DAVID WALKER/STUFF Loud music has been blasting from an empty foyer beside the Ibis hotel in central Christchurch, driving out people who have been sleeping there. Some streeties who have been pitching their tent in a car park next door say the music plays non-stop.

A Christchurch hotel is blaring elevator music at all hours in a bid to deter homeless people from setting up camp outside and bothering guests and staff.

The move comes after rough sleepers pitched tents in the lot next door to the Ibis on Hereford St in the central city, opposite the BNZ Centre that recently put up "no begging" signs.

Streeties said the loud music – which ranges from jazz to easy listening – came from an empty foyer beside the hotel and had been non-stop for the past two weeks. One, Josh, said people were not "sleeping there as much now" because of the music.

The Ibis did not respond to requests for comment, but Central City Business Association (CCBA) manager Paul Lonsdale said the Ibis and the Crowne Plaza hotel on Colombo St had reported incidents of "streeties" entering the hotels and upsetting staff.

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Lonsdale said booking agents had received complaints from Ibis guests who said they might not return to Christchurch after beggars asked them for money outside the hotel.

At the Crowne Plaza streeties had returned to an alcove previously covered by netting to keep them away.

DAVID WALKER/STUFF Some streeties have been pitching their tent in a car park next door to the hotel and say the music plays non-stop.

"No-one is doing anything about it – I think the staff have been extremely tolerant," Lonsdale said.

The CCBA has suggested the Christchurch City Council "upskill" its parking wardens to move people on to address begging, rough sleeping and anti-social behaviour outside shops. Lonsdale said streeties were "actually freedom camping" and violating Christchurch's Freedom Camping Bylaw 2015.

"It would be a bit more interesting than issuing parking tickets," he said.

Hereford streeties on Friday said people had hurled verbal slurs and bottles at them. Angelica Seamer, who lives in a tent next to the Ibis, said her right arm was in a cast as someone threw a rock at her.

She and Josh said streeties helped the Hereford cafes, sweeping up rubbish and packing away chairs, but they were tarnished by the actions of others, such as drunks peeing in shop doorways.

GEORGE HEARD/STUFF Angelica Seamer says other people's actions give streeties a bad name.

Street begging has been a long-running issue in Christchurch. In 2015 a no-begging bylaw was proposed, but later scrapped due to cost and enforcement issues. Tents appeared on Colombo St in winter last year. A City Mission and council count last September tallied 215 people sleeping rough.

The CCBA's submission to the council's long-term plan suggested parking wardens could move streeties on under existing bylaws and help police manage street-based issues.

The submission suggested reinstating the pre-earthquake ambassador's programme, whereby security guards patrolled the streets, directed people and helped businesses, which Lonsdale said "radically reduced anti-social behaviour in the city".

Central city councillor Deon Swiggs said the council wanted "some sort of street presence" to make people feel safe, after an escalation in incidents of anti-social behaviour and intimidation in Hereford St and other areas of the CBD.

Swiggs said ambassadors could help, but he was unconvinced the CCBA's proposed initiatives would change anything.

DAVID WALKER/STUFF The source of the music in an empty lobby on Hereford St in central Christchurch, where streeties often sleep. The music ranges from jazz to the easy-listening style heard in elevators.

The no begging signs had no impact because beggars "know their rights", and it was important not to lump the genuinely homeless and beggars together, he said.

Swiggs hoped the new Housing First initiative would address the bigger issue of poverty by helping the homeless and those in and out of homes by providing them with accommodation and services to meet their needs.

The Safer Christchurch alliance, a committee made up of agencies, including police and the Canterbury District Health Board, was considering potential solutions and the cost, Swiggs said.

City Missioner Matthew Mark said the mission and other organisations had successfully housed some streeties, but the number of rough sleepers seemed to remain the same as new people moved to the streets.

River Jayden, who runs the Street Wise charity, said she had met many qualified people living rough, including veterinarians and social workers.

GEORGE HEARD/STUFF Angelica Seamer, who begs on Christchurch's Hereford St, says she's had people abuse her and throw rocks and bottles.

"It can happen to anyone. We've got to break the stigma down [and] you've got to get to know them – they're good people."

Lonsdale said the best way to stop begging was for people to stop giving them money.

"Begging is most certainly a business."

In June 2009 speakers playing classical music in City Mall led to a steep decline in petty crime and anti-social behaviour.