Lower Hutt's popular Queensgate Night Market canned over health and safety concerns

A short-lived Lower Hutt night market has Hutt South MP Chris Bishop crying bureaucracy gone mad.

But the council said it must ensure the market meets safety and compliance measures and that people are not put at risk.

After launching at the end of September, the hugely popular Queensgate Night Market has been canned after just four weeks.

'Busy, but not in a good way'

Content creator Katy Pakinga made sure to arrive early for Queensgate Night Market's debut Saturday night, and said it was immediately clear things were not running smoothly.

"There were still food trucks coming in 45 minutes before the night market was supposed to start.

"Having run markets myself, I was doubtful they had enough time to set up the food."

She said it felt like "the whole of Wellington" had turned out for the market, with queues for certain trucks snaking around the block.

"There were way too many people, way too many cars, traffic - it was busy, but not in a good way."

Drew Kohing, owner of Mao & Co foodtruck - which specialises in Chinese street food catering - said they had been excited about the market, but on opening night found themselves on the back foot.

"We didn't know where to enter, which car park, it was quite chaotic. We were just parked in the street all in a line.

"It was supposed to open at 5pm and at 4pm we were still waiting to get inside and we were starting to panic, because it takes us an hour to set up before we can start serving food."

He said a spot was found, and almost instantly a queue formed.

Kohing said in his nine years on the truck and attending thousands of events - like Martinborough Fair - he had never seen anything like it.

"We know there's thousands of people but it's all very calm, and everyone's walking around and there's space.

"This was sort of like, just being squashed in somewhere. Everyone was so excited, but it was chaotic as well."

He said the pace was relentless, selling out of everything, with order numbers on par with Newtown Festival.

According to Pakinga, despite the long queues, the vibes were high.

"I think everybody realised they were all in it together, so all the customers and shoppers were equally annoyed with having to wait, but there was a bit of camaraderie.

"Like, 'How long have you waited? Oh, I've waited longer'. So people were just dealing with it."

She said the crowds thinned slightly over the following weeks.

Lower Hutt local Rewa said she did not have the patience for the queues, so ditched the markets for McDonalds, but noted the range of stalls, selling everything from clothes, to trinkets, Dubai-type desserts and plenty of food.

"It's definitely a great idea for the Hutt, brings people out on a Saturday night to enjoy food, otherwise there's not much on."

She said it was a shame it had ended.

Boom and bust

The end came swiftly after the launch, with a post on the organiser's social media page announcing the Labour weekend market would be postponed due to "unexpected compliance issues".

Two weeks later, another post confirmed it was canned for the rest of the year.

Organiser Victoria Yao - who is also behind the Auckland Night Market - declined to comment.

Hutt City Council (HCC) said the markets were on hold until safety and compliance matters had been addressed - something Hutt South MP and National minister Chris Bishop called a "load of utter nonsense".

He said it was a spur of the moment reaction to the news, but maintained the pause reeked of redtape.

"I thought, 'This is nuts, you know, seriously?'

"Traffic management plans, and site plans, and health and safety violations, I mean all that stuff's important up 'till a point, but seriously, it's just a market in an empty car park ... it's not actually rocket science."

Bishop said while people have to be kept safe, his message to the council was to take a pragmatic view.

HCC economy and development director Jon Kingsbury said the council recognised the markets positive contribution to the city and said it was working with Queensgate to ensure it could return.

A mall spokesperson said the pause was in response to feedback and safety was a top priority.

"Queensgate Shopping Centre follows strict health and safety procedures before any event or activity is approved, which included its thorough assessment of the recent Night Markets. The event was very well received and attracted strong community attendance."

Both Kohing and Pakinga were hopeful the Queensgate Night Market would make a comeback.

Yao would not say when that might be in 2026, but offered RNZ a tour when it did.

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