Still hurting: Business owners Henry Butler (3 Degrees Coffee), Civic Shoes’ Milton Vassiliotis and Strategic Psychology’s Nesh Nikolic. Photo: Supplied.
Business owners impacted by the closure of the Theatre Lane carpark have accused Chief Minister Andrew Barr of misleading the Legislative Assembly as the loss of convenient parking continues to erode trading.
The carpark closed on 14 October to become a works compound for the Lyric Theatre project, immediately hurting nearby businesses, including a national chain that is now moving to new premises.
A petition calling for at least 60 per cent of the carpark to be reopened has garnered 773 signatures, and an open letter to the ACT Government about 200.
During a debate on a 30 October motion in the Legislative Assembly to reopen part of the carpark, Mr Barr said the government would “continue to undertake regular, substantive and ongoing consultation with businesses impacted by the construction projects, including through monthly City Construction Information Group meetings”.
But Strategic Psychology Managing Director Nesh Nikolic said the consultation was a sham, and officials had confirmed to him that, legally, it was not required, and there would be no report of the process provided.
Mr Nikolic said officials at the monthly City Construction Information Group meeting on Monday (24 November) had stated: “There is no statutory or policy basis for consultation or notification on the carpark. Because of this process, there is no consultation report.”
He said this raised questions about accountability and community engagement in major infrastructure projects, especially given viable alternatives that could allow construction to proceed while partially reopening the carpark.
A month on from the closure, nothing had changed.
This was despite Mr Barr’s commitments in the Assembly for the government to explore more street parking options, including reopening loading zones.
Mr Nikolic said Planning Minister Chris Steel had told him last weekend that the contract for the theatre project had not yet been signed, so on Monday, Mr Nikolic asked officials whether, if this was the case, a formal consultation process on the carpark closure would now be conducted.
He also pressed Multiplex on how much of the carpark it could do without and carry on construction.
Both questions went unanswered.
Chief Minister Andrew Barr insists the entire carpark is needed. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
Mr Barr emphatically told the Assembly that keeping 60 per cent of the carpark open was not possible due to the need for a crane exclusion zone for safety reasons.
But Mr Nikolic remains unconvinced that the entire carpark should be lost to city goers.
“It’s a complete disregard for the community amenities and access and the like, even though I think it’s very reasonable that construction could still go ahead without the entire footprint [of the carpark],” he said.
But Mr Barr did say the government intended to reopen a section of the carpark as the light rail stage 2A projects conclude.
But by then, it might be too late for some of the businesses.
Mr Nikolic said the owners were struggling as customer numbers dried up.
“I know of a significant chain that’s being forced to move,” he said.
“I’ve walked into other businesses, and it’s dead quiet, and we’re obviously trying to talk about how we stimulate movement on this.”
Mr Nikolic said that for his practice, appointment availability was high, client retention was down, and clients were often late, shortening their sessions and causing flow-on effects during the day.
“That’s where it’s obviously very concerning if people aren’t accessing sessions as often, their wellbeing naturally will decline,” he said.
Other health providers, such as GPs and dentists, were in the same boat.
All the Bailey’s Corner businesses, some of which had been there for years, were affected.
Mr Nikolic said people were no longer willing to walk there for services, particularly when the weather was bad.
An ACT Government spokesperson said the carpark closure to enable the construction of the Lyric Theatre and light rail Stage 2A was no surprise, and significant consultation had occurred for both projects.
Both projects featured prominently in the election, the 2019 ACT Infrastructure plan, and the Canberra Civic and Cultural District concept.
The spokesperson said that when light rail construction works on London Circuit east are complete by late 2026, the government intends to reinstate a row of parking with 20 spaces, 10 of which will be accessible.
Civil works near Bailey’s Corner were on track to be completed by mid-2026, when the loading zone there would be reinstated.
This would also enable the temporary Theatre Lane carpark loading zone to be configured as car parking places.
This month, two new accessible permit parking spaces returned to the temporary loading zone area of London Circuit near Northbourne Avenue in November 2025.
The spokesperson said government and Multiplex representatives would continue to meet with businesses to help them understand why the whole site was needed during site establishment.
“We continue to discuss opportunities to deliver business support measures,” the spokesperson said.
