Crown Street upgrade turns into compensation claims

BY Lauren O’Connor
Business owners on lower Crown Street say they want compensation for losses sustained during a ten-month council upgrade.
Beginning in March and ending ten months later, the City of Sydney council gave the section of Crown Street between Devonshire Street and Cleveland Street a makeover. Construction group CAI replaced paving tiles, installed flowerbeds, guttering and widened the footpath, but café and retail store owners say they are not happy with the outcome.
Spiro Dellis owner of Dellis Furniture said it was especially difficult because there was no parking for clients and couriers transporting heavy furniture such as beds, wardrobes and chairs.
“We had people basically going around the block four or five times to try and find parking, we had couriers … not being able to find a park because of all the closures and council truck being in the way,” he said.
He explained that noise and dust from jackhammering as well as heavy machinery taking parking spots affected business for ’11 or 12 months’  and he lost regular and walk-in customers over the construction period.
“We found that our numbers dropped by 80% in the 12 months which is a huge drop as you can imagine for a retail store. The feedback we were getting from our customers was that they were just avoiding the area all together because of the mayhem that was there,” Mr Dellis said.
Council told a City Hub reporter in February the upgrades would improve accessibility and create more space for outdoor dining in the street.
“The City has carried out traffic modelling, including bus movements, which indicates there would be little – if any – impact on traffic flow and parking along Crown Street,” a council spokesperson said.
Lower Crown Street now has speed limit of 40km/h and a reduction in parking spaces, Frank Carioti owner of Italian café and restaurant Franco Franco said the idea might be feasible in a suburb without heavy traffic but Surry Hills relies on its outdoor parking.
“[Customers say] the pasta is good and the pizza is good but I can’t find a parking spot.”
“…There was a lot of mismanagement, lack of vision, management in terms of storage of the goods which should never have been put into Crown Street because that took a lot of spaces away…it’s inefficient, it’s not fuctional,” he said.
Council say they consulted extensively with the community in 2011 but Mr Carioti did not believe the project’s planning was satisfactory, as a result he will be forwarding his complaints to them.
He and fellow café owner Hugh Foster of Café Mint join in challenging council to respond and offer compensation for their collective financial losses. A noticeable drop in turnover percentages was a concern all three men shared. Foster describes the strip as the ‘forgotten end of Crown Street,’ and says though he was not necessarily concerned about the width of the footpaths but he originally welcomed the refurbishment.
“The Christmas decorations for example, always stopped at Devonshire Street, so to hear that the whole area was going to get an upgrade was exciting…there was an element of fun,” Mr Foster said.
Council spokesperson and Project Manager Fiona Solomonides said the project went according to plan and was completed one week ahead of schedule. The upgrade was undertaken in response to a 2011 survey in which the refurbishment was proposed to residents. The construction period ran from March to December last year and included raising the footpath to ‘calm traffic,’ moving overhead power lines underground and improving street lighting.
“The recently completed multi-million dollar upgrade of lower Crown Street shows the City is committed to this part of the community…in delivering better pedestrian access the City has created an attractive precinct for residents and visitors and an environment in which local businesses can flourish,” a council spokesperson said.
Ms Solomonides also indicated more trees are set to be planted along the strip in March but did not comment on whether correspondence would be entered into with complainants.
Mr Foster of Café Mint estimated a loss of “30 to 40 thousand dollars turnover” and believes most business along the street were affected financially by the upgrade.
“What should councils do to recompense people who are going through this, should there be a cessation of rates, should there be a standard level of compensation if they can prove loss?” he asked.
Mr Carioti estimated as much as 50 per cent loss of turnover, saying he hopes to contact council.
“We could show the figures, it’s all there in black and white, it has affected a hell of a lot. We’ll be getting legal advice and we’ll estimate our losses quantified and put in a claim,” he told City Hub.
Furniture dealer Spiro Dellis did not want to comment.
“I wouldn’t want to go into that, but a lot of money, put it that way,” he said.