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Otago Daily Times
08-07-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Port Chalmers pub licence opposed over ‘serious' concerns
An on-licence and off-licence renewal application for Mackies Hotel, in Port Chalmers, has been opposed by a licensing inspector and the medical officer of health delegate. PHOTO: GERARD O'BRIEN A Dunedin tavern has come under fire for "serious compliance concerns" after trying to sidestep alcohol laws by outsourcing food to nearby eateries. An on-licence and off-licence renewal application for Mackies Hotel, in Port Chalmers, has been opposed by a licensing inspector and the medical officer of health delegate. The applicant company, Sefton Holdings Ltd, had operated the tavern for about the past 40 years, a report to Dunedin's district licensing committee said. As well as a bar, accommodation and a separate gaming machine area, a small bottle store was located within the premises. In the completed renewal application form submitted to the Dunedin City Council, Mackies Hotel owner and operator Wayne Sefton said the premises were "surrounded by eating establishments". This was reiterated in another document submitted listing 10 Port Chalmers restaurants, supermarkets and cafes. "In order to comply with our liquor licence we must have food available at all times during our licensed hours," it read. "As we are surrounded by food outlets, here is a list and phone numbers for them all (within 75m). "You are welcome to ring and order from any of these and bring it back here to eat in comfort." Salt and pepper, serviettes, tomato sauce and knives and forks would be offered free of charge. Microwave food was also available from the freezer, Mr Sefton said. Medical officer of health delegate Aaron Whipp said he opposed the application due to "serious compliance concerns" that he and the inspector observed during a site inspection in mid-April. That included "no food ... available for purchase or consumption on the premises" and the tavern's duty manager not being present on-site during trading hours. Water, while available, was "not actively promoted". "These are clear breaches of licence conditions and raise significant concerns about the operation of the premises." The absence of a duty manager — who was legally required to always be on duty when alcohol was being sold or supplied — indicated a "serious failure of management and supervision" and increased the risk of alcohol sales to intoxicated people or minors, Mr Whipp said. In her report, council chief licensing inspector Tanya Morrison said a staff member present, when asked about the available food options, "could not locate a menu within the bar, nor could advise of three substantial food options available on-site". "Due to the lack of manager on-site and lack of advertised food options, this brings into question the suitability of the applicant and the object of the [Sale and Supply of Alcohol] Act." Fire and Emergency New Zealand also noted there had not been a trial evacuation completed at the premises in two years. Mr Sefton did not respond to a request for comment before deadline. But a lawyer who contacted the Otago Daily Times said the matters raised in opposition to the application would be addressed at an upcoming hearing. The application form also asked applicants to specify how staff were trained to ensure compliance with liquor laws. "Long-serving staff were trained years ago and only get better over the years," Mr Sefton answered. A hearing has been scheduled for Thursday.
Otago Daily Times
07-07-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Licence opposed over ‘serious' concerns
A Dunedin tavern has come under fire for "serious compliance concerns" after trying to sidestep alcohol laws by outsourcing food to nearby eateries. An on-licence and off-licence renewal application for Mackies Hotel, in Port Chalmers, has been opposed by a licensing inspector and the medical officer of health delegate. The applicant company, Sefton Holdings Ltd, had operated the tavern for about the past 40 years, a report to Dunedin's district licensing committee said. As well as a bar, accommodation and a separate gaming machine area, a small bottle store was located within the premises. In the completed renewal application form submitted to the Dunedin City Council, Mackies Hotel owner and operator Wayne Sefton said the premises were "surrounded by eating establishments". This was reiterated in another document submitted listing 10 Port Chalmers restaurants, supermarkets and cafes. "In order to comply with our liquor licence we must have food available at all times during our licensed hours," it read. "As we are surrounded by food outlets, here is a list and phone numbers for them all (within 75m). "You are welcome to ring and order from any of these and bring it back here to eat in comfort." Salt and pepper, serviettes, tomato sauce and knives and forks would be offered free of charge. Microwave food was also available from the freezer, Mr Sefton said. Medical officer of health delegate Aaron Whipp said he opposed the application due to "serious compliance concerns" that he and the inspector observed during a site inspection in mid-April. That included "no food ... available for purchase or consumption on the premises" and the tavern's duty manager not being present on-site during trading hours. Water, while available, was "not actively promoted". "These are clear breaches of licence conditions and raise significant concerns about the operation of the premises." The absence of a duty manager — who was legally required to always be on duty when alcohol was being sold or supplied — indicated a "serious failure of management and supervision" and increased the risk of alcohol sales to intoxicated people or minors, Mr Whipp said. In her report, council chief licensing inspector Tanya Morrison said a staff member present, when asked about the available food options, "could not locate a menu within the bar, nor could advise of three substantial food options available on-site". "Due to the lack of manager on-site and lack of advertised food options, this brings into question the suitability of the applicant and the object of the [Sale and Supply of Alcohol] Act." Fire and Emergency New Zealand business services co-ordinator Nikki White also noted there had not been a trial evacuation completed at the premises in two years. Mr Sefton did not respond to a request for comment before deadline. But a lawyer who contacted the Otago Daily Times said the matters raised in opposition to the application would be addressed at an upcoming hearing. The application form also asked applicants to specify how staff were trained to ensure compliance with liquor laws. "Long-serving staff were trained years ago and only get better over the years," Mr Sefton answered. A hearing has been scheduled for Thursday.
Otago Daily Times
05-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Last call for tavern after licence lost
South Dunedin's St Kilda Tavern could soon serve its last drinks after being stripped of its liquor licence due to concerns about its Auckland-based owner. That was despite Dunedin's district licensing committee saying there was "no evidence" to support concerns raised by police about the links between the tavern's current and former owners. The tavern's on-licence and off-licence renewal application was opposed by police, the medical officer of health and a licensing inspector. In its decision, committee secretary Kevin Mechen said they visited the premises twice in the week leading up to a reconvened hearing last month. On both occasions, a committee member was told there was no food available, and it appeared no food had been prepared at the premises since the beginning of the year. The on-site manager had not maintained the food provision to the standard required by law, and it appeared Mr Singh, while in Dunedin, "has made no effort to inspect the premises for even the basic requirement of his licence," Mr Mechen said. "When we weigh up the evidence, the committee is not confident the premises is being operated properly and that the applicant, despite undertaking to come to Dunedin for 10 days per month, does not have processes in place to ensure the premises will meet its statutory obligations. "The application is therefore declined." The applicant could not trade beyond next Wednesday and had been given until then to formally close the business, he said. A staff member who identified themselves as a duty manager declined to speak to the Otago Daily Times on the record yesterday. Efforts to reach Kilda Hospitality Ltd director Darshpreet Singh for comment yesterday were unsuccessful. The premises was first opened in 1873, had been continuously licensed since opening as a hotel and had been a tavern since 1970, a report to the committee said. Its potential closure comes after the Carisbrook Hotel ceased trading in June 2023, as well as the forced closure of Mitchells Tavern the same month after it was gutted in a fire. Committee chairman Colin Weatherall said yesterday it was "certainly not a regular occurrence" that an application for a licensed premises as established as the St Kilda Tavern was declined. "It's a bit unusual. "The committee is very conscious of the community it serves, but the application in its own right failed to meet the criteria of the [Sale and Supply of Alcohol] Act in more ways than one." Ownership of the tavern had reverted to the landlord, who had indicated they may try to sell the establishment as a going concern, Mr Weatherall said. The committee heard at the hearing in February Mr Singh lived in Auckland at present and planned to come to Dunedin once or twice a month for two or three-day visits at a time. He later made a commitment to be at the premises for at least 10 days in every month for the first year of business. Much of police's evidence was subject to a non-publication order and part of the hearing was excluded to the public. The majority of this evidence related to the previous owner and not the applicant, Mr Mechen said. It was suggested the applicant was a friend of the previous owner and there was a business connection between the two, but "no evidence was produced to support this assertion."
