Two Wellington bars prominently located on the capital’s party strip have been forced to close their doors, with the owner blaming opposition to liquor licensing as the “nail in the coffin”.
SugarWoods Limited, which operated Rubix Bar and SugarWoods Bar in Courtenay Place, was placed into liquidation this month.
Operator Jose Ubiaga told the Herald the bars simply weren’t making any money, and said while the struggling economy and dire state of Courtenay Place didn’t help, he believes local authorities contesting alcohol licence applications are responsible.
SugarWoods was at the former site of The Establishment bar, which closed in early 2022 after a failed bid to renew its licence. At the time it was labelled one of the highest-risk licensed premises in the city.
Ubiaga purchased the infamous venue to develop it into SugarWoods in an attempt to clean up its reputation.
SugarWoods opened in December, with the upstairs section and balcony opened in only January, but Ubiaga says a restriction meaning he had to close at “peak times” made it unprofitable.
Getting the licence approved took nine months due to opposition from police, Wellington City Council licensing inspectors, and the Medical Officer of Health. There was no public opposition to the licence at the time.
Ubiaga said fighting the opposition at the District Licensing Committee (DLC) cost $30,000 in legal fees, adding to his debt to renovate the premises.
“They would have rather seen a derelict building than someone come in and invest $1m to revitalise that corner,” he said.
He believes police are “working really hard to kill Courtenay Place” by opposing licences in an effort to curb alcohol-related harm.
Although eventually approved, Ubiaga said the committee imposed a “ludicrous” restriction of having to close at 2am on Friday and Saturday night that he feels was only implemented to give opposing agencies a “small win” at the hearing, but ended up being the “nail in the coffin” for the business.
“If I had a 4am licence I probably would’ve been able to struggle through”, Ubiaga said, claiming it would’ve increased revenue by $3000 to $10,000 a week.
“I feel that the agencies have an agenda to try and close Courtenay Place down to 2am, they won’t admit that, but they are working really hard to force a lot of bars to close at 2am or even close them down altogether,” he said.
Ubiaga also owns popular Courtenay Place bars The Residence and Dakota, and is gearing up for another battle at the DLC, with The Residence’s licence coming up for renewal and already facing opposition from police.
He said he didn’t think bars were the problem, instead blaming a combination of factors including patrons pre-loading at home before a night on the town, and emergency housing tenants and people experiencing homelessness in Courtenay Place that he says creates an unsafe environment.
Operating in Courtenay Place for more than 20 years, he says he’s never seen such a difficult time economically.
“Courtenay Place used to be an asset for Wellington and it’s an asset the council do not need to pay for, all they need to do is provide support and we could have the best entertainment precinct in the country.”
Last year Greig Wilson, who owns Mexican-themed bar Saint Diablo in Courtenay Place, told the Herald agencies were “ganging up” to stop new bars opening along the city’s party strip, and that their actions will “kill Courtenay Place”.
He said at the time the agencies opposed the granting of his liquor licence on the basis there had been social issues increasing in that area, but Wilson said new bars were not the problem.
He also blamed emergency housing in central Wellington for the social issues.
Wilson said there were homeless people on the streets who started drinking early in the day.
“They’re not coming into Vinyl bar for a $14 glass of pinot gris, I tell you that.”
Saint Diablo’s licence was eventually approved, with Wilson crediting Mayor Tory Whanau’s involvement in getting agencies to drop their opposition.
A police study into Wellington’s night-time economy released last month focused on alcohol harm in the Courtenay Place precinct and raised concerns with the number of licensed premises in the area.
“The clustering of alcohol outlets including bars and pubs together in small areas is particularly problematic, increasing the risk of late-night crime and violence,” the study says.
It also found 77% of those surveyed on the street had pre-loaded before going out, with slightly under half crediting saving money for the behaviour.
In a statement, Alcohol Harm Prevention Manager Inspector Ian Paulin told the Herald police “seek every opportunity to reduce alcohol harm in our communities”.
Paulin said a “fine lens” was cast over operators by police, and “when there are issues identified, the correct procedure is to include them in the renewal report to the District Licensing Committee”.
Police would not comment on specific operators before the District Licensing Committee, but said “alcohol is a significant driver of demand for police and all emergency responders” in the area.
Regional Clinical Director of Public Health Niki Stefanogiannis said police were responsible for “leading the strategy around licensing in Courtenay Place, supported by licensing inspectors and Health New Zealand”.
“Strong consideration is given to the many social harms arising from the misuse of alcohol and how the licence application contributes to or minimises these harms.” Stefanogiannis said.
“Health NZ’s National Public Health Service has a focus on Pae Ora — the future health of our communities, so that all New Zealanders live longer and have the best possible quality of life. We take that intent seriously and want a vibrant and healthy community, so when it comes to alcohol harm and the prospective risk of alcohol-related harm to our community, we look closely at how we can improve that. We believe businesses that serve our community would also want that outcome.”
Mayor Tory Whanau campaigned on revitalising the Courtenay Place precinct and has previously met with bar owners to hear concerns over the licensing process.
Last year, Whanau told Wellington Mornings with Nick Mills on NewstalkZB that she didn’t think bars were responsible for problems in Courtenay Place.
Whanau said at the time she was unable to influence decisions of the council’s independent licensing officers, but wished it “wasn’t that way” and had promised operators she would advocate for a law change in that area.
When asked about the state of liquor licensing in the street, Whanau said in a statement she’s still “committed to reinvigorating the city centre through a refreshed city safety plan”.
She wouldn’t comment on individual licensing decisions, respecting the statutory independence of licensing officers.
“I know thanks to persistent inflation, lay-offs and a less-than-ideal economic climate, lots of hospo and retail are struggling,” she said.
A Wellington City Council spokesperson said it had ”a statutory duty to minimise alcohol-related harm”.
“While the council, Regional Public Health and police staff can support or oppose licensing applications, ultimately it is the District Licensing Committee that decides whether a licence is issued or not,” the spokesperson said.
The council is now developing a “tri-agency” strategy to reduce offences and levels of harm.
Ethan Manera is a multimedia journalist based in Wellington. He joined NZME in 2023 and is interested in politics, local issues and the public service. Ethan is always on the lookout for a story and can be emailed at ethan.manera@nzme.co.nz or messaged on X (formerly Twitter) @ethanjmanera
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