Tote Owner Slams Council After NYE Party Mess

Melbourne's Yarra City council have come under scathing criticism for their handling of New Year's Eve liquor licenses in the fall out from an 'unregulated' celebration in the Edinburgh Gardens.

Falling on a Tuesday, a current freeze of liquor licenses did not allow venues to apply for New Year's Eve extensions and they were forced to operate within their standard mid-week licences, which for many venues meant 1am.

In similar scenes to the 2012/13 celebrations, an estimated 15,000 converged on the Gardens in North Fitzroy on the night, causing an estimated $30,000 in damage and draining police and medical resources.

Jon Perring, co-owner of Melbourne venues The Tote, Bar Open and Yah Yah's, has since written a letter to Yarra's Mayor Jackie Fristacky and Liquor And Gaming Regulation Minister Edward O'Donohue, saying that they've created their own problems.

The letter, which has been obtained by theMusic.com.au, reads, “I believe that the combination of flawed licensing policy (the current licensing freeze) and the denial that this event would take place (again) by the City of Yarra, created a situation where the only cultural relevant option for young people in the inner north to celebrate NYE, was to go Edinburgh Gardens or to attend house parties.”

Perring also drew attention to his application for extended hours for The Tote and Yah Yah's venue prior to Christmas, where he warned that “very few” venues opened last year because of the restrictions.

“It is simply not competitive or profitable to trade to only 1am on this night,” the application read.

Talking to Fairfax's Sticky Fingers column just days before New Year's Eve, Perring had also forewarned, “This policy will only result in more house parties and mass parties in public parks such as Edinburgh Gardens that have no crowd controllers or RSA-accredited staff to keep these events safe.”

In his letter to the Minister and the Mayor he wrote, “I feel justified in saying, I told you so.”

Mayor Fristacky described the criticisms as “inaccurate” to The Age, saying, “There were five or six events that were organised without any reference to council. I am also aware that at least some of the bars and hotels sent people down to Edinburgh Gardens.”

A spokesperson for the Mayor said that it was “ludicrous” to suggest that the license freeze was the responsible for the Edinburgh Gardens party and the “disgraceful and unacceptable” behaviour by those in attendance.

Perring added, “Regulators need to acknowledge that the population's consumption of alcohol and other recreational drugs can not be controlled by them. What's more, regulators need to engage with venues, who have the resources to provide safe environments for celebrations such as NYE. Regulators need to stop seeing venues as the problem and to instead, partner with experienced licensed venues to provide the necessary cultural infrastructure.”

Yarra Council will decide whether to invoke a ban on alcohol and entertainment for Edinburgh Gardens on Australia Day.