Greerton retailers' battle against beggars reaches 'drastic' point

St Peter's Rev Simon McLeay says that, despite the church's support for homeless over the years, the city should not let the begging continue. Photo / John Borren

Abusive beggars in Greerton have been blamed for shops closing in the area and a drastic downturn in business.

Retailers revealed the extent of the problems caused by beggars while making presentations to the Tauranga City Council's Community and Culture Committee yesterday. Their submissions were among 139 to the draft Street Use and Public Places Bylaw 2018, a bylaw that seeks to enforce tighter restrictions on rough sleepers and beggars.

Greerton Village Community Association Sally Benning said some businesses had shut down and "several retailers are not looking at renewing their leases".

"People are just tired of dealing with the beggars, tired of calling the police. They are just really tired."

Benning said the begging issue was 20 times worse than when she began in the role a few years ago. The proposed bylaw would go some way to help alleviate this, she said.

"We are not proposing to banish them from society but we do need to protect our retailers and their businesses and their livelihoods. We know for a fact it has had a drastic effect on their ability to operate."

Benning said some people no longer shopped in Greerton "because of beggars who become aggressive or abusive when someone says no".

"We've seen retailers verbally abused, one's had a bucket of water thrown over them, damage to their shops and physical assault."

Benning said she applauded initiatives aimed at helping homeless but "we believe we need more action now in the short term before more businesses close in Greerton".

Tauranga Menswear's Matthew Manninen said he has been told by beggars "I'm going to knock your block off" and police were called "quite often".

Tauranga Menswear's Matthew Manninen says the begging problem in Greerton has only got worse. Photo / John Borren

"From there, things escalated to this year where there was a brawl where an elderly gentleman was trying to protect a security guard. That was the tipping point for a lot of us in Greerton."

Manninen said he would prefer not to have the bylaw but "I'm personally scared for my staff".

Greerton Copy Man's Dan Hughes said beggars had become damaging to "all of our businesses in Greerton" which were "cutting back, losing staff members".

"Every single person I've spoken to has had a dramatic downturn in business," he said.

Hughes implored the council to adopt the proposed bylaw.

"If there's a law, there's an obligation on both sides of what you can and can't do."

Fellow retailer Deborah Berry said the beggars made Greerton an "unpleasant place to be".

"I don't want us to accept that it's just part of living in a big town," she said.

Berry said she was concerned at the potential backlash from people who might think retailers were unempathetic by wanting the bylaw "but we need to control the situation".

Greerton Village Community Association chairman Alan Paterson said something needed to be done to stop beggars bullying elderly, and others, for medication and money.

Paterson said he had personally seen "scammers" arrive in a van and target "some of our most vulnerable". He said he had also seen beggars make monetary exchanges for "little white bags", sleep on public benches and zone out "high as kites".

"I've personally, more than once, shovelled up human faeces from the entrances to shop fronts when there are public facilities only a few metres away."

Tauranga Farmer's Market committee chairwoman Lyn Paul said beggars had now begun targeting their shoppers while operating at Tauranga Primary School.

St Peter's in the City Church's Rev Simon McLeay said the begging issue in Tauranga had become a fairly new phenomenon which was destructive and harmful.

Beggars are causing major strife for retailers in Greerton. Photo / File

Former homeless woman's desperate plea for a female shelter

A woman who used to sleep on the beach because she had nowhere else to go passionately told theTauranga City Council why a women's shelter is desperately needed.

The woman, only known as Sasha, addressed councillors during submissions at yesterday's Community and Culture Committee meeting.

She came to Tauranga after fleeing an abusive relationship in Christchurch.

"I didn't feel safe in my home in Christchurch because he had connections with not very nice people," she said.

"I went to Work and Income and said I needed to fly from Christchurch to Tauranga ... I had a black eye and everything.

"Then I experienced quite a bit of hardship and I was sleeping on a beach, the one between Bayfair and Papamoa. The police were called because I was ... unwell."

Sasha tried to find shelter at various backpackers', "and I will never forget their attitude".

"None of them would take me because I was on a benefit."

Eventually, Sasha has found help and a home in Gate Pa.

"I'm really enjoying my life now. I"m going to be studying social work."

Sasha spoke with passion about the need for a women's shelter.

"Honestly, it's really disgusting that there's a Tauranga Men's Shelter and nothing for women. Now I understand you can't have men and women mix but the women are far more at risk living on the street then the guys are. It is very, very, very dangerous out there for women."

There are currently at least 15 known homeless women sleeping rough around Tauranga streets. Community advocates believe there are likely to be more not known about because homeless women were often "hidden".

Community Angels collective's Angela Wallace presented the council with a Powerpoint display illustrating the need for a women's shelter. She spoke of her concern the proposed bylaw on begging and rough sleepers would have on women being forced to sleep away from sheltered, light, "safer" store entrances.

Councillor Leanne Brown said there was a meeting expected later that day to discuss the lack of a women's shelter.

Both Sasha's and Wallace's submissions received heavy applause.

Milo Nights volunteer Pip Brook, human rights advocate Tristan Hancock, Milo Nights organiser Tracey Carlton and The People's Project's Simone Cuers also spoke on opposition to the proposed bylaw.

What is the proposed bylaw?

The proposed Street Use and Public Places Bylaw 2018 reads: No person shall beg in a public place in a manner that is likely to cause intimidation, harassment, alarm or distress to any reasonable person. The bylaw includes that no person shall beg within 5m of a retail or hospitality premises, and no person shall rough sleep within 5m of a retail or hospitality premises.
Source - Tauranga City Council