THE Royal Hotel’s Rob Fisher believes Gannawarra Shire Council has not been doing enough to support businesses impacted by COVID-19 restrictions.
The Kerang publican is angry about the response he received when he requested a waiver of the waste collection charge for the period that he was shut down.
“I reckon I got duck shoved,” he said.
“It upset me quite a lot.”
Mr Fisher said he pays commercial rates of $8000 a year, around $3000 of which is for rubbish collection.
With the pub forced to close for six months from March he believes a waiver of the waste collection charge was reasonable.
“How can you be charging in excess of $3000 for rubbish collection when I’m closed?” he said.
“Is full cost recovery the way you show leadership to a business community?”
After contacting the council about the issue Mr Fisher received a letter referring him to its COVID-19 hardship policy, which allows only for a halt on rates and a waiver of interest.
When he asked to have the matter referred to councillors to consider he was told he was free to contact the councillors himself.
“All they had to do was say, ‘That’s been noted. We’ll make sure it gets to the council briefing,” he said.
“At least give me the chance to talk to the appropriate people, rather than stonewall me and say the policy is inevitable.”
However, after expressing his frustration to Gannawarra Shire staff and speaking to the Gannawarra Times, on Friday Mr Fisher received a phone call from council CEO Tom O’Reilly that gave him cause for hope.
“I am hopeful after speaking to the CEO that following my submission of evidence of my financial situation, me and other people in a similar situation might be able to get some action on rate relief,” Mr Fisher said.
Another hospitality business owner who would welcome that is Koondrook’s Mates Royal Hotel owner Susan Miller-Membrey.
Ms Miller-Membrey said she felt there had been a lack of council support for her pub in light of the COVID-19 crisis.
“You hear about some towns dropping the rates for all businesses, because it has been a big issue,” she said.
“It’s been a bit of a nightmare really, and no-one [from the council] has really bothered to ask how we’re going.”
She was also unhappy about the long-term issue of being required to pay rubbish collection charges for a service she doesn’t use.
She said her hotel rents a skip bin directly from Veolia but has been paying $350 every four months in council collection charges for the last seven years.
“They say it’s our problem,” she said.
“But if you don’t use the service, you shouldn’t have to pay for it.”
