There were 15,250 new cases of Covid-19 in the community on Thursday, and 22 Covid-related deaths.
Video / Mark Mitchell / Dean Purcell / Michael Craig
With vaccine restrictions set to ease further from April 4 and case numbers falling, one of Auckland's largest hospitality venues is reopening.
Lion's Little Creatures craft brewery at Hobsonville Point will be officially back open for business on Friday April 8, following a soft re-launch for locals earlierin the week.
Red light restrictions and staff shortages with the Omicron outbreak saw a wave of high-profile venues temporarily close their doors during February, including Prego in Ponsonby, Peter Gordon's Homeland in the Wynyard Quarter and Soul Bar and Bistro in the Viaduct (all of which have now reopened).
"Decreasing Omicron cases and the changes to hospitality restrictions make the timing right," Lion hospitality director Mike Corry said.
The venue, which occupies a former Air Force hangar, was a $20 million project for Lion, including the cost of a 10-year lease.
As it was temporarily shuttered on February 22, Lion said: "With the current rules, we simply cannot get enough people through the doors while we still have a lease to pay, staffing challenges and our costs continue to rise. We are a large venue with 750 seats and in normal times we would regularly see thousands of people through the venue over a weekend."
Today, Corry said, "Little Creatures was doing very well, so while in the short-term things have been incredibly hard and it made sense financially to close temporarily, in the long-term we are confident in the venue's continued success. Little Creatures has become a community venue and social hub. We're very much looking forward to some normality, where people feel safe, healthy and excited about socialising again.
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"But this wasn't the sole consideration. We were in the fortunate position to be able to redeploy people into other parts of the Lion business where they were needed due to the impact of Omicron.
"Given the reduction in trade due to high case numbers at the time it made sense for us to put out team into areas that would minimise the impact to our customers. This was a great opportunity for our people to upskill and gain exposure to the wider business."
Corry added, "We have a new seasonal brew to celebrate coming back to life: A super limited Brut IPA - a smooth drinking hazy beer, with a strong passionfruit and citrus aroma from late hops."
There is also a new menu, including a smoked beef short rib.
