Select business owners to advise mayor

Friday, 17 May 2024

Monsoon Poon owner Mike Egan does not want to be a part of the new group. (File photo)

A select group of business owners will have the mayor’s ear, but one business owner won’t be participating in the newly established group.

Mike Egan, president of the Restaurant Association and owner of Monsoon Poon, declined an invitation from mayor Tory Whanau to participate in the mayoral business group.

The group of up to 12 business leaders will meet four times a year to discuss upcoming city council projects and advise the mayor on how to create a city where businesses thrive.

The relationship between the city council and businesses has been on rocky ground lately – last year the council went back on a commitment to lower the proportion of rates paid by businesses, a scathing submission from the Chamber of Commerce said there was “frustration and anger” at council projects, and businesses have mocked the marketing support offered for disruptive construction work on Thorndon Quay.

Among Egan’s concerns were that the group had little decision-making power and was meant to be strictly confidential.

“It just made me think, are they ticking a box and saying they’re consulting with business? … When time is a commodity, if you spend your time on these things but there’s no outcome, you think, what was the point?”

The mood from restaurant owners in the capital was not positive, with everyone putting their head down to focus on keeping their businesses going, Egan said. “Everyone’s just hanging in there. There’s a bit of a cliche now: ‘Survive til ‘25’.”

Justin McKenzie sees the group as a chance to do something positive and share the realities of business with the council. (File photo)

But some businesses saw the group as an opportunity to have their voices heard. Justin McKenzie, owner of the Hawthorn Lounge and Cuckoo Emporium, accepted his invitation and was looking forward to the first meeting next week.

He felt it was a chance “to have a voice and try to make some change … if nothing happens, I tried”.

“I'd rather be invited to be part of something positive than just stand on the corner of bitch and moan continuously.”

While he didn’t always agree with the direction of the council or the mayor, he was happy to tell them what it was like on the front line of business.

“It’s a positive thing. Dealing with council has the inherent issue of, will this result in anything? But I need to put my hat in the ring to see if I can get something started first.”

Bar owner Jeremy Smith on the challenges facing Wellington's major hospitality precinct.

McKenzie was focused on the need to revitalise the Courtenay Place precinct and attract more people into the city. He was previously a supporter of the Reading deal, saying “anything’s better than what we’ve got now”.

One of this main points of frustration was that more people than ever lived in the central city, but fewer of them were getting out and experiencing the city’s hospitality scene.

hanau said the group would put new ideas on the table and provide her with direct feedback about upcoming projects. The city was going through significant changes including the Courtenay Place upgrade, the cycleway network and the redevelopment of Civic Square.

“It is really important to me that our local businesses have an active role in shaping and delivering the transformation of our city,” she said.

The names of everyone in the group could not be released on Thursday but would be released after the first meeting next week, a mayoral spokesperson said. The group would include business leaders from a range of key sectors like retail, hospitality, tech, property development and the creative sector.

The group had been formed in response to feedback from business and the Chamber of Commerce, who had asked for more engagement.

But Chamber of Commerce president Simon Arcus wasn’t sold, questioning why it had not been given the same powers and level of transparency as existing advisory groups.

He had been pushing for a business advisory group, with a similar set-up to the council’s other groups for consultation with communities including the rainbow community and disabled community, since 2022, but described that as a “different world” with a “lot of optimism”.

Now there was fatigue in the business community and a sense the council wasn’t listening.

“I hope it goes ahead, but also don't want it to be totally restricted. … I'd like it to have the same opportunities as any other advisory group at the council.”