Bondi’s party culture a headache for residents

By Susan Merrell

A loud party at the old police station in Wairoa Street near Bondi Beach on January 17 where drunken revellers spilled onto the footpath and partygoers urinated from windows was the last straw for some residents.

Margaret McNiven, the traffic and safety officer for the Bondi Beach Local Precinct Committee, wrote in an email to councillors and Vaucluse MP Peter Debnam: ‘Bondi Beach is becoming ‘Kings Cross by the Sea’ where people party 24/7 without concern for residents or fear of restrictions or consequences.’

Dr McNiven said the problem was partly due to the way Bondi is portrayed.

‘Increasing party culture in Bondi is being promoted, both by council-run events becoming larger and by leasing of the beach pavilion and other council venues for commercial purposes,’ she said.

While conceding there are well-run council events, Dr McNiven said she was concerned by their growth in number and size. And she claims the council is ‘unresponsive’ to residents’ concerns.

‘There is a perception of ‘if the council can do it, why can’t we”’ she said. ‘In Bondi we have both private unruly parties and large public events.’

But Mayor Sally Betts said Bondi was ‘a tourist Mecca’ and, as one of the best places to visit, was bound to attract tourists.

And she said the council strategy of holding well-controlled events in Bondi had proved correct, a view echoed by Councillor Joy Clayton of the Bondi Beach Precinct who pointed out that the strategy had even turned the annual New Year’s Eve celebration into an enjoyable family occasion.

This is a considerable turn-around, given that rioting broke out on Campbell Parade on New Year’s Eve in the late 1990s.

Waverley Police Inspector Jason Smith said he would hate to go back to the bad old days when anarchy reigned.

Inspector Smith said police act on noise and nuisance complaints but police time had to be prioritised, and while noise and nuisance complaints increased during summer months with the influx of holidaymakers, ‘things had not reached epidemic proportions’.

‘We sympathise with residents who are kept awake by parties,’ he said. ‘But we’re not the fun police.’

However, Mayor Betts noted the coincidence of unruly parties and illegal backpacker establishments.

‘Private parties and illegal backpackers are a problem,’ said Mayor Betts. ‘It is difficult to control short-term leases.’

She said complaints were taken seriously and acted on immediately.

Chris Maltby, chair of the Bondi Beach Precinct Committee, wrote in an email to members that the profitability of illegal backpacker establishments, slow legal processes and low priority of noise and nuisance complaints to police added up to ‘a toxic mix for residents who just want to peacefully enjoy their lives’.