Police oppose rail liquor store

Opposition is mounting to a discount liquor store wanting to open next to the Newmarket Railway Station, which is used by hundreds of secondary school students.

An application for an off-licence to trade as Liquor Mate from 9am to 11.30pm daily has been made to the Auckland District Licensing Agency.

The application of Min Sung Kim and Ji Sun Chang for the Station Square store was first advertised on August 25 and the period for public comment closes today.

The prospect has drawn fire from the Newmarket Business Association and the police.

"The main concerns are public good and safety ... the impact that it might have on teenagers using the area," said the officer-in-charge of Newmarket police, Senior Sergeant Wendy Spiller. "Newmarket is a busy transport hub with 10,000 teenagers coming in to the area to attend the schools daily and we don't want them coming off the train and going into the discount liquor store."

Ms Spiller said Newmarket was ably serviced by six off-licences.

The police were concerned about the shop being open all day facing on to Station Square. It would be an isolated area, with the railway on one side and apartment blocks on the other, and attractive to gatherings of drinkers.

"Being next to the railway line, it's an accident waiting to happen."

Newmarket Business Association chief executive Cameron Brewer said Liquor Mate would also spill out onto the new railway station, which is to open on January 18. This was contrary to the Auckland City Council's draft liquor licensing policy.

"The draft policy suggests that off-licences should not be within 100m of a city council-owned space, which Station Square is," said Mr Brewer. "We intend fighting this as hard as we can."

Mayor John Banks had assured him of support, he said.

Last month, a protest by the Karangahape Rd Business Association resulted in a new bottle store's trading hours being limited to Sunday to Wednesday between 10am and 6pm and Thursday to Saturday 10am to 9pm.

The applicant, Kam Lachhani, said yesterday that he had until Monday to decide whether to appeal the trading hours which compare to midnight closing for other stores in the CBD.