The local action group Friends of Erskineville organised the
gathering and sausage sizzle. The action group, which comprises approximately
30 Erskineville residents who oppose the development of the supermarket, was originally
set up to provide a medium for Erskineville residents to discuss and ask
questions concerning the Development Application proposal and process. Well
over 100 Erskineville residents turned up to the gathering on the Village
Green, highlighting the very broad community support for the integrity of the
unique suburb.
At present, there stands an application to build a 2,138
square metre, two-level Woolworths supermarket at what is currently known as
the HIVE building on the corner of Erskineville
Road and Gowrie
Street. The action group’s website states that
such a development could increase traffic to unmanageable levels, impact parking
and cause closures of the boutique shops.
Brett Mason, a member of the action group, discussed the
traffic scenario at the Village Green, informing residents that the current
Development Application proposes 30 car parking spaces, yet Woolworths would
need approximately 300 customers per hour to break even financially. “Combined
with deliveries being made by trucks and vans on an already gridlocked traffic
situation in Erskineville, this could have disastrous consequences for the
village”.
Artro Management Pty Ltd, which lodged the development
application, currently seeks a 12-month trial of 7am to midnight opening hours,
seven days per week. According to Artro, no deliveries would be made outside of
those hours and would only occur in a loading dock behind the supermarket.
Local resident and semi-retired architect Virginia
Pearson-Smith believes that Woolworths would aim to monopolise the grocery
industry in the area by lowering their prices to levels that other businesses
cannot viably compete with. “The theory is that when they do that, the local
shops will pull out, go bankrupt or move on. That’s their strategy.”
The Development Application is still in assessment by the
City of Sydney Council.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said that it is unlikely to go to committee before May
at the earliest, as she would first like to seek preliminary expert advice on
traffic. She addressed residents directly, informing them that “as decision
makers, we are going to get the report and all the information and then we will
have to make that decision”.
The action group remains confident. Since the December 12,
more than 200 residents have attended community meetings about the proposal and
326 individual letters have been written to the City of Sydney Council and to Woolworths. In
addition, over 4,000 people have signed a petition demanding a suspension of
the Development Application until a full impact study has been completed, and
proper, informed community consultation has taken place.
Friends of Erskineville spokesperson Paul Howard says that
whatever the outcome, Erskineville has achieved its objective as a community,
as the council is giving a serious evaluation of this proposal.
Saso Bosevski, a local delicatessen owner, summed up the
arguments of many residents aptly. “Erskineville is not a village in need of a
supermarket. Erskineville is a village because we don’t have a supermarket.”
For more information, please visit the Friends of
Erskineville Working Group’s
website: www.erskinevillevillage.org
Photo: Benjamin Tedeschi Erskineville residents against
proposed supermarket
Source: South Sydney Herald April 2008 – www.southsydneyherald.com.au