Mangonui Festival. PICTURE/PETER JACKSON NGE 17Apr12 - DOWN TO THE WATERLINE: Kerikeri band Soundcrew entertaining the masses at Mangonui's inaugural Waterfront Festival on Saturday. Inset: Twelve
We, as a small vineyard, like supporting local festivals by putting in a stall to sell wine. The community enjoy these festivals, as they provide a positive outlet for local produce.
Music, wine and food provides a positive fiesta atmosphere, and people enjoy themselves. But the Far North District Council
want $575 for each stall that is selling alcohol, as there will be so many people attending.
As a magnanimous gesture, we only have to pay $207, but as we will probably see far less than 100 people at our stall, in my opinion we should pay $65, as we have each year in the past.
Each stall has to apply with 14 pages of information to the FNDC at least 20 working days prior to the event. I would suspect that the other stalls like us would not make the $207 for the travel getting to the site and working there all day. This could mean the end of such festivals throughout the Far North.
That will be a real pity, as people do enjoy these functions.
