Coogee Residents Hit Out At Grog Shop

By Marcus Braid on July 9, 2015 in News

Coogee residents have voiced their fears that the development application (DA) for a Dan Murphy’s liquor store on the site of the Randwick Rugby Club could worsen alcohol-related problems in the area.

A resolution was passed at the Coogee Precinct Meeting in May opposing the DA for the property on Brook Street in Coogee.

Local resident Amanda Moore and her husband Matthew are campaigning against the DA in the belief that Coogee doesn’t need more alcohol outlets.

“The area is already swamped with alcohol,” Ms Moore said. “There are really ambiguous drinking hours in public areas and throwing another bottle shop in the mix is not ideal.”

“From a pure personal integrity point of view, I don’t want to see a mega bottle-o opposite an oval where my kids go to school on Coogee Bay Road. We already walk past streakers and occasionally it’s funny, but it’s pretty rank.”

Ms Moore has raised particular concerns about the size of the Randwick Rugby Club site and lack of surrounding parking.

“It’s a bit of a super store,” Ms Moore said. “I don’t think that it was ever meant to have retail on it down on that side street. That was custom built to be a club from what I can understand.”

“It’s actually 1,500 square metres; it’s a huge site, which means it’s a warehouse of alcohol. They are talking about putting a café in the front of it but they’re not talking about adding any more parking. They’ll be using pre-existing loading zones.”

A spokesperson for Randwick Council confirmed the DA is under assessment.

“Council officers are currently assessing the application with considerations given to the submissions and all aspects of the application including parking, social impacts and hours of operation,” the spokesperson said.

“Development Application – 284/2015 is for the fit-out and use of the former Randwick Rugby Club as a liquor store and café. The application includes associated signage and hours of operation from 9am to 10pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 10pm on Sunday. The public exhibition period has closed and council received a number of submissions.”

Ms Moore noted the effect a 10pm closing time could have on the surrounding suburban areas.

“Being able to pick up your last couple of cases at 10pm at night, particularly from October until April, is not fantastic,” she said.

“I’ve got little kids and I don’t mind a drink. I’m not anti civilised drinking, but there’s an oval, there are three reserves and on a Sunday it’s just a trail of alcoholic 20-somethings.

“There are lots of community places right near there. It does feel like it’s the heart of the area and to whack a bottle shop in the middle of it is a bit crass.”
Ms Moore said Bondi was in a better place to deal with alcohol-related problems, with more restrictions in place.

“At Coogee, there’s no police station down at the beach,” she said. “At Bondi, if you have a big boozy problem, you’ve got a police force there.”

Dan Murphy’s was contacted for comment but did not respond before The Beast went to print.