Zenice Gujarathi: Parāoa Tavern owner on the Whangaparāoa gastropub being denied alcohol licence over noise breaches

A gastropub north of Auckland has lost its right to sell alcohol after renewal applications for both its on and off licences were rejected by a district licensing committee.

The District Licensing Committee released its decision on September 19, declining off and on licence renewals for Parāoa Brewing Company at Whangaparāoa Rd, Stanmore Bay.

Parāoa Tavern owner Zenice Gujarathi joined the Afternoons team to discuss.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:09):
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Speaker 2 (00:16):
We've been talking about the plight of the part of
our brewing company. It has lost its right to sell
alcohol after a drawn out battle over noise complaints from
its neighbors. Joining us on the phone right now is
the owner of the brewing company, Zen Good Girardi, Zen,
very good afternoon to you.

Speaker 3 (00:33):
Good afternoon.

Speaker 2 (00:34):
Hey.

Speaker 4 (00:34):
We're hearing a lot of positive feedback around your bar
coming through on the text machine and phones. Congratulations on that.
Now you've mentioned curfews, soundproofing, and you've got a noise
management plan going on. What do you think the district
Licensing Committee still found your efforts insufficient?

Speaker 3 (00:55):
So be what they have in their decision. What they
have said that we have partly implemented the NMP the
noise management plans, but I think they have got it wrong.
Said was that some of the bands that we have
already booked, we cannot change them. And the ones that

(01:19):
are we are already booking them, they are already part
of the the new noise management plan. So the curfew
that we're talking about eleven some of the bands they
might finish at a quarter past eleven. Most of the
gigs they are finished by eleven thirty anyways. But the

(01:40):
new as but the new plan that we have provided.
In fact, we have most of our bands, we tell
them ten ten thirty and the maximum they can go
is to eleven. Another thing was the noise limits. They
call it up, but it's we already have a sound
technician who is looking after it, and he's in full

(02:02):
control of the sound that we have now. Hence, uh
so it's all under control. But most of the things
that I feel is very the decision seems to be
very excessive and oppressive, to be honest, Well, what.

Speaker 4 (02:19):
Do you what do you say to those residents who
are saying that that the noise is I mean, they've
my claims, disrupted their health and well being even after
your changes. What do you think about that?

Speaker 3 (02:30):
Do you think that's fear?

Speaker 2 (02:32):
What?

Speaker 3 (02:33):
In the in the hearing, I went myself and I
say that we empathize with them. So there is nothing
against those neighbors. One particular house that we're talking about
here is I mean, the neighbors next door or around
the particular objectives are pretty happy. They are our regular patrons,
and yes, we have been working with them. They have

(02:56):
my direct number, they can call me, email me any time,
they can have meetings. They have said it that they
have met me eleven times, but to be honest, they
have only made me once. And we are we haven't
taking mitigating efforts to you know, to make it happen

(03:17):
for them. But they if they think that it's going
to happen overnight, I mean it's a big place, seven
of the meters we're talking about, and just imagine having
changes soundproofing the old place which we have been working on.
I have spent considerable amount of money already tens of
thousands of dollars so far, and we are committed to

(03:40):
spend more money on it. But it's it's it's a
work in progress. And also the sound part of it,
it's not that it's more of a trial and error.
It takes time. Hence the NMPB say that it's a
trial and error. It's it's it's partly implemented and these

(04:01):
things attuniation of sound and everything will take time. It's
not going to happen overnight. And that's what I think
the decision. I think that is gone wrong.

Speaker 2 (04:16):
Yeah, the the neighbors in question that are behind the
vast majority of not all of these complaints in Do
you think they are being reasonable here and trying to
solve this or do you suspect that the end game
for them will be closing you down? If snow butts
that's what they want.

Speaker 3 (04:32):
No, No, I don't think they want us to be closed,
to be honest, but we have been very hyper sensitive.
That's I think the right word. In their hearing and
the hearing itself, they see that they don't want us
to be closed down, So I won't be talking anything else.
All they want is us to, you know, do what

(04:55):
we are supposed to do, and we are doing what
we are supposed to do. So I don't know what
went wrong there, but the committee, the DLA we have.
What I think is that noise given a very the
very advanced part of being of alcohol, I think they

(05:18):
are trying to still make some some ruling around it
and we are just happened to be one of the scapegoats.
Or I don't know.

Speaker 4 (05:30):
Right now now. If you're a Peel Files, what options
do you do you have for the business? Would you
consider moving changing your format or would you would you
have to have to shut down if they are peel files.

Speaker 3 (05:44):
I mean, see the business. We have been here five
years now and COVID. We just opened just before COVID.
Then there was aftermath of COVID. A couple of years
were good, and then the restation came in and it's
it's it's just hard and hard, and I'm getting tired
of this whole thing. And then comes this the alcohol

(06:06):
licenses and everything. But the business has survived so far
and we are trying to survive and hopefully if the
appeal appeal should go our way, and if not, then
I can't see anything, to be honest, I mean, we
can just hang our boots, to be.

Speaker 4 (06:27):
Honest, and I think that would be from what I'm
reading from a bunch of takes that are coming through
as you talk, I think that would be a real
loss for for for the community in the area. I mean,
it's it's also a community hub, isn't it. There's there's
a bunch of other stuff that you do in there.
There aren't just bands and and you know, entertainment.

Speaker 3 (06:47):
I mean, we are closely working with the Fund College
who have their school things happening. There are so many
other things that we do with the community. I mean
there's a line dancing, there's salta dancing, so that's it's.
I mean we call ourselves ourselves social house, and it's

(07:07):
it's if you see a remodel from the d one
was is actually that your house is our house. So
that has been a daylight. So the community loves us.
Everybody loves us, and in fact we are trying our
best that our objectives would love us as well.

Speaker 2 (07:26):
Yeah, well, Zen, all the very best to you for
the appeal and hope that goes well. You clearly do
have community support there, so all the very best and
hopefully you don't have to close down yet.

Speaker 4 (07:37):
Listen to this. We're in our seventies. This place is great.
We've only been there about five or six times, but
greatly you not extremely loud as the first time we're
there a couple of years ago. The entertainment is great
and usually people there are more of the mature side
forties and up. It's a very well run, well behaved place.
Lots of great people there, ask Susan Paul. I've seen
her there a few times. A great wace to go

(07:59):
out without having to go into the city you go,
nice Love it.

Speaker 1 (08:03):
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