Karangahape Road in Auckland. Photo: 123RF
Karangahape Road restaurants say road works, no parking and anti-social behaviour are putting customers off.
Several hospitality businesses along the colourful strip have been forced to shut their doors or move as tough economic times bite, including some veteran restaurants.
Figures released earlier this week show unemployment is at a three-year high and retail spending has slumped.
K Road restaurant Madame George announced its closure this week, saying the economic downturn made it 'impossible to continue' after almost a decade on the iconic street.
Fabio Bernardini, the owner and chef of Latin eatery Tempero, just up the road from Madame George, told Checkpoint the once bustling strip was now half empty and in a battle for survival.
"Pretty much 10 weeks after we opened, we opened on 11th of July last year, it started to drop and it started to get really, really difficult," he said.
He said the staff were not paying themselves and they are putting in money from their own pockets.
"My girlfriend, which is my partner in business as well, since we opened like 13 months ago, we haven't been able to get her wages. She's been working for free all this time," he said.
"I'm on minimum wages and we are just living. We can't even get a burger to take away and to be honest with you, I want to go and eat all the restaurants, but we barely go once a month or something like that, we're always quite conservative."
The economy is affecting people in different ways, and the decisions by local council and government haven't helped businesses, he said.
"They're taking parking away. They're good for charging things like an outside outdoor licence, which is tricky to get. We need it to serve alcohol, we need it for food."
Bernardini said having an outdoor area was also potentially dangerous because of the street, he said.
"You put in an outdoor area and the cost doesn't offer any security, what do you do? Your tables get stolen, your chairs get stolen. You have people that are kind of like aggressive or bothering the customers," he said.
"I lose furniture, they take chairs, they take the candles, they damage plants and flowers. I decided, I love the outdoor air it brings, connects the restaurant to the street. But next summer we're not going to do that again, because there is a risk that I have to deal with the violence."
He said around six to seven businesses had closed around his restaurant.
"There is a place that has already been through two businesses and they both shut down, they can't do it," he said.
"It's tricky for me to talk about this street because we need to bring people in to invest and to ferment the culture and the business over here."
He said the council could work out some ways to help businesses with their outdoor licenses, security and to help with the issue of parking.
"I think each industry has to try to get a voice and change how things are done in New Zealand slightly so it can help businesses," he said.
Bernardini said the council need to take some responsibility.
"They don't give us dates for the construction, I think a lot of streets, they're being blocked unnecessarily, it's just a lack of consideration.
"I'm really scared, this week has been terrible."
