Council asked to better enforce busking rules
BUSKERS add vibrance to Dunedin’s city centre, but the activity needs better policing, an Albion Lane cafe owner says.
Jayde Regassa, owner of Albion cafe, addressed the Dunedin City Council’s regulatory subcommittee during a hearing on its proposed trading in public places bylaw yesterday.
‘‘If you’re going to have rules, they need to be enforced for the [Albion Lane] business owners’ sanity’’, she said.
The bylaw proposes rental share schemes, commercial use of footpaths, street fundraising, street performing and footpath art be regulated, in addition to the mobile traders and temporary stalls already covered by the existing bylaw.
Ms Regassa said she had owned the cafe for five years, and in that time had rung the council several times due to problems with buskers outside the cafe.
Problems included buskers parking outside the cafe door, swearing, asking customers for money, and playing for hours or playing too loudly.
‘‘A year ago a lady [busker] was verbally abusing one of my customers. Her busking permit was revoked.
‘‘She was trespassed from the lane for a year but the council said if she showed up they would have to ring police as she wasn’t a council problem.’’
People were entitled to busk, but further enforcement from the council under the proposed bylaw would be appreciated, she said.
‘‘I don’t give out the [busking] permits so I shouldn’t have to ask them to leave or quieten down if they’re being noisy.
‘‘I understand the alley has incredible acoustics, but if I can hear their music over my coffee grinder, it’s not really background noise.’’
Other submitters at the proposed bylaw hearing included representatives from the disability sector mainly addressing the use of escooters on footpaths.
CCS Disability Action access coordinator Mary O’Brien said it was strongly against the use of escooters on footpaths, and said a proposed code of practice included in the bylaw ‘‘does not have any teeth’’.
‘‘Allowing escooters to use footpaths will increase instance of pedestrian crashes,’’ she said.
Dunedin disability advocates John Marrable and Simon Fogarty echoed her sentiments, and said other issues on footpaths included allowing signage on footpaths and the obstruction caused by signage, cafe tables and chairs.
Mr Fogarty, who is blind, said there was not any policing of current regulations around what could be on footpaths and where, and said he would like to see enforcement of rules on footpaths.
Council community services general manager Simon Pickford said the proposed bylaw, if implemented, would give council staff the power to act on issues like problematic buskers and management of escooters.
Representatives from the Southern District Health Board and the Cancer Society spoke in support of promoting smokefree outdoor dining.
The council’s regulatory subcommittee will hear from further submitters today, before making its recommendations on the proposed bylaw to the full council.