Two people are to lose their jobs after a cafe in Hume closed yesterday because of what the proprietor says is the system’s failure to enforce lease-purpose clauses.
The cafe, at Hill Station, has served the workforce in the industrial suburb for three years, though it is some distance away from the main businesses in the suburb. The proprietor, Paul Smith, said that last month, a staff canteen had opened at Cannons wholesaling outlet. Since it opened his trade had slumped dramatically and he could not stay open.
One full-timer and one part-timer would lose their jobs. Another part-timer would be able to work at the Hill Station Restaurant.
Mr Smith sought and obtained an order from the Department of Land Environment and Planning against Authentic Systems Pty Ltd, the owner of the building occupied by Cannons to restrict the use of its lease to wholesaling. It was to come into force on April 30. It was the first such order issued under new ACT planning legislation.
Authentic appealed to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal which deferred the order late last month and this week set a hearing for May 25 and 26 on the merits of the department’s order.
Mr Smith says this was too late for his business.
The president of the AAT, Lindsay Curtis, said it was a commercial matter that had to be heard as soon as realistically possible given parties have to prepare.
Last year Mr Smith had sought a more central site in the suburb to run a cafe but the ACT Government would not support a retailing lease purpose. He had also sought to run the Cannons site as a cafe if the lease-purpose clause had been changed.
The Government had told him that it would be nominating land for a retailing-cafe site in Hume in October this year and would not issue a temporary lease-purpose elsewhere in the meantime.
Authentic’s solicitor said his client did not wish to comment while the AAT case was under way.