Fremantle council have failed miserably
Fremantle council have failed miserably as custodians of the Fremantle markets. As a public asset they need to address the fact that they have allowed private enterprise to pocket ratepayer money. The council has written themselves out of the controlling seat and allowed the very nature of the markets to be vulnerable and compromised. There are very serious questions which must be asked and answered:
How professional are your processes and outcomes.
Did you achieve the best deal for the ratepayers?
How much has this debacle cost the ratepayers in legal fees and council administrative time?
What happened to your stated intent of the “Low Cost Environment?”
Jamie Murdoch said on Stateline that average rents are *$300. (3 days trade)
That figure multiplied by 173 stalls x 52weeks = $2.7 million. Rent to council $550,000.
Who got it wrong? Council valuer or Murdoch valuer? Is a 400% Murdoch profit ethical or acceptable?
* $300 is understated but not worth arguing about, I think the figures above make the point.
And even now, a year later, all parties agreed to review the valuations and accept the umpire’s decision but the council has once again been wishy-washy in their instruction. Why have they not called for a full and independent evaluation without biased instruction? Why is the report marked confidential rather than have full transparency to all concern parties. The specific brief only questioned if the Murdoch valuation was ‘within the range of fair market rent’. The conclusion was that it was but, that is not a defined estimate of value.
This is of vital importance as the repercussions will be far reaching. This valuation will impact on commercial real estate throughout the Fremantle CBD. The council is already lamenting the recent loss of a number of large retailers and the impact of that on surrounding businesses. It’s no secret that the markets have had enormous pulling power over the years and that businesses through the town have profited by the overflow of traffic. It seems that the council, like the Murdoch, view the markets as just another shopping venue but time will tell the story.
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Labels: fremantle council and the markets, john and jamie murdoch
posted by Editor at 9:18 AM
3 Comments:
2,700,000 upon 550,000 does not give the 400% PROFIT you stated. There rare hundreds of thousands of dollars in operations to pay for. Your statement is unprofessional and misleading
The original post is 2009 and it is now 2011. I think the evidence is in and Fremantle has suffered and declined; the people have long gone and now the council is sucking up to retailers throughout the CBD trying to convince them to hang in. The stallholders lost their livelihoods and the markets lost its soul and now the council is losing the big end of town. Boo hoo I couldn’t care less about nit picking with you. Let me offer you the same advice the council offered us - get over it and move on.
...and as for your 'unprofessional' comment I offer you the heartiest chuckle and snicker.
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