Coffee shop roasted

[nugget]

Author: HEATHER LOW CHOY

Date: 25-01-2006

Source: http://www.themercury.news.com.au/common/s...55E3462,00.html

Copyright: © Davies Bros

 

Coffee shop roasted

By HEATHER LOW CHOY

25jan06

 

BATTERY Point real estate agent Freddie Forstner cannot understand why fellow residents are upset about coffee being roasted in their neighbourhood.

 

He lives and works just across the road from Oomph! Tasmanian Gourmet Coffee, a cafe and coffee-roasting business in Battery Point's main street, Hampden Rd.

 

Owners Carlos and Nikki Kindred have been roasting coffee beans in the shop for about 12 months without council approval.

 

The couple only recently lodged an application for roasting and Hobart City Council quickly received five objections from residents raising concerns about the burnt-coffee smell.

 

"The people who have a problem with it, really, they are wowsers -- the biggest pack of wowsers. They make Battery Point a laughing stock," Mr Forstner said.

 

"There's a curry house two doors down. You have garlic smells from the pizza shop. People are baking bread at the bakery ... if there is any smell from the coffee roasting, it adds to the cosmopolitan flavour of the neighbourhood."

 

Resident Megan Clark, 21, said complaints about the smell were ridiculous.

 

"Some residents are very stuck up and if they can complain about anything they will," she said.

 

But Sandra Champion said the burnt coffee smell was far more potent and pervasive than most people realised.

 

"The problem with their application is he wants to start roasting at 4am. How would you like to wake up at 5am on a Saturday morning thinking your house is on fire because of the burning stink?"

 

She said coffee roasting was only allowed in areas zoned light industrial.

 

Battery Point and Sullivans Cove Community Association senior vice-president John White said the roasting breached the Battery Point Planning Scheme.

 

"Whether you are building a high-rise or burning coffee, you need to go through the proper process. They don't have approval. They never had approval, and they have been doing something that's illegal," Mr White said.

 

Resident Robin Johnson said it was a bit naughty and asking for trouble to go ahead without permission.

 

Michael Hebblethwaite, 21, said he was not offended by the smell and was thinking of signing the shop's petition to support them.

 

A council planning officer and the Battery Point Advisory Committee have recommended against approval.

Edited January 24, 2006 by nugget23

[nugget]

::

 

You've got to be bloody kidding me!!

 

I cant stand drinking coffee, But one thing I LOVE is the smell of it freshly roasted. Not many things I could think of to wake up in the morning to better than that :scratchin :whistling

 

Where are these people gonna stop? They've already just shut down one of Battery Point's (the suburb of the coffee shop) or Hobarts for that matter, biggest, most popular, oldest nightclub, Club Surreal because of the noise people made when they left the club.

 

Next thing you know they're gonna want to shut down the bloody casino, because the pokies make too much noise ::

 

Oh, wait... No they wont, because they wont have anywhere to go after they finish writing their letters of complaint to shut everything around them that annoys them in the slightest bit down

Edited January 24, 2006 by nugget23

[Buddy]

Before making any comment, one would have to know how bad the smell is, but although I enjoy the smell of ground coffee, I think the odour of burned (roasting) coffee might offend many people.

Having been once involved with local government I know that it's a requirement to obtain permission before setting up any business no matter how small and if people have complaints with what you do and find out you don't have permission ....well ...your really going to cop some flack.

 

I have to agree though, some people complain about anything just for the sake of complaining.