2am burgers cause noisy McNightmare for residents

by Kiri Gillespienews@bayofplentytimes.co.nz
Another concern is the young ones hanging out in the car park. For example ... one ute pranged into the drive-through wall, twice ... Gerry McEvoy
 
 Would you like fries with that? How about some ear plugs?
Late night orders at the new McDonald's in Mount Maunganui have left a bitter taste among neighbours struggling to sleep at the neighbouring Quest apartments.
Quest resident Gerry McEvoy described the level of noise coming from the new McDonald's as a "McJoke".
"Most, if not all, who live at Quest are angry, annoyed, and tired after a sleepless night due to police call-outs for drunken teen brawling, drive-through crashes and McDonald's staff using outdoor vacuums and cleaning equipment at 4am to clean up the resultant mess."
He said the voice box for the 24-hour drive-through was "too loud" and showed disregard for people living nearby.
The voice box is located about 5m from the nearest apartment.
Another Quest resident, who spoke on the condition they were not named, said she was woken every night between 1am and 3am "to drunk people yelling out their orders".
"Another concern is the young ones hanging out in the car park. For example ... one ute pranged into the drive-through wall, twice, there was a fight between two young guys and an extremely loud burn-out on the road outside - all by the same group of youngsters."
The apartments are available as accommodation for guests and  private residents.
Quest building manager Mike Scherer said he was aware of the "McDonald's problem" but had not received complaints from guests. "I understand there have been some concerns from tenants but they are private tenants and they are nothing to do with the business," he said.
Mr Scherer said he felt the  complaints were a result of teething problems.
"I don't see an advantage in going over and complaining about McDonald's when just a simple chat and giving them a chance should suffice."
McDonald's Mount Maunganui owner John Warder said he was aware of the concerns and was monitoring customer behaviour.
"We have lowered the volume in the speaker box in response to feedback and put security on some nights to help move people on once they have ordered.
"... We are committed to being a good neighbour at the Mount but we're also a business that is operating within the specific zoning of this site," Mr Warder said.
Mr Warder said it was common for customers to be a bit excited at the start of a new restaurant. The restaurant is  on a business-zoned site and resource consent was granted on the basis that the design of the site met noise levels as per the district plan.
Mount Maunganui police Sergeant Craig Madden confirmed they were called to McDonald's last weekend for disorder.