The Victorian government agency in charge of the shuttered Central Pier at Docklands knew for almost a year that the 100-year-old structure was at "extreme" risk of collapse before it shut it down abruptly one evening, giving diners at its function centres just 15 minutes to finish their meals.
In October 2018, 10 months before access to the structure was suddenly closed down, Development Victoria general manager Simon Wilson told his agency's senior management and board that, “The previous 'high' risk has been increased to extreme". “Due to the deterioration of the structural integrity of the pier, there is a significantly heightened risk to users including the general public from a catastrophic failure.”
KBR ultimately forced Development Victoria to order the evacuation on August 28, 2019 when it said it was "an unacceptable risk to life" and refused to send its own staff to conduct further inspections. Former tenants Alumbra, Austage Events, the Atlantic Group and the head tenant, Central Pier Pty Ltd, have now taken the matter to court, where each of them is seeking compensation for the shutdown and losses for the six years remaining on their lease.
Development Victoria had the option of terminating Atlantic Group’s lease without paying compensation provided it offered 24 months notice, but it did not act. Instead, the agency claimed, just before shutting down the pier, that Atlantic Group had technically breached a number of minor provisions in its lease agreement. This meant it was not eligible for compensation after the closure.
ChrisVedelago Well I would say that the “extreme” was a little premature. Did anything happen in the 12m period - No!
ChrisVedelago Another example of the Victorian public servants failing Victorians. Lazy, fat, incompetent, irresponsible, inept, dishonest....and paid handsomely for it.
ChrisVedelago More political bias and labor bashing - where is the evidence a structural engineers report?
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