Booze zones blasted
The city’s alcohol-free zones are under review following a NSW Police application to increase by half the number of existing zones.
City of Sydney councillors on Monday labelled the zones ineffective and pointed to last month’s Mardi Gras parade night as evidence of this.
NSW Assistant Police Commissioner Cath Burn will be summoned to appear at next week’s council meeting to explain why the police want a further 23 alchol-free zones on top of the current 50.
The request was met with scepticism by the councillors who demanded proof of their effectiveness before allowing the new measures.
Cr Chris Harris went so far as to deny his support for community consultations on the proposed zones.
I’ve never seen one knocked back, so I won’t support the consultation because they just get rubber-stamped, he said.
The legislation says that the reasons for supporting this must be included, but we have never ever been presented with this evidence.
A City of Sydney staffer interjected with assurances that a report on the effectiveness of temporary zones for New Years’ Eve would be provided.
Cr Shayne Mallard called it a typical police response.
[NSW Police Commissioner] Andrew Scipione has been talking about the problems in Hyde Park after Mardi Gras, but this is a blunt instrument for dealing with that problem and it is broadly blunt without targeting or addressing the real problems, he said.
Mallard also called for further discussion about the trading hours of bottleshops.
Cr John McInerney said a serious conversation was needed about the the impact of accompanying bottleshops when 24-hour licences were granted to pubs and clubs.
The chorus of disapproval continued with Greens councillor Irene Doutney calling the alcohol-free zones inequitable and Cr Meredith Burgmann denouncing them as a class-based and blunt approach to a very complex problem.
This left Lord Mayor Clover Moore as the lone voice defending the proposed new alcohol-free zones.
The recommendations have come from Catherine Burn, who has a great sense of fairness, she said.
I don’t think she will be using this to target street drinkers.
This is about trying to give police some sort of leverage to deal with an alcohol-dominated environment.
info: For more information and maps of the city’s existing and proposed AFZs visit cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au.
HGD..It’s so easy to take anonymous cheap shots from the sidelines at Clover…how about you step up and propose an alternative who would do a better job….come on who do you propose?…tell us the name of a politician you would prefer in her position and the party they represent…put up or shut up!
It was happening back in 1973 when I was a mere 17 year old boy.
When I left Cappricios I had to make a run for the taxi.
Call me a reminiscent old fool but in those days it may have been a-bit dangerous for gays but boy did we had heaps of fun.
The more things change etc. I recall being involved in campaigns to do something about violent, homophobic drunks in Oxford St back in 1990. And I’m sure there were problems way before then.
As long as you have a culture of virtually unrestricted boozing combined with anti-gay bigotry of the boozers you’ll get homophobic violence. You can’t pin the problem on any one politician for this state of affairs.
Why does every body rely too much on Politicians? Clover Moore has done the best she can. She cant hold everybodys hand can she? Clover is not responsible for the decline of Oxford St.
HGD (Whatever that stands for).
The way you”re crapping on here I might as well blame Clover for last weekends migraine.
Clover Moore has done more for homosexual people than any other polly sitting on the red leather in Parliament House.
I think the real issue for you HGD is you just don’t like a good looking brunette women.
I think we should put a bronze sculpture of Clover Moore on every intersection on Oxford Street ?
HGD – ‘but I’m happy to charge her with the last two decades of decay if you’d prefer Chris.’
Funny that…as i remember 1988 and through the 90’s were the glory days of Oxford st!!!!!
HGD….referencing Clover Moore’s position of MP for Sydney
can you tell us what State responsibilities have had influence over the demise of Oxford St …policing springs to mind…can you tell us what the others are?
Policing is a State Government responsibility. Most of us would love it if Clover WAS the State government instead of the inept clowns running this State into the ground.
“HGD-¦..why don’t you blame Clover for the world economic crisis and climate change as well!!!!”:
That would be silly Chris. Her ego is already out of control. Blaming her for the Global Financial Crisis would just encourage her.
Clover has been the MP for Bligh/Sydney (which includes Oxford St) since 1988 I was doing her a favour cutting her responsibility down to 10 years but I’m happy to charge her with the last two decades of decay if you’d prefer Chris.
HGD…..why don’t you blame Clover for the world economic crisis and climate change as well!!!!
so “Clover Moore has presided over the continuous degradation of the Surry Hills/Darlinghurst environment over the last ten years”
funny about that since she has only been Lord Mayor for the last 4 years…
“And these 600 gang members do not drink alcohol.”
I think you’ll find that it’s devout muslims who don’t drink alcohol. MBM boys are pretty much cultural – rather than religious – muslims. Drinking, drugging and fucking among these guys is pretty much the norm – in fact it’s lucrative business in many instances.
Alcohol-free zones have been around forever in the inner East and in my experience they’ve never been systematically enforced – apart from the days when the Beauchamp did a Sunday beer bust and the cops could bust poofs arses for spilling out onto the footpath without fear of them hitting back.
Remember George Street on NYE? People drinking everywhere in the supposed just-declared alcohol-free zone and no worries as far as the police were concerned.
Clover Moore has presided over the continuous degradation of the Surry Hills/Darlinghurst environment over the last ten years, yet poofs and dykes continue to lick her boots in pathetic, craven gratitude for being allowed to be the passive, electoral lobby fodder that continues to re-elect her in pursuit of her greater glory.
We probably deserve her.
I like the way Mallard craps on about alcohol-free zones “not…addressing the real problems.”
They’re not meant to address “the real problems” if Mallard means the whole of societies drinking woes. They’re meant to cut down on anti-social and dangerous behaviour caused by intoxication in public areas. And they’re meant to be enforced. I bet the no-parking zones around Oxford St are enforced (despite not addressing the “real problems” of illegal parking).
I fail to see how the zones are “inequitable”. Are some people being fined and not others? If so, penalise everyone who breaks the law. What really is “inequitable” is having wasted and potentially violent people dominating public places.
I live in a signposted ‘Nuclear Free Zone’. I hope someone remembered to tell any potential detonators of nuclear devices!
Another example of public relations policing instead of actually doing THE job.
Why would they oppose this? We have a serious problem in this city and the less alcohol on the street the better. The alcohol free zones seem to be a relatively new thing so it may take time for them to become effective. My understanding is Oxford Street is NOT an alcohol free zone. How ridiculous! More than any other street it needs a restriction like this to help discourage the hoardes of drunk teenagers from the suburbs
The biggest problem for the police during & after the parade were the “new 600 member Bikie Gang M.B.M. (Muslim Brotherhood Movement)” who “embarked upon a campaign of random assaults on men who crossed their path… during the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras” http://www.smh.com.au/national/the-rise-and-rise-of-new-gangs-20090328-9eri.html
And these 600 gang members do not drink alcohol. Yes, you heard it, the people actually causing the main trouble for police DO NOT DRINK ALCOHOL.
So the police blaming the trouble on alcohol are possibly using this as a decoy to shy away from the real problems of facing Bikie Gangs & thier straight nightclubs. Instead, they want to ban alcohol, and put a Lockout ban on gay venues such as Stonewall (instead of locking out the straight clubs like Havannah who happily operate without any lock out). The police need to be honest & deal with the actual trouble makers & stop punishing the gay community as a publicity decoy. Have a good read of the full SMH article link above.
Wish this was an OLIVER FREE ZONE!!!!!!!!!!!! YAWN……..
Should be called “Alcohol and Drug free zones” and It should be in force.
Alcohol-free zones – how terrible! Soon you won’t be able to piss or spew on the footpath or throw a punch at bystanders anywhere without copping a fine.