Tauranga CBD business owners suffer ‘aggressive’ demands and ‘intimidation’ from homeless people

Part of the Downtown Tauranga shopping centre. Photo / Sandra Conchie

Homeless streeties demanding food and threatening violence or using intimidation are tormenting Tauranga business owners.

One homeless man brandished a knife at a cafe owner after demanding drugs and money and a city centre business owner says a woman she believes is homeless made a threat of serious violence.

Downtown Tauranga says an escalation in problems is “ruining the atmosphere and turning some shoppers off”. A number of people have been arrested and dealt with through the courts.

A shop owner told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend a woman she believed to be homeless threatened her on the street near the Tauranga Library last week, but was unclear with her demands.

The owner, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the woman warned her that if she failed to comply with her demands there would be “serious” consequences next time.

The woman told the shop owner: “Hey, Christmas is coming... and if you don’t give me what I want then the same thing will be done to you as we did to the person in Auckland”.

“The woman got right in my face and she was standing really close to me when she also told me: ’I’m not bull********. I’m serious’.

“She repeated this comment several times. I didn’t know what she meant exactly but I immediately thought of the sad case of the dairy worker who was... fatally stabbed in Sandringham. That was absolutely going through my mind.”

About 20 minutes after the woman made the threat, she was back inside the store.

Police were called and the woman was given a trespass order and dealt with through the courts. The shop owner said the woman had visited her store “many times” before and made aggressive demands.

In January, her sister was left badly shaken after a girl trying to steal from the shelves punched her.

The owner said some people she believed to be homeless caused problems every time they visited the shop, either hassling customers to buy them food or expecting freebies.

“It’s also hard when some of them are sitting on the benches outside the shop constantly staring at you. It’s quite off-putting so we try not to look at them.”

The owner said that despite the nasty threat she did not hold any ill feelings against the woman, especially if she had mental health issues, but at the same time, she did not want this to happen to anyone else.

“My main focus is ensuring this woman and other homeless people get the support they need and if it’s food and clothing they need I’m happy to help. We need a real solution and I don’t think locking people up for a day or two is the answer.”

Robert Harris cafe owner Ian Mikkelsen said police were called about two months ago after a homeless person threatened one of his workers by demanding coffee and food. They had already left when the police arrived.

“I have owned this business for four years and we have also had problems in the past, including homeless people fighting each other in the cafe or trying to fight us. One even threw a punch at me... As a cafe business owner, it’s very hard to keep our business ticking over without these sorts of issues.”

The Nourished Eatery owners Chloe Soutar (left) and Shar McElligott. Photo / Mead Norton

Shar McElligott, who co-owns The Nourished Eatery cafe in Willow St with Chloe Soutar, said they were having a “big issue” with some of the city’s homeless becoming more demanding and intimidating at their cafe.

“That included on August 10 when a homeless man demanded drugs and money. And when we told him no, he took out a knife and began stabbing the store window while looking at us... We were both scared and have been left with lasting trauma,” she said.

Police made an arrest and the offender has been through the courts.

McElligott also called the police after a man she believed to be homeless at the Wharf St bus stop allegedly assaulted an elderly man. The alleged offender made “all sorts of threats” while she was doing so.

She said fortunately the victim did not need an ambulance and nothing was stolen but he was shocked and suffered grazed knees.

“The root of the cause starts with mental health issues, not the police or the council.”

Coffix Coffee Bar owner Jane Anderson said she had homeless people coming in but most were “pretty good”.

“They are not all bad. Some of the homeless have mental health problems. They need help and wraparound support to tackle those issues.”

The Bay of Plenty Times Weekend spoke to a number of other city-centre food-related business owners with most saying they had experienced aggressive or intimidatory behaviour. One wanted a stronger police presence.

Downtown Tauranga board chairman Brian Berry. Photo / NZME

Downtown Tauranga board chairman Brian Berry also called for more police in Tauranga CBD.

“We have been trying to arrange a meeting with the council, the police and retailers for some time. The trouble is we have noted an escalation in the number of homeless and vagrant people in the CBD.

“It’s ruining the atmosphere and turning some shoppers off,” he said.

“Unfortunately, some of these people do have complex needs... and I can fully understand why shopkeepers and the public would be really concerned. The safety of our retailers and the public is paramount.”

“We really want to get the parties together in the CBD and try to find some real solutions to make it a safe place for everyone.”

Western Bay of Plenty police area commander Inspector Clifford Paxton said rough sleeping, begging or being homeless were not criminal offences. Police were called to deal with public disorder and antisocial behaviour.

“Many of those people dealt with are suffering a wide range of welfare issues and we seek to use alternative resolutions and referrals to partner agencies to assist with specialist help,” Paxton said.

“We are not immediately aware of any increase in antisocial behaviour but acknowledge that small business owners generally have been feeling on edge with the recent spike in ramraids and robberies of commercial premises across New Zealand.

“Police are continuing to work alongside and have meetings with our partner agencies to better understand the issues and to find long-term solutions for these complex social issues, ” he said.

Paxton also said police regularly patrolled any areas of concern, including an increased presence in the CBD on Friday and Saturday nights.

Paula Naude, Tauranga City Council manager of community development and emergency management, said people could gather in public spaces unless trespassed.

“If a person is purposely obstructing a public accessway or causing any antisocial offences then enforcement measures are undertaken by the police.”

Naude said the council was not aware of an increase in people experiencing homelessness in the city centre.

Naude said as part of a recent review into the use of Street Ambassadors and the development of a Safety Action and Investment Plan, new actions being considered by the council included the development and delivery of crime prevention seminars for small businesses in conjunction with Mainstreets, Retail NZ, police and the Chamber of Commerce.