Residents and business owners fed up with antisocial behaviour in Hamilton want a free food pantry removed from Awaba Park, a move Food Not Bombs argues would push vulnerable people "out of sight, out of mind".
Supporters of a petition with more than 500 signatures claim the pantry attracts aggressive, violent and drug or alcohol-affected people to the park.
Hamilton Community Safety Committee deputy chair and Churchills Carpet Court owner Paul Murphy said City of Newcastle made the decision to reinstall the pantry as part of its $290,000 upgrades to the park without consultation.
"We found out they were talking about putting some pantry-style storage units back into the park after we had quite clearly said that they were attracting the wrong people into that area of Hamilton," he said.
"They're in the back streets, residents are getting disturbed by them, these people are walking around and attempting to break in and steal things, or defecate, or shoot up, or whatever else you'd like."
The future of the pantry has become a point of contention between residents, businesses, City of Newcastle and Food Not Bombs, which recently raised concerns about the removal of the pantry while the council undertakes upgrades to the park.
A City of Newcastle spokesman said it is bound by a 2021 council decision to keep a donation cupboard in Awaba Park.
"A new council resolution to remove the pantry was defeated at the April 2026 council meeting," he said.
"Members of the Hamilton Safety Committee attended the Hamilton Business Improvement Association meeting on March 26 where they were briefed on the project and proposed new donation cupboard, with no objections raised."
The spokesman said the council is committed to working with the community to create a more welcoming and accessible space for all to use.
Food Not Bombs volunteer Avery Hardy said the suggestion to relocate to Cleary Street feels like a "tone-deaf effort" from the Hamilton Community Safety Committee to move vulnerable people "out of sight, out of mind".
"Food Not Bombs moving to a less central and visible area would hinder its ability to reach the same cross section of the community and undermine its ability to build relationships," they said.
"Awaba Park and the community pantries are spaces for solidarity, not charity.
"Charity organisations offer different services for different purposes, and some charity services that operate in this area directly contradict our values."
Hardy said Awaba Park was central to the group's meal-sharing activities and relationships within the community, making relocation unlikely, particularly given council was helping install new, more durable pantry cabinets.
Hardy said Pachamama House, another location suggested by Mr Murphy, was less accessible by public transport and therefore unsuitable.
Mr Murphy said business owners and residents would prefer the pantry to be moved closer to the Salvation Army's operations on Cleary Street, where community services are already offered.
He urged Food Not Bombs, which installed the original pantry, to work with businesses and residents.
"Let's work together, let's work with the REACH people, service providers and the Salvation Army and assist in bringing the services in under that one umbrella in Cleary Street," he said.
"We understand that everybody has got to be looked after, but it also needs to fit in with what society requires, and we're happy to work together to get an outcome to support those people that are disadvantaged."
