Lack of transport options at night was one of the issues raised. Video / Alex Cairns
“Dead” dance floors, expensive transport and a lack of venue choices.
That’s how someyoung adults describe Tauranga city centre’s nightlife.
They shared their views with the Bay of Plenty Times as the city imposed new rules to shut down clubs and bars in downtown Tauranga at 2am, an hour earlier than the previous 3am closing time, to reduce alcohol-related harm.
Some university students said they and their peers enjoyed Mount Maunganui’s nightlife for the first part of the night then, when the bars closed at 1am, they would go to Tauranga until its 3am closing time. A closing time of 2am meant many would choose to skip Tauranga, they told the Bay of Plenty Times.
Tauranga City Council regulatory and compliance general manager Sarah Omundsen said while many people consumed alcohol responsibly, harm caused by excessive or inappropriate alcohol consumption could have serious negative impacts on communities.
Council regulatory and compliance general manager Sarah Omundsen. Photo / Alex Cairns
The current one-way door system, which meant no new patrons could enter a premises after 2am, was also removed as it was no longer needed.
Council city development and partnerships general manager Gareth Wallis said the council was working hard to transform the city into a place where people of all ages could meet and spend time together.
“Over $1.5 billion worth of private and public investment will be committed over the next few years and the transformation of our city centre is progressing at pace,” Wallis said.
A spokesperson for the University of Waikato, which opened its Tauranga campus in 2019, said the university was working with the council to play an active part in efforts to revitalise the city centre.
What it’s like to party in Tauranga
A student who moved from Whitianga to study at the University of Waikato’s Tauranga campus and live in the Halls of Residence said no one wanted to go out with expensive transport and “pubs full of old people”.
With the student budget not covering much more than the Uber rides, 19-year-old Jenna Durran-Wolff said it was common for people to drink so much before they headed into town that they were “vomiting” before they left and “barely able to get in”.
Durran-Wolff said she chose not to go to Tauranga when the Mount Maunganui bars closed and she expected others would follow suit.
“Because it closes at 1am in the Mount, a lot of people go to Havana [in Tauranga] to finish the night so I think they will lose a lot of business because people won’t be bothered going there anymore,” Durran-Wolff said.
Fellow student Sophie Ruddell was a regular at nightclubs last year but said she stopped going when some bars increased their door charges.
Ruddell said with only a handful of popular clubs, some of which barred students under 20 years old, options were limited.
Students said expensive Uber prices and entrance fees made the clubbing experience unaffordable.
She said the dance floors at local clubs were often “dead” on Friday nights.
“It’s just not worth it for what you’re getting,” she said.
Veren Villegas, a Tauranga local, said clubbing in his hometown was “honestly pretty dead” and he rarely went out, saving his nights out for when he was in Auckland with friends.
“It’s also really hard given Tauranga’s layout because everything is far away from each other so it’s hard to get from one place to another,” Villegas said.
Franz Grutzmacher and his friends only went clubbing when they had a sober driver to give them rides between places because Uber prices were, in his view, “unattractive”.
The Pyes Pa resident said he would usually spend about $100 on a night out – roughly $60 on transport and $40 on drinks.
Franz Grutzmacher, a University of Waikato student, graduated with a Bachelor of Business last year in Tauranga. Photo / Alex Cairns
“If you were living close by or in the halls then it would be fine because it’s walking distance but I feel like most young people still live with their parents and that’s usually in the more suburban areas,” Grutzmacher said.
“The energy in Auckland is so much better because there’s a lot more going on and more people around you doing the same thing you’re doing.”
Roseline Thetty lived in the university’s Halls of Residence and while she was happy to have chosen Tauranga for her course, she feels like she missed out on the “student life”.
In her opinion, the bars and clubs lacked an “identity” as they played music that would appeal to a range of ages.
Roseline Thetty, University of Waikato student. Photo / Alex Cairns
As a fourth-year student, she did not go clubbing as often as when she started university and said she went solely to the CBD clubs now because they were within walking distance.
While going before midnight meant a more affordable entry fee, she said there was “nothing really happening” before the rush of people came from the Mount.
“I don’t know if it’s the best idea to close it so early.”
A Havana spokesperson said the club would “definitely see trade going” from the earlier closing time.
