Police outside the scene of the shooting in Fort St earlier this month. Photo / Hayden Woodward
Police outside the scene of the shooting in Fort St earlier this month. Photo / Hayden Woodward
City centre residents want a police station returned to downtown Auckland following a shooting that left three people seriously injured earlier this month.
Only metres away from the former downtown police station in Fort St that closed under the National government in 2013, three people were rushed to hospital after being shot near a kebab shop at about 2am on March 5.
Among the victims was Poull Andersen, the 33-year-old brother of radio host Jay-Jay Feeney who had 22 steel pellets surgically removed from his upper torso.
An 18-year-old man has been arrested and charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
The shooting, a spate of recent assaults, many alcohol-fuelled, are concerning residents who live in apartments in and around Queen St and Karangahape Rd, says the Auckland City Centre Residents' Group.
Auckland's downtown police station closed in 2013. Photo / Richard Robinson
The group wants to see the return of a permanently manned city centre police station and more enforcement to combat anti-social behaviour," says a spokesman for the group, Antony Phillips.
He said since the central police station on Mayoral Drive moved further out of the city to Freemans Bay that had left the most densely populated residential area in the country without a physical police presence.
Currently, about 45,000 people live in the central city. Before Covid there were about 65,000 residents with the difference being an exodus of students.
Phillips said at the time the station closed there were fears crime in the area would increase and those fears had been realised with city residents experiencing a growing swelling of issues over time, including Covid-19 and the return of 501 deportees from Australia.
The group's concerns mirror Crime in the City, a Herald series of articles in August last year that found a sharp rise in violent crime since the first Covid lockdown in 2020. Police said it's not uncommon most weekends for people to end up in hospital.
New Zealand Police Auckland Central Area Commander Inspector Gary Davey. Photo / Mike Scott
"We would have probably two or three serious assaults a weekend, if not more," Auckland Central area commander at the time Inspector Gary Davey told the Herald last August.
In a statement this evening, Inspector Vaughn Graham, relieving Auckland Central area commander, signalled the police have no plans to reopen a police station on his beat.
He said the police acknowledge central city residents' concerns surrounding anti-social behaviour in the CBD, saying the police have and will continue to have a visible presence on foot and by vehicle, particularly on busy nights, such as Friday and Saturday.
"Together with other responsible agencies, Police are focused on ensuring the CBD is a safe place to live, work and visit. We are also working to help prevent alcoho-related disorder and crime," said Graham, saying issues causing concern can be complex and involve a number of agencies.
He said police cannot be everywhere at once and "we do rely on our communities to report offending to us".
However, Phillips, who lives and works in Queen St, was firmly of the view the physical presence of a manned downtown police station will address more anti-social behaviour.
The police do a good job but they are mostly reactive, not proactive, in preventing crime. We need more police on the beat again and more resources focused on the city centre, including council enforcement, he said.
"There are also too many alcohol retail outlets located in such a densely populated area, particularly late night liquor stores selling cut-price alcohol," he said.
The late night sale of liquor in the central city has been a controversial issue with Davey saying the area becomes less safe after 2am.
If Auckland mayor Phil Goff had his way, bars and nightclubs in the CBD would close as early as 1am and liquor stores and supermarkets would stop selling booze at 9pm.
The liquor and hospitality industry oppose earlier closing, saying while there is some harm, most people are responsible drinkers and changing hours won't stop those who do cause trouble.
Mayor Phil Goff wants liquor stores to close at 9pm in the central city. Photo / File
Phillips said the group supports licensed restaurants and bars which responsibly sell alcohol in a congenial environment, but what is needed is better enforcement of alcohol bans and a reduction in the number of cut-price liquor stores.
Heart of the City chief executive Viv Beck said a permanent station in downtown is warranted and in the interim, the business association has been asking for a pop-up police station in the area to help get on top of issues.
"Whilst there is a good response from our local police when issues arise, we need a commitment of more permanent resourcing," said Beck, saying there is an urgent need for a more proactive approach to addressing safety issues in the city centre that have increased through the pandemic.
