A Boobs on Bikes parade featuring topless women riding through Tauranga streets looks doomed if Auckland porn merchant Steve Crow decides to apply to the council to make it legal.
The council's two bikies, Murray Guy and Bill Grainger, have joined Mayor Stuart Crosby and Cr Larry Baldock in expressing disgust at the prospect of the parade on August 4.
And with deputy mayor David Stewart also holding serious concerns about the potential for offence, any application from Mr Crow looks extremely unlikely to survive a vote. Parades down public streets require consent under the Street Use Bylaw.
Cr Grainger, who like Cr Guy rides a Triumph, said he was appalled. "I don't want it happening, end of story."
He wants the mayor to nip it in the bud and send a letter to Mr Crow saying the council doesn't want such an event happening in Tauranga.
Cr Grainger "totally opposed" the parade, saying that if it went ahead he would be there with protest banners or something else in an effort to deter organisers.
Cr Stewart said the council could not unreasonably withhold permission but there was a grey area around what was reasonable and unreasonable. One of the grounds for refusing consent was if the parade caused offence.
No application had been received for the parade and he wondered if Mr Crow was being mischievous in order to get free publicity for Auckland's erotic expo.
"It is a lot of hoo-ha - it's a lot of silly stuff."
Cr Stewart said if Mr Crow was sincere he would have made an application to the council and the decision would rest with the politicians.
He said he might have had some regard for the application if it was to raise funds for charity, but it appeared only to be an advertising gimmick and a vehicle for Mr Crown to push his views.
Cr Stewart said that while he did not care either way about the parade, he could understand how some people would be offended, whether it was on sexist, family or religious grounds.
"It comes down to the image of Tauranga."
Cr Guy said: "I am not a happy chappy - I am pretty aghast."
He said it was unfortunate that Mr Crow thought the parade could take place as of right, as if there weren't any legal processes to deal with issues such as public safety.
"If he had gone onto the council website, he would have seen that consent is required."
Cr Guy suspected it was a publicity stunt because Mr Crow had made not contact with the council's events planning people.
And even if Mr Crow did apply, the absence of council meetings for the next two weeks meant the timing would end up being particularly tight, with only one-and a-half weeks left for the council to rule on the application before the parade took place.
Mr Crow would have no chance to appeal if the council voted against him.
Mr Crow said he would not be applying for council permission because the bikes would be observing the road rules and sticking to the flow of traffic.
"It is not a parade and the fact that 100,000 people turn up (in Auckland) is not our fault."
It became impossible to stick to the speed limit in Auckland because people pushed out on to the street, he said.
Asked if it was a moot point about whether it was a parade or not, Mr Crow said it may well be a moot point but his tolerance for bureaucracy was pretty low.
"I am opposed to the bureaucracy of the whole thing. The community is ruled by bureaucrats and it has become tiresome."
Boobs on Bikes for Tauranga may be doomed
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