QVM Renewal Debate Heats Up

Discussion around the placement of the market car park and the impact of construction on trading has fired up some debate around the Queen Victoria Market. And this is perfectly understandable given the impact on people and their businesses. We have picked a few commonly asked questions for scrutiny and we want to stress that the opinions expressed are not intended as substitutes for doing your own due diligence and assessing issues for yourself.

Is this proposed underground car park locked in? – No. As we understand it the underground car park under A, B, and C sheds is one of a number of options being considered by QVM. At this early stage it is their preferred option.

Why is this the QVM preferred option? – We cannot speak for QVM but we do know that placing the car park as close as possible to the trading areas and keeping it on-site (i.e. under QVM control) were important factors.

Is this the best option for traders? – Specialty Traders (general merchandise) asked for alternatives to underground on-site parking because of the disruption to trade during construction. Whether or not the ABC underground option is the best option overall it will impact to some degree on trade and it can be argued that Specialty Traders will be the most inconvenienced.

How will Specialty Traders be inconvenienced? – If the ABC underground option is adopted, a possible option is for traders in those three sheds to be incorporated into the balance of the top end (sheds D to M) with some overflow into perhaps a Queen St. Marquee, H & I sheds, or even the Franklin St. storerooms. Inevitably this will cause restriction to the number and size of stalls available for trading. We do not know any detail at this early stage of concept discussion.

Why aren’t we considering a multi-level carpark on the current car park site? – The current car park is the site of a graveyard and has been allocated to parkland as part of the vision for QVM to become the “Federation Square of the North”.

Won’t an underground car park take the bulk of the $250m renewal package? – We have a credible quotation that places the cost of putting the existing number of car park spaces underground at less than $40m.

When will all this happen? – There are a number of processes to go through. Construction is not anticipated before 2016/17.

What comes next? – We are at the early stages of considering just one renewal component, albeit an important one. Over coming weeks we will need to delve into the detail of the car park option, work out the impact on traders, and what measures are needed to help protect trader’s interests.

What should I do? – Keep yourself informed through your QVMAC Representatives, read this website (Victraders), read Trader Bulletins, checkout the QVM Trader’s Hub, and attend meetings as they are called.

Any more issues you would like traders to consider? We are happy to discuss, criticise, praise, or dissect any aspect of renewal. Simply click on Have Your Say below.

Have Your Say - click here.

COMMENTS:
27/03/2014 10:43:58 Underground car park "In your points you mention that the underground car park is quoted at approx $40 million to complete for the same number of spaces.......
Why are we even contemplating building a new car park, that has the same number of spaces? Is this not a waste of time and money, and not to mention the impact to the livelyhoods to all of the market traders. We already have issues with a car park that is not able to cope with the all it is required to do, ie: market office staff, security staff, fruit & veggie trucks, general merchandise traders, box hire staff and the staff of stall holders within the market parking within this car parking using a large portion already. 
We need a larger car park, not one the same size."