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IT CAN’T ALL be down to the eye-catching job title.
Paris, Toulouse and a raft of other cities across The Netherlands have adopted the idea of appointing a night mayor, following the success of Amsterdam’s ‘nighttime czar’.
London’s even following suit: new mayor Sadiq Khan recently published a job ad seeking someone to boost nightlife culture and promote the clubbing economy. And earlier this year, a panel debate took place in Dublin to discuss whether Ireland’s capital could benefit from the appointment of an official to look after the city, after dark.
So what does a night mayor actually do?
And how would the residents of Ireland’s cities stand to benefit, if the scheme was introduced in Dublin, Cork and elsewhere?
Meet the Night Mayor
Mirik Milan, the current Night Mayor of Amsterdam (and the first person to hold that title anywhere, to our knowledge) will be speaking at a conference in the Docklands area of Dublin this week. Highlighting the positives of nighttime culture is a key part of his role, he said in a phone interview with TheJournal.ie.
Changing the narrative of nightlife is really important: people can benefit from it and they don’t have to feel like they’re doing something wrong to be involved in this industry.
Milan, a former club promoter, was appointed to the role in 2012, he explained. It had existed for around a decade before then, but was more of a nominal position - ”something you’d get as a nightlife person to raise your profile and to be cool”.
He created a small non-profit organisation partly funded by the city in 2014. With support from bars and clubs, has been working since then to improve life after dark for businesses and their customers – acting as a bridge between the nightlife world and Amsterdam’s residents and officials.
But the focus isn’t on dealing with individual complaints from club-owners or residents, Milan explained.
“We focus on legislation – what’s going on in the city, how we can get all the stakeholders together.
I would never just respond to a complaint from one person or respond to a request from a club – maybe if there were three or four nightclubs saying ‘we all have the same problem with this piece of legislation, can we speak to City Hall?’ … Then we make sure that people come to the table – and then hopefully we can change the legislation or make it better for all sides.
There was enthusiasm for the project from the off, he said – which Milan puts down to the “typical pragmatic” approach to life in general in The Netherlands.
24 hour party people
Already, the scheme has brought about some significant changes – not least the introduction of 24-hour licences for a number of venues, so clubbers can enjoy their night and make the journey home at a time of their own choosing.
Said Milan:
“These 24 hour licences are not located in the city centre – they’re located on the outskirts of the city, which can be developed more.
The venues can be open longer so more artists play there, and they are in the international spotlight. They can choose for themselves when to open and close – this also makes sure that people don’t all spill out into the streets at the same time.
All of the above may conjure up images of illegal raves of the kind run in warehouses around suburban Dublin – but the approach, Milan explained, couldn’t be more different. Applicants for the 24-hour licences faced stringent stipulations.
“What was really radical about this is that the licences were not given out on the basis that there was four walls and a roof and a bouncer in front of the door – they were given out on the basis of content.
It was focused on quality – we asked people to send in their pitches with a focus on what we thought was beneficial.
Rather than the straightforward bar-nightclub approach, the 24-hour venues host a range of other events too – including theatre and movie nights.
It’s more about the 24 hour economic system – how to use a building more efficiently rather than just having clubbing seven days in a row.
Square hosts
Milan’s team, in cooperation with City Hall, has also spearheaded the introduction of ‘square hosts’ – a 20-strong crew of trained social workers who patrol designated areas of the city at weekends, acting as ‘soft enforcement’ personnel.
The hosts get to know their area and the regulars at the various clubs on their beat. Their responsibilities take in everything from giving out information on venues to tourists and other visitors, to stepping in to help curb potential outbreaks of violence.
Describing how it works, Milan said “the police are not so visible any more in the nightlife squares – because it often gives a grim and sometimes oppressive feel to the nightlife area”.
So the police are now in the backstreet areas – the square hosts are on the squares.
It works “like stewards at a football stadium,” he explained. “Because the steward is also your friend and they support your team as well.”
“The role of the square host is to de-escalate the situation if they see a problem – but also to give information about what’s going on in each nightclub and which bars play which kind of music.
“The square hosts know which people are the trouble-makers – and they’re there each weekend, so the trouble-makers know they’re being watched as well because there’s, like, 20 square hosts every Friday and Saturday night, so there’s 20 extra sets of eyes on the streets.
If there’s a big problem, of course, they will inform the police and the police will go straight to it.
‘Not a hedonistic Valhalla’
The myriad responsibilities of the role Milan has carved out for himself take in everything from acting as a spokesperson in the media for his city’s nightlife culture, to heading up awareness campaigns to clarify drug use policies.
On the latter:
“Some people think that The Netherlands are some kind of hedonistic Valhalla where you can do anything you like – that’s not true. You get caught with an illegal substance, you will go home with a criminal record.
It’s the worst way to close off your holiday. Our focus is always on harm reduction and giving out the information people will actually use.
Last orders
Asked about the situation in Irish towns and cities at weekends, where pubs close around midnight and clubs shut their doors (all at once) just a few hours later, he says it can often lead to trouble.
I think it means between 12 and 2, it would be really busy on the street? A lot of problems happen when different groups of people meet each other on the street late at night – so it’s much better to divide these people more over the night.
On a more general point, when it comes to changing licensing or related laws “legislators always think that their piece of legislation is going to create behavioural change – but it’s not”.
Behavioural change comes from subcultures. They will influence mainstream culture so you have to invest in your subcultures and try to get people on board, because legislation has never done that.
Mirik Milan will be speaking at the Irish Property Developers Conference 2016 at the Marker Hotel in Dublin tomorrow.
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This is the same OECD that 2 years ago told Europe we had to get used to ” a permanently lower standard of living” now suddenly it’s all roses? They are all over the place
Don’t be confused lads this is what they call a ”jobless recovery”, the ‘recovery’ is in the stock market and share prices, not your wallet.
Don’t be confused lads this is what they call a ”jobless recovery”, the ‘recovery’ is in the stock market and share prices, not your wallet.”
Well said – all they are interested in is what they call the ” Economy ” – which will have little impact on the people – and the ever growing Rich / Poor divide .
they are claiming a recovery and growth in UK – and in US to some extent – but they do not care about unemployed people – or wages etc . I n fact mist governments now are trying to please the people who really rule us – and provide them with low wages – and no trade Unions .
Well with a month left to budget 2013, 3.5million will be took from taxes and cuts, and not forgetting price hikes in fuel etc coupled with stealth taxes will dry up the last bit of household and consumer spending which will stop that growth.
3.5 million? I wish pal lol
Be between 2-3 billion, I doubt very much it will be at 3 – 3.5 billion though. Maybe €2.5 billion.
What growth??? Are the OECD deluded as well? We are STILL in recession. There needs to be a serious relaxation on the aul austerity if any sort of meaningful growth is to be established otherwise we are in for 10 years of stagnation and high unemployment.
Five years down already so half way there… Keep the faith lad, keep the faith hahaha
Ian they people that run our society and i mean the real rulers the financial houses do not care about you or me only they want it all.
It’s not clear whether we’re still in recession or not. Data for the second quarter of 2013 (April-June) won’t be available until next week.
One area we can make a big saving – unemployment benefit for non-EU nationals.
Scrap all of them and replace with something called ‘Start-up Aid’.
It gives 500 euros a month for 12 months to people as a leg-up. After a year, no more money.
If you’re in work, then no bother. If not, sorry we cannot afford it.
In Galway City and County a staggering 67% (two out of three) non-EU nationals are on the dole and have been for more than two years. They are unlikely to find work soon, if ever.
It will save the State about 1.4 billion euros a year.
There’s your water rates, there’s your property tax.
Plus a lot left over to start jobs creation.
Denmark did it in 2009 to slow down the rate of economic migration.
It did – by 85%. Only the highly skilled and educated migrate there now. A lesson for us.
I did propose this to Joan Burton several months ago and got this reply.
“Dear Mr. Conway
Minister Joan Burton T.D., has asked me to acknowledge your recent e-mail. The contents of which have been noted.
Yours sincerely
Jacinta Crawford
Private Secretary”
In other words, the ‘claimants party’ didn’t want to know.
However, can can still make the Dail listen. Let your TD know.
So what if the non-eu national has been living here for years and paying their PAYE and PRSI like everybody else? It wasn’t immigration that screwed this country up. Also, trying to stop immigration into Ireland stinks of hypocrisy when one of the main controlling factors that’s stopping our unemployment rising above 14% is emigration.
@ Declan: Do you have a source for those stats for Galway Live Register?
Not really. Ireland doesn’t have a functional immigration policy (unlike all those other countries to which Irish people are emigrating). There is no shame in creating one and enforcing it. Nor is it racist, as some seem to believe. In fact, the current polcy IS pretty shameful as it can leave people in limbo for years not knowing what their future is.
AFAIK you can only get social insurance if you’ve been working here for 6 months as an EU and 2 years as a non EU national and in that case they paid into the system like everyone else so they should be allowed acess it.
Don’t delude yourself into thinking we have esp lavish social services we really don’t, compared to the rest of Europe ours are where most EU states were in the early 20th century.
Censored, what exactly is ‘dysfunctional’ about our immigration policy? Please elaborate because if you’re going to make a claim like that you have to back it up.
No I don’t, you are not that stupid.
..if Government can reduce the debt to 60% of GDP by 2030?….I think we need a bigger boat
things are getting better – but even the report admits
” the report noted that “unemployment remains high, emigration has resumed, and poverty has increased, adding to heavy debts and financial distress”.
– how is this recovery ??
But things will be better in 2030 – presumably – that date is a moveable feast.
This is just PR BS – to try to get us to accept more and more cuts . the people who made the biggest errors – the casino bankers have literally gotten away with robbery .
also some wont be around in 2030 – who knows who will be – so what are they paying for .
FOr the usual lucky and connected things are only great , for those propping them up things are not like that at all.
Basically, the speculators and bullshit artists are back on form. Recovery? Don’t make me laugh.
The picture for this article is great, like getting on a plane…..the super wealthy will turn left and the rest of us to the right……
There saying it’s working so we will keep paying up.
Sure when did an Irish government ever listen to the OECD?
Can we be sure that the OECD did their sums right this time? Did they check them twice?
have your say