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Key Hamilton mayoral race contender Tim Macindoe is backing reverting to two hours free parking in the CBD but his centre-left rival Sarah Thomson isn’t keen.

Last year’s change to just one-hour free between 8am and 8pm Monday to Saturday was designed to encourage more turnover at short-stay parks to theoretically benefit the likes of retailers. The free CBD on-street parking is due to be phased out completely next year.

“Fiscal conservative” councillor Macindoe says his call for reverting to two hours free follows complaints the current one-hour regime and heavier infringement fines are scaring people away from the CBD.

“I think it should change back.”

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Te Matatini may be heading for Hamilton sooner than the scheduled 2029 date - if one Hamilton City Councillor has her way.

Councillor Maria Huata said she has been lobbying for the event to come to Hamilton / Kirikiriroa and that there had been “rumblings in the ether” that it could be staged here in 2027.

Huata made the comments as Hamilton also positions itself as one of the contenders for hosting the Homegrown music festival.

Huata said she was “dead set on [Te Matatini] being held in Kirikiriroa”.

The biennial event, which was staged in New Plymouth this year, was scheduled to next take place in the Nelson-Marlborough region, though funding doubts have been raised about that location.

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Senior city councillors are calling for action by the “highly-priced” supermarket duopoly to prevent shopping trolleys being pinched by streeties and ending up as abandoned eyesores in Hamilton’s inner city.

They supported supermarkets using “geo-fencing” technology which locks up trolleys if someone tries to take them out of the supermarket car park.

But they also indicated they weren’t afraid of using a stick, with a possible bylaw to enforce it also mooted.

The councillors’ call came at Thursday’s economic development committee meeting which discussed a report by the Hamilton Central Business Association, whose members have regular problems with anti-social behaviour.

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A big shake-up for one of the CBD’s busiest streets is on the cards as officials grapple with the reality of bold plans to bring a new “five-star” $100 million Pullman Hotel to the city.

The changes to Ward St include a new two to three vehicle loading zone area with a five-minute limit outside the current Chemist Warehouse - guests will be able to park their cars there before they’re taken away promptly by a valet parking service.

A range of other parking tweaks - which reportedly won’t cut total on-street parking space in the area - have been suggested, a city councillor briefing heard. Final recommendations will go to a council hui this month.

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A Trade Me report on the last quarter of 2024 shows Hamilton had three of the five ads that prompted the most applications.

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Nationally, total job applications remained high, both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter.

An ad for two retail assistant roles in Chartwell attracted 531 applicants in the December quarter, while 507 people applied for another retail assistant role there.

During the same period, 520 people responded to an ad for four warehouse picker/packers in Hamilton.

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In a move to support cafes and restaurants, Hamilton City Council is recommending to change an annual fee for outdoor dining and signage to once every three years.

At today’s Community and Natural Environment Committee meeting

(18 February), the committee made a unanimous recommendation which means businesses who want to use the space outside their store for dining or signage will save time and money by only needing to apply every three years.

The permit process is to make sure there is balance between city vibrancy, customer experience, consistency of rules and accessibility for footpath users.

Committee Deputy Chair Anna Casey-Cox hopes this will encourage more places to offer outdoor dining.

“This is a small step to show that Council appreciates what these businesses do for our city and Hamiltonians. We hope to see even more businesses using outdoor dining and creating a real sense of atmosphere and buzz.”

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Alcohol sellers should not get any ratepayer “subsidy” for the cost of licensing fees, says a former deputy mayor who’s labelled the practice “obscene and criminal”.

Firing up - a former deputy mayor is arguing booze outlets shouldn’t get any ratepayer subsidisation of their alcohol licensing fees, despite concerns from some hospitality outlets.

Gordon Chesterman’s comments come in response to council plans to raise fees by 34% across the board next year, by 20% the year after and 3% in subsequent years to achieve a “user pays” system.

His views have gained some support from one bar owner but are questioned strongly by several others.

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Police in Hamilton could take a harder line on those found in possession of stolen shopping trolleys, but blanket arrests are probably not the way to go, says Hamilton City councillor Sarah Thomson.

Thomson’s views were also shared by Hamilton Central Business Association general manager Vanessa Williams after police in Rotorua arrested 13 people and returned 45 trolleys to local supermarkets after a three-day operation.

“Operation Trolley” was executed in an effort to protect businesses from anti-social and unlawful behaviour between January 21 and 23, after police received complaints about homeless people in possession of trolleys intimidating people in Rotorua’s central city.

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Hamilton City Council is asking the community for feedback on a proposal to address a financial imbalance in alcohol licensing costs.

Currently, the fees set by legislation have not increased in more than 11 years and do not cover the full costs of licensing activities. As a result, ratepayers have been subsidising these costs by up to 29% and this is expected to grow year on year. Council is proposing to introduce an Alcohol Fees Bylaw that would reduce the ratepayer subsidy to 5%.

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About two hectares - four years’ supply of office space - will be on the market in the coming year. This includes the former Fonterra building on London St after their staged-exit.

A huge piece of Hamilton real estate will remain empty for at least two years, as Fonterra staff make their staged exit out of the London St building by 2027.

After that - possibilities for the building include a hotel, student accommodation, mix of retail-office-residential, long term rental accommodation... or it could simply become part of Hamilton Central’s vacant concrete jungle.

The building is owned by Primeproperty Group (PPG) and this week the company announced that work has begun to upgrade the office space from “somewhere between Grade B and C” to A Grade.

As the Waikato Regional Theatre slowly but surely takes shape in downtown Hamilton, passers-by suddenly have a burning question: What’s that big black box sitting on top of it for?

The massive box-shaped structure is currently 500 tonnes of structural steel that, when completed, will be home to the theatre’s fly tower. Which, of course, begs the question: What’s a fly tower?

An essential element of “proper” theatres, fly towers are effectively big lofts that sit over the stage and from which pieces of scenery are hung.

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Twenty-six businesses had wins - some more than one - at the Wednesday evening event at 18 London Street.

Stark Properties is developing the building into versatile commercial spaces but, for the awards, Royal Lab turned it into a high-end jazz bar. Sultry notes from Joe Mac Band filled the sixth floor as attendees enjoyed 360-degree views of the city and the Waikato River.

With a record 137 entries in 2024, general manager Vanessa Williams of Hamilton Central Business Association said she felt incredibly excited about the evening of recognition and celebration.

“This event is a testament to the resilience and perseverance of our local businesses, and we are proud to play a part in celebrating them.”