A $200 taxi ride into the closest regional hub is not an uncommon expense for residents living in the remote community of Barunga, but it could be a cost of the past.
The small dry community – where alcohol sales have been restricted since the federal intervention in 2007 — has been granted a liquor licence for a social club, cancelling the need to travel.
It's been a long time coming, traditional owner Esther Bulumbara says, after a spate of alcohol-related deaths over the past decade on a small stretch of highway that connects Barunga to the next community where there is a social club.
Then there were the years of costly trips into Katherine.
"The taxi costs a lot of money," Ms Bulumbara said.
"It's about $200 or $300 … and sometimes [residents] give the taxi their key card or their basics card and the taxi brings them home.
"When the money goes in their account the taxi driver just takes out the amount.
"We've also got a bus that runs daily that costs $50 … it leaves at about eight in the morning and comes back at about 3pm."
While some residents would prefer alcohol restrictions remain in place in Barunga, Ms Bulumbara says a regulated social club could reduce alcohol-related harm and even help battle broader problems such as domestic violence.
"People go into Mataranka or Katherine and buy grog and they come back and end up fighting, but a social club, people can sit down and relax and enjoy themselves," she said.
"It will keep people in the community … and it will be a safe place for people."
The licence – officially issued on 15 January by the Northern Territory Liquor Commission to the Bagala Aboriginal Corporation – is affixed with a number of conditions that regulate when and how much alcohol can be sold.
Residents will only be able to buy mid-strength beer, cider and pre-mixed spirits when the club is open.
It will operate between midday and 2pm and 6pm and 9pm every day of the year.
Alcohol will not be allowed to be sold in a glass and residents will only be able to buy two standard drinks during lunch.
For 24 hours every week, on a designated "youth club day" chosen by a governing committee, the sale of alcohol will be restricted completely.
About 90 residents in the community of Barunga have already been issued with a liquor permit and on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, residents can travel 30 kilometres along a dusty stretch of road to the larger community of Beswick to buy a mid-strength beer.
Elizabeth Morgan-Brett, chief executive of the Aboriginal Investment Group, which was brought in to help get the social club off the ground, said community consultation with residents, police, and health services was undertaken "in depth".
"The community is very excited because it will not only drive employment for various community members, but it will be a venue for families to come and engage in a safe and inclusive environment … and enjoy each other's company," she said.
According to the licence application, the only "response of substance" to consultations was from Northern Territory Police, which ultimately supported the application on the condition that "trade be restricted to three hours per day, four days per week, that only light and mid-strength beer be available, and that cooked/hot food be available during trading hours".
