BYO battle makes hall a reluctant pub
A rural Auckland hall has had no option but to turn itself into a unwanted ‘‘pub’’.
Its previous bring-your-own alcohol policy had never been a problem, Makarau Hall Society chairman Allan Cole said.
But five days before its BYO dance night on May 27, six weeks of ‘‘frustrations’’ began.
The police informed the hall that hosting a BYO event would breach the law. Cole said he couldn’t see why.
‘‘Everyone in rural areas, throughout the country, puts on fundraisers and people bring a couple of beers, a bottle of wine and sit at a table,’’ he said.
‘‘That’s the way it’s been done. It’s always been like that. How can this now all of a sudden hit us?’’
A police spokeswoman said police had not ‘‘banned’’ a BYO event but informed the hall that it needed a special licence.
‘‘If alcohol is sold, supplied or consumed at the venue without a special licence, it is considered a breach of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012.’’
Cole said there was no option but to postpone the event and to apply to Auckland Council for a special licence to sell and supply alcohol. But ‘‘we’re not a pub’’, he said. ‘‘Once it gets out that there’s alcohol on the premises, or a pub operating in the area, then we’re going to have all sorts of people we don’t want in here.’’
He also couldn’t understand how or why the police had been involved.
‘‘We’re not partying, or throwing it open to the public, but it’s going to be seen in some people’s eyes as a pub.’’
He said the hall society was ’’just fed up’’ and couldn’t see the point of trying any more.
Auckland Council’s website said it couldn’t issue a licence for BYO events, but a licence was required if the organisers were charging an entry fee or collecting donations where alcohol was being supplied for free. The hall’s recent event was open to the public to buy tickets.
Cole said the ‘‘grey area’’ in the law could cause huge frustration for future events and other rural communities.