Whangārei venue The Butter Factory gets new licence with earlier closing times

The Butter Factory manager Sheridan Marris says the venue is all set for a summer rush, now its liquor licence has been renewed. Photo / Denise Piper

A Whangārei venue is cheering the renewal of its liquor licence after police raised concerns about the new owners being inexperienced in such a high-risk environment.

The Butter Factory in the central city Whangārei aims to continue being an entertainment hub, despite new rules meaning it can only stay open until 1am on weekends, instead of its previous 3am closing time.

Manager Sheridan Marris said the venue was happy to work with police and Whangārei District Council to improve the safety of Butter Factory Lane and nearby Laurie Hall Park, as encouraged by the Whangārei District Licensing Committee.

In the first nine months of the year, there were 520 incidents recorded in the lane, park and carpark, including breaches of the liquor ban, urination, vomiting and fighting.

There have also been several serious incidents, including two fights that left people hospitalised in November and a gang-related stabbing in July.

That is why police opposed when new owners Harpreet Kaur and Ishjot Singh applied for a renewal of the on-licence, saying the cousins lacked experience operating in a high-risk nightclub setting.

Kaur has worked as a chef for more than three years and also runs her own cafe, Totara Cafe in Tikipunga. Singh has a graduate diploma in hospitality management and has worked as an assistant restaurant manager for three years.

Council’s District Licensing Committee held a hearing about the application on November 26.

It decided to renew The Butter Factory’s liquor licence for a year but required three certified, experienced managers to be employed, qualified crowd controllers to be retained at current levels or better, and for Saturday and Sunday morning closing times to be 1m instead of 3am.

Marris said the earlier closing times would have some financial impact when they come into play from December 16, but the venue was adapting.

It already has a full schedule of live entertainment for summer, she said.

The Butter Factory plans to adapt to its restricted late-night opening hours. Photo / Denise Piper

The Butter Factory will continue to offer a free late-night sausage sizzle for customers, and eight to 10 security guards on nights with events, Marris said.

Its security guards will also start patrolling the nearby carpark to complement the work of CitySafe security guards, but the venue welcomes increased police patrols, she said.

Police are frequently unable to attend if there is an issue, Marris said, including an incident over the weekend where she was assaulted, hurting her wrist.

“Police [later] turned up in the lane and carpark but no one came to see if we were okay ... We feel if the police were more regularly coming to the carpark and lane, it would be more of a deterrent.”

During the hearing, alcohol harm prevention officer Sergeant Tai Patrick said The Butter Factory was the worst of late-night premises to come to police’s attention, due to a strong gang presence and people loitering in nearby Laurie Hall Park.

But when asked to provide data about recent compliance checks, liquor licence breaches or alcohol ban infringement notices, he was unable to provide any details.

The committee pondered whether more lighting was needed in the park, and if police needed to start issuing infringements to those who breach the liquor ban instead of just issuing warnings.

It encouraged The Butter Factory to work with police and other agencies to develop a strategy to improve the good order of the park.

Marris said increased police patrols, better lighting, public toilets and a late-night bus would help with many of the problems.

Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.