QVMAC Representative, Stephen McLennan, submitted a number of questions
to our CEO on behalf of traders. The questions relate to plans for an
underground car park and the resulting impact on traders. Following are just some
of the questions raised. Jan Cochrane-Harry’s responses are in italics.
1.
How
many stalls have to be trimmed to accommodate the proposed car park?
The proposed
carpark is to go under Sheds A, B and C and the Sheds will be returned with the
floor space the same size as that currently.
Therefore no stalls have to be ‘trimmed’ for the purpose of
accommodating the carpark.
2.
Which
areas of the Market does Management believe need to be trimmed?
I’d like to place
the matter of ‘trimming’, as you put it, in its proper context.
The consistent
feedback is that there is too much repetition and that management and trader
reps need to work together to address this – whether there is an underground
car park or not. It’s not “management’s view”, it is a reflection of what
the customers (and also many fellow traders) are saying. As you know some
traders have multiple stalls selling exactly the same product, and some traders
buy the same stock from the same wholesalers.
It is our
responsibility as management to help keep a focus on what customers want, and
what they are rejecting - in order to keep the market relevant and vibrant. In that context management is simply trying
to ‘guide’ traders and refocus them on their customer. It’s very easyfor
traders to blame management.
We need to
identifyand specify (preferably in consultation with the QVMAC trader
representatives) which categories those are.
It will also depend on the proposed final use of various areas under the
sheds, and how shelter and roofing may affect the amount of usable floor
space. There may also be other types of
product or services which are currently missing that will be considered as
appropriate to have in a future market.
All these things are yet to be considered in depth and will be
incorporated in the Draft Master Plan.
We would be interested in the views of your Trader representatives. However, we are prepared to come back to a
future Trader rep meeting with some preliminary proposals. I cannot commit to timing at this point.
As far as
‘trimming’ though, having facilities below ground should hopefully free up
space at ground level which in effect creates more space for retail and people
to circulate.
We certainly
believe that customer information about location of product and traders needs
to be improved in the immediate term and we are in the process of creating a
customer information centre to help with this.
3.
Would
Management consider asking for voluntary retirements?
We will be asking
everyone what their intentions are for the future.
‘Voluntary
retirements’ are an employer/employee relationship concept, and not really relevant
in an open market small-business environment.
If traders who are considering retiring in the next few years were to
let us know, that would be helpful to other traders and the overall planning
process. Traders have a license and QVM
will work with them within the parameters of those documents, giving as much
advice of probable future intentions as possible once those directions start to
firm.
4.
How
does Management propose to fit the remaining stalls into 3 less aisles?
We are considering
potential use of Marquees and maybe some space in Mr Munro’s building onTherry
Street. All possibilities will be
explored in the next few months. We also
need to consider what the effect is of all the cars that are parked under the
sheds – and whether there is potential
to set up an arrangement with nearby car parks and a possible shuttle
system. Nothing is decided yet – all
creative suggestions will be considered.
We’d be interested in knowing what the Traders reps could suggest.
5.
Will
stalls become smaller to fit everyone in?
Not sure yet what
the intentions of all traders are or how much space saving might be possible
with regard to boxes and cars. Ideally,
we would like traders to be able to keep their sizes (but not necessarily in
multiple locations).
Potential options
and scenarios in relation to the sizes and mix will start to emerge once we have
spoken to every single trader. Further
discussions on the aspect of the Temporary Market will be ongoing, with a plan
expected to emerge in about October.
