Wednesday's headlines: downturn in trade reported by Auckland restaurants; 70,000 fans expected in central Wellington for Rugby World Cup quarter-finals; "schoolies" week coming to Queenstown.
NZ Herald
"Restaurants starve amid Cup festivity" is the New Zealand Herald's lead story about a survey of 400 Auckland restaurants that found most were experiencing a downturn in trade during the Rugby World Cup.
The paper also talks to the aunt of a Tokoroa teenager who was killed in a speeding car on Monday.
Waikato Times
The Waikato Times leads on hefty rises in fees planned by the Hamilton City Council, which is also cutting its noise control service and spending on museums and the arts.
A lightning strike left a barn in Matamata burnt to the ground and the owner's tractor a wreck.
Dominion Post
The Dominion Post says Wellington is bracing for its biggest-ever weekend with an unprecedented onslaught of rugby fans coming into the city for the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals. About 70,000 are expected to come into the city's central business district.
St Oran's College in Lower Hutt is considering cancelling its school ball. In a memo to parents, principal Dawn Ackroyd says some pupils described this year's ball as boring and said the school can't control pre- and post-ball events.
The Press
The Press says a man ejected from a bar because of his facial tattoo says he won't return despite an apology from the bar's owners. Turf Bar manager Alan Forsdick says it was not a racial issue that caused his staff to ask Tunahau Kohu to leave.
The Audit Office has criticised the management of the retail deposit guarantee scheme. It says the Treasury should have done more to stem the flow of millions of dollars into risky finance companies.
ODT
The Otago Daily Times leads with plans for a $60 million retirement village in Dunedin. About 200 people would live there.
About 100 Australian teenagers are expected to visit Queenstown next month as part of the end-of-year "schoolies" week.
