Leading community organisations and institutions are meeting in Tauranga today to discuss the next steps in creating a joint local alcohol policy for the Western Bay of Plenty region.

Western Bay and Tauranga City Councillors along with police, the district health board, community boards and organisations are meeting decide on whether a common alcohol policy is best for the sub-region.

It will be decided whether the existing joint governance committee, or separate committee be established to formulate local alcohol policies to allow communities a greater say in the number of liquor outlets, locations and opening and closing hours under the recent reforms.

Feedback reports that residents in both the Western Bay and city communities already believe there are too many outlets where alcohol is sold.

The general tenor of the response to an earlier survey is 58 per cent of the wider community thinks there are already too many liquor outlets in their suburb. A total of 40 per cent say there are about the right number and one per cent says there are not enough.

There were 805 responses to the community and online surveys with Papamoa having by far the biggest number of responses at 144. The next Bellevue, Bellevue-Otumoetai, Brookfield Bureta and Judea had 57. There were 50 replies from Cherrywood, Otumoetai, Pillans Point.

The Western BOP communities are far more anti-alcohol than all the city suburbs except for Papamoa and Greerton, which both are firmly of the view (87 per cent and 74 per cent) that there are too many liquor outlets.

Te Puke's 85 per cent against more liquor outlets, Te Puna is 74 per cent, Katikati 72 per cent.

The community also want to keep liquor away from schools early childhood centres and kindergartens, churches sports facilities and community centres or halls.