, that is not unlike the cynical placement of disproportionate numbers of pokies in low-income suburbs.

[ends]

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Octagon mud

Council reaps us what it sows

It comes to pass that the CBD’s most-used symbolic gathering place, The Octagon, carrying a cluster of historic buildings, the city’s public art museum, our main performance theatre (Regent), a cinema multiplex under redevelopment, shop and office buildings, the Athenaeum building on the comeback through new stewardship, the impressive St Paul’s Cathedral, the stately Municipal Chambers and Town Hall complex, the seat of local government administration (Civic Centre), and a slightly down-at-heels landscaped wide open space at the junction of surveyor Charles Kettle’s two main arterial roads (Princes/George Streets and Stuart Street), also takes a bevy of drinking bars and night spots that make a strong contribution to central city nighttime violence, disorder, and lack of public safety.

The Craft Bar homicide and the connected serious assault investigations started last weekend point up the Dunedin City Council’s lack of urban design and planning vigilance in Health and Safety matters.

This tied to recent years of lobbying by the Octagon bar owners on licensing and trading hours and conditions, sometimes tied to hosting after-match wakes for Stadium sport and events (even although major events at the stadium are tapering, as predicted), unsupported youth, gang sqirmishes, under-resourced local police, and society’s access to cut-price alcohol and its liberal use (pre-loading and regular binging) alongside other substance abuse, means the Octagon is devolving into a hell-hole of collective making – not dissimilar to what happened at Cathedral Square in Christchurch before the quakes.

What will the city council do to mitigate the situation, and how soon can we restore the space to 24/7 safety for all? Is this even possible with the cluster of ‘intemperance’ bars and no push for building owners to move to greater diversity in mixed ground floor tenanting on the lower Octagon? One way or another “Party Central” has to fold – changing the pattern of ground tiles will not suffice.

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Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull speaks volumes when he says, at times, he does not feel comfortable near the Octagon.

ODT Editorial: Personal responsibility key (30.4.14)
Knowing Dunedin is one of the most statistically safest cities in New Zealand will bring no solace to the families involved in the tragic death of Ryan Court at the weekend. Read more

Related ODT stories:
30.4.14 Arrest after Octagon assault
30.4.14 Progress made in assault inquiry
29.4.14 ‘A good man’ mourned
29.4.14 Man hospitalised after Octagon assault
28.4.14 Bottle assault follows bar death
28.4.14 Names released after death at city bar
28.4.14 Arrest follows death at city bar
27.4.14 Man in custody over Octagon bar death

ODT ‘Booze Control: Stop and Think’ series:
Excessive drinking changes the way people act
30.1.14 Education fails, professor says
29.1.14 South’s alcohol statistics worst
28.1.14 Delicate balancing act over licensing
27.1.14 Still a ‘very safe community’
25.1.14 Time to clean up act over alcohol
25.1.14 The cold, naked truth about nightlife

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr