Traffic chaos has erupted around Mandurah Forum in the past few weeks, with renovations to “the heart of the south” underway.
Despite limited access, remaining shop owners are trying to carry on as usual.
However, with parking space cut in half, customers are being pushed through a bottleneck, with noticeable traffic jams.
A spokesperson from Vicinity (the company redeveloping the centre) said: “We recognise access is not as easy as it was prior to construction, however we are working to minimise any inconvenience or impact on our retailers.”
They said a new multi-deck car park will open before Christmas.
Despite numerous phone calls to the Mandurah Mail, most shop owners were unwilling to speak out publicly against the conditions they are dealing with.
Ted Miller, former owner of Mandurah Forum Takeaway, said he was happy to represent these owners, since he himself has left.
At the end of last year Mr Miller said he was offered reduced rent if he agreed to break his lease before the 18 months he’d signed on to, to which he agreed.
“[The rent reduction] was meant to start on the first of November... I signed it, they were keen as keen to get me to sign it, but nothing happened from the forum’s end,” he said.
“By nearly the end of March, they came to me and said, verbally, we want you out by the end of April, but still to this day, still haven’t had anything in writing to say,” Mr Miller said.
Towards the end of the period he got his solicitor to notify the Forum they were closing up at the end of April.
Mr Miller has since refused to pay his last two months’ rent, to make up for the fact that his rent was never reduced as offered.
He said he was paying $20 000 per month.
“We weren’t making any money… Our last month’s turnover was down forty percent, and that’s before the car parks closed, so it’s just got worse since then.”
Mr Miller said he felt, in some ways, lucky that he got out when he did.
Many other shop owners have stayed on, and are now suffering greatly reduced profits.
“They’re all shutting up and not saying too much, they want to keep their business going. It’s very hard for these people,” Mr Miller said.
He said: “One shop owner’s leasing agents came through a few weeks ago and said it’s going to get a lot worse than this, ‘cos all the parking’s gone, and they’re not doing anything, they’re saying, oh leave it to later, before we look at dropping the rent, and as this lady said to me yesterday, ‘we won’t be here later, we’re just going to have to walk away’.”
He said he knew about five others that were in the same boat, and believes it is the case for all the smaller stores, though many are unable to speak out due to being franchises.
He said another shop owner had closed already, for the 18 months of renovations, but has his hopes pinned on getting a spot in the new forum.
“I’m surprised he hasn’t had a nervous breakdown, because... his livelihood has stopped for 18 months, and there’s no guarantee at this moment that he’ll get another shop, nothing put down in writing, just verbally told.”
He said that shop owner was offered a lease in the new forum for about $100 000 per year more than what he was paying before the development.
“They just wanted to keep everybody there like now, and get money out of everybody, a bit of cash flow going through, but people just can’t keep going the way it is.”
He said as far as he knows, nobody knows the exact renovation schedule: only a sketchy timeline is laid out on the Forum’s website for the public, which Vicinity are happy to refer people to.
The Vicinity spokesperson said: “Mandurah Forum is committed to keeping our retailers and our local community up-to-date as we redevelop the centre.”
They said they have, and will continue to work closely with the retailers, holding many roundtable sessions and providing the opportunity for every retailer to meet to discuss the stages of construction and anticipated timelines.
“Our Centre Management team are available to all retailers if they have any specific questions or concerns,” the spokesperson said.
Concerns have also arisen among shop owners about securing a spot in the new Forum.
“I knew that we weren’t going to get another store up there, because we’re not a franchise… all they’re looking for up there is franchises; the small man, they don’t want,” Mr Miller said.
Vicinity, on the other hand, said large and small retailers would continue to be part of the centre’s retail community, and they encourage retailers to register their interest at development.mandurahforum.com.au
They denied any of the retailers’ claims about ambiguity in the timeline, and said they have had “proactive and ongoing communication” with the tenants.