A group of West Auckland residents have complained to Auckland Council about the smell of a local Burger King, which they say is taking over their houses and making it unpleasant to live.
“It is a fundamental human right to be able to breathe fresh air,” resident Nick Dobier said. “I believe our fundamental human right is being trampled on by big business. Why? For the sake of a few dollars? That's putting profit before people, surely.”
However, the Council is denying that there is an issue.
“While our food safety officers have detected a faint smell on occasions in their visits to the Burger King, this in itself does not warrant a requirement to test,” said Auckland Council's environmental health manager Mervyn Chetty. “Our officers are working with Burger King to mitigate these issues including making adjustments to their systems. We will continue to assess the effectiveness of these changes before requiring Burger King to undertake further mitigation measures.”
Burger King said it was acting “in good faith” to find a “suitable solution,” including changing their extractor fans and exhaust system. The residents are planning on delivering a petition to Auckland Council.
"This is my home; this is my forever home - at least I'd hoped it would be,” Dobier said. “Our quiet enjoyment and our peace and our fresh air is gone.”
