Bong sessions now a daily event in Garden Place

Tuesday, 20 May 2025

When office workers are settling in for another day at their desk in central Hamilton, a woman at a picnic table in the city square is settling into hers.

In her hand is a bong fashioned out of a soft drink bottle. She lights it up, inhales and blows the pungent smoke out into the morning air.

This is what Garden Place has come to.

“It’s just not fun for the residents choosing to make central Hamilton home,” resident Julia Hamon says.

Hamon describes a grim new normal in the city centre - people smoking marijuana in public, verbal abuse and intimidating confrontations. One incident inside the central library left her shaken.

“A homeless and a mental health patient came right up into my face and basically told me I had killed her people.”

She regularly sees people smoking cannabis at tables and in stairwells, particularly near Kozy Kitchen. “They have a big problem with people sitting at their outdoor tables and smoking some really funky stuff,” she says. “It stinks… I can even smell it from my first floor apartment.”

According to Hamon, it’s worse at night, after City Safe officers finish their shifts around 8.30pm. “Since Covid-19, it’s been 100 times worse.

“Before Covid, Garden Place was going off, it was wonderful and vibrant … Since Covid, it’s been a lot more quiet. And that’s when the homeless people made the central city home.”

She believes word has spread that Garden Place is unmonitored. “It almost feels like they’ve been telling their mates - this is where you can come, because you won’t get caught after hours.”

She’s also heard that some are arriving from Auckland. “There’s been a significant increase in the homeless situation since last summer.”

Kosy Kitchen, she says, has faced people demanding free food and abuse. “I’ve been there when people have come in expecting free food.”

“I don’t see meth as much, maybe once or twice. It’s mainly marijuana,” she says. “Regardless of where you live, you deserve to feel safe … I’m not convinced that’s the case at the moment.”

A Waikato Times photographer recently captured a streetie in Garden Place smoking from a bong fashioned out of an L&P bottle - a snapshot that reflects the everyday reality many locals describe.

Hamilton City Councillor Ewan Wilson says drug use has increased, and connects it to people recently released from prison ending up in the city. “We had a stable group who like to be called streeties,” he says. “Now we’re seeing different faces … recently released out of prison.”

Wilson says drug finds are becoming more common. “I was speaking to one streetie today, who was saying that it’s not unusual - it doesn’t happen often, but it’s not unusual - to actually find little packs of meth or cannabis that have fallen out of people’s pockets.”

He believes families should still feel safe visiting the CBD, but admits the problem has worsened.

“That is one of the reasons why I have forwarded a number of additional bylaws to try to take back control,” he says. “The most important piece of legislation that could happen is better resourcing of police and giving police more powers to move people along.”

Other business owners say the pattern is familiar: four or five regulars smoke weed daily outside their premises. “They have their guy that comes in and they puff away,” says one anonymous source. “It’s primarily marijuana. They’re very polite … They know our faces.”

They say the group tends to be active from October through April, starting as early as 5am. “They’re pretty loud and boisterous in the morning, too. Then in the evening, they congregate and I think that’s when the drug deals happen.”

At The Piercing Shop, Caleb Linstron says the drug use has eased slightly since police increased patrols in February following Waikato Times’ coverage. “They’re still here and they still can be a little bit annoying, but not as annoying as they were.”

He sees bongs and wine bottles regularly.

“They’re just sitting around on my table like half asleep and waking up mostly when we are opening the shop,” he says. “I walked through the bong session on the way home yesterday. They were just sitting on the grass.”

Matt McLean of Palate says the issue puts people off visiting town. “You shouldn’t feel threatened walking around the streets,” he says. “As taxpayers, we shouldn’t have to put up with the bullshit.”

Police say they are aware of the issues and are working closely with other agencies to address them.

Inspector Andrea McBeth said the Neighbourhood Prevention Team had been doing a significant amount of work in the CBD this year and were working with a number of community stakeholders to reduce harm and increase public safety.

“This includes referring individuals when specific needs are identified as well as providing a more visible police presence in the CBD. Some of the people police engage with on a day-to-day basis have complex needs and addiction challenges and this may result in agency referrals, enforcement action or both.”

Hamon said more needed to be done. “The council dropped the ball on the homeless situation in Hamilton Central,” she says. “I desperately want Garden Place to become what it was… not just because it is my home, but because I’m proud of Hamilton. We’re a great city.”