“Look, I do bend the law. It’s a very benign bend of the law. Like, the plant’s meant to be here, however, it’s over there, and it’s outside the law by one metre.
Loading
“But the plants look better on the street. I want to keep bending the laws so I can take it to court and say, this is ridiculous, can we please change the law?”
Chu said it was “very frustrating” that business owners who tried to make the city “green and fantastic” were “confronted with all this red tape”.
“Most people actually say ‘thank you’ for making this such a beautiful street to walk down. Rarely do they say, you’re a d–khead for putting plants in, and I hate how you’ve gentrified the street.”
A City of Sydney spokesman said the council had approved two applications that expanded the outdoor dining area to a total of 53 square metres along Roslyn Street in the past two months.
Those areas provided “sufficient space for pedestrian circulation” past the site. However, the council received “ongoing complaints about extra furniture, umbrellas and planters beyond the business’ approved outdoor trading area, obstructing the footpath and causing difficulties for pedestrians”.
A submission to the City of Sydney Council complained about pot plants on the footpath outside Lady Chu restaurant on Roslyn Street, Potts Point. Here seen from the opposite angle.
The spokesman said the council had held “several meetings with the business owner regarding these breaches”.
“We are trying to work collaboratively with the business to balance its desire for additional items and the needs of the community to access this public footpath.
“We will continue to work with this business to ensure it can enjoy the free use of city footpaths while understanding its obligation to maintain sufficient space for others, including those pushing prams or for wheelchairs.”
Loading
The restaurant’s recent application to expand its outdoor dining attracted one negative submission, which argued the plan should be refused as the business had “extended their outdoor seating well outside the applications almost to the corner of Roslyn Street and Kellett Lane for weeks”.
The submission included photographs of outdoor furniture and pot plants in the precinct, and complained that “large plants pots owned by the restaurant are left on the street 24/7”.
“Pedestrians walking up the southern side of Roslyn Street have to walk in single file or cross the street when the restaurant is operating.”
Night Time Industries Association chief executive Mick Gibb said hospitality businesses in Sydney often complained that local government red-tape was “all-pervading” and unnecessarily complex.
“If the council has issues with a business and how they’re operating, and concerns have been raised, of course they’re going to go and investigate, but there’s a time and a place for these things.
“Going at 7pm on a Saturday evening to one of the most popular restaurants in Potts Point is far from a commonsense approach,” Gibb said.
“You need to remember these are business operators trying to make a living … They’re trying to do the right thing operating in a very, very tough market and local, state and federal governments should be doing everything possible to help them along.”
–with Kishor Napier-Raman
Read the full article here
