Organisers of the weekly Harbour Nights have warned that too much entertainment could jeopardise traders' profits on the night.

The popular craft and music nights, which incorporate late-night opening for Front Street shops and bars, are in their sixth year and the Chamber of Commerce feel they are getting better all the time.

But Chamber of Commerce president Michael Smith stressed that calls to increase the amount of entertainment could encourage visitors and locals to spend more time on the streets and not in the stores.

"That is one of the things we are always discussing with the merchants, the number of street performers,''he said.

"We are always trying to balance that against what the traders are offering, so an over abundance of entertainment isn't too much of a distraction.'' Mr. Smith said there was a review each year of the events, and there were improvements based on what had been a success and what had not worked that season.

But there would only be fine tuning during the season itself, he said.

He said the level of fun on offer differed on various nights, for example the Beating the Retreat was always a massive draw.

With sponsorship, the Chamber had done as much as it could and any new musicians, crafts or performers would have to be funded somehow.

"We do our best, we have very capable staff and the Corporation of Hamilton do a fabulous job in preparing the venue.'' If traders wanted any new entertainment, there would be an opportunity for businesses to contribute themselves, since every cent of sponsorship was already utilised, he said. And a suggestion that Harbour Nights could be extended to Reid Street and possibly other surrounding areas, could fall foul of logistical problems, he said.

There could be problems with traffic flow and the nature of Reid Street businesses didn't always lend themselves to visitors.