THE appalling condition of the parking area behind the Federal Hotel and Hammond and Wheatley building and growing public safety concerns about the site has prompted an urgent meeting between the property owners and Council to determine responsibility for repair work.
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The problem is a complex one because the land while privately owned is apparently gazetted for use as a community parking area and includes Council parking signs.
In addition, the construction and upgrade of Church Lane through the site raises questions of potential Council responsibility, the property owner’s claim.
In response to questions from the Courier-Sun, Council spokeswoman and General Manager, Liz Jeremy, said as the land is privately-owned and therefore not the council’s responsibility.
A meeting to resolve the issue - the subject of which has led to several complaining phone calls and letters to this newspaper – was held this week (July 1). Ms Jeremy says Council has also raised concerns with the building’s two owners.
“Council records indicate that the car park behind the Hammond and Wheatley building and the Federal Hotel and the Federal Hotel is privately owned and not the responsibility of Council.
“Notwithstanding that, Council wrote to the property in April this year advising them of a complaint received regarding the car park and expressing our concerns,” she said.
“Since then a number of discussions have occurred, however, in an endeavour to resolve the issues, a meeting with the two property owners has been organised for next week (July 2).”
But long-time Hammond and Wheatley owner, Keith Glover, dismissed the council’s version of events saying he has been trying for more than nine years to resolve the question of responsibility.
It was council who determined the area “cannot be used for any other purpose other than parking” Mr Glover said.
As proof, he said he received no notification of recent repair work to Church Lane which intersects the parking area, evidence that the council is the defacto administrator of the site.
“They (council) made it a one-way road through my property but they never spoke about it,” he told the Courier-Sun.
“The best way to handle this is for Council to take over the maintenance for it as they put the road through it.
We (Hammond and Wheatley) don’t generate any heavy traffic,” Mr Glover added, referring to the steady shuttle of commercial goods trucks that use the area.
Owner of the Federal Hotel, Michael Sutherland, laughed at the suggestion a meeting to resolve the question of responsibility had been organised by the Council.
“The council didn’t organize anything – I did it. If we’d left it to the council nothing would have happened,” he said.
He said, the rear of the hotel for which he has nominal responsibility was in “perfect condition” after spending more than $10,000 for repair work including lighting, line marking and disabled parking bays, a condition imposed by the council as part of approval for a rear deck extension.
Now, Mr Sutherland says he has been forced to take the extraordinary step of issuing clarifying advice to pub patrons saying the remaining damaged section is not his responsibility but councils who have sign posted the area which is policed by parking inspectors.
““It’s in my best interest to have a functioning car park. But, it troubles me greatly that we cannot get ahead on this issue.”
Not so, says Mr Glover. Yes, the area is privately owned but unclear planning laws have allowed the site to be used for community parking, with official sign posts proof of council’s responsibility.
This claim is supported by recent sightings of the council parking inspector prowling the lot.
Mr Glover said the space allocation belonging to the Hammond and Wheatley portion of land provides for 16 parking bays. “There is a question of public safety,” he said.