1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:03,120 Speaker 1: Joining me on the line right now is Meredith Kosh. 2 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:05,800 Speaker 1: She's the company director of Cosh Group of properties. They 3 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:08,959 Speaker 1: own the likes of North Lakes and Palm Plaza. Good 4 00:00:08,960 --> 00:00:11,440 Speaker 1: morning to Emeredis. 5 00:00:11,320 --> 00:00:12,280 Speaker 2: Good morning Katie. 6 00:00:12,360 --> 00:00:13,680 Speaker 3: How are you not too bad? 7 00:00:13,800 --> 00:00:17,360 Speaker 1: I really appreciate your calling this morning, Meredith. I understand 8 00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:19,760 Speaker 1: that you've had some real issues out at North Lakes 9 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:20,520 Speaker 1: Shopping Center. 10 00:00:22,280 --> 00:00:27,480 Speaker 2: Katie. We have issues all over Darwin and the Greater 11 00:00:27,560 --> 00:00:33,040 Speaker 2: Darwen region and the properties that we own, and those 12 00:00:33,120 --> 00:00:36,960 Speaker 2: issues are causing us a great deal of banks, They're 13 00:00:36,960 --> 00:00:41,440 Speaker 2: causing our customers a great deal of banks, and they're 14 00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:46,159 Speaker 2: they've escalated to the point that we no longer know 15 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:49,560 Speaker 2: how to approach these problems. We've had meetings with the 16 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:53,519 Speaker 2: Chief Minister, We've had meetings with local councilors, We've had 17 00:00:53,560 --> 00:00:59,160 Speaker 2: meetings with MLAs. We actually have a warden MLA in 18 00:00:59,200 --> 00:01:04,000 Speaker 2: our own Flake shopping center. And it appears to us 19 00:01:04,080 --> 00:01:08,960 Speaker 2: that the owners of not just shopping centers, but commercial 20 00:01:08,959 --> 00:01:13,200 Speaker 2: buildings and the like, the onus is put on us 21 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:17,960 Speaker 2: to require some sort of knee jerk reaction in funding 22 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:24,360 Speaker 2: to deal with the problem as it occurs, rather than 23 00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 2: there be actions that pre empt either preamps the problem 24 00:01:30,920 --> 00:01:36,360 Speaker 2: or when the Minister talks about the wide and varied 25 00:01:36,400 --> 00:01:40,199 Speaker 2: and complex issues that she's dealing with and is trying 26 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:46,679 Speaker 2: to solve. There is nothing that is immediate to these offenders. 27 00:01:46,959 --> 00:01:48,240 Speaker 2: Could I give you some examples? 28 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:50,080 Speaker 3: Absolutely, So. 29 00:01:50,360 --> 00:01:55,040 Speaker 2: For example, we had recently three juveniles that were all 30 00:01:55,040 --> 00:02:01,200 Speaker 2: wearing ankle bracelets, smash and I think you would where 31 00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:07,760 Speaker 2: already smashed the subway, smashed all the glass, smashed the 32 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:13,519 Speaker 2: interior glass, pictures and fittings, and they stabbed a customer 33 00:02:13,560 --> 00:02:18,040 Speaker 2: in the legs, and they used pocket knife to threaten 34 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:24,280 Speaker 2: the liquorand security guard to return back into the inside 35 00:02:24,360 --> 00:02:28,480 Speaker 2: of the Northlake shopping center. Now I have, as you 36 00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:30,560 Speaker 2: can imagine, every time there's in a sense, we need 37 00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:32,720 Speaker 2: to speak to the police. We get a promise number 38 00:02:32,720 --> 00:02:36,079 Speaker 2: and find out what's happening. Now, those three juveniles were 39 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:40,600 Speaker 2: already on three lots of bail, so they are wearing 40 00:02:40,639 --> 00:02:43,640 Speaker 2: their ankle bracelets. They are already on this third veil, 41 00:02:44,560 --> 00:02:47,680 Speaker 2: and the police have explained to me that because the 42 00:02:47,760 --> 00:02:52,120 Speaker 2: system takes so long, so if they're charged, they'll be 43 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:55,680 Speaker 2: released the next morning after they've appeared in court. Then 44 00:02:55,720 --> 00:02:58,840 Speaker 2: they may need to reappear in reappear in another three months, 45 00:02:58,880 --> 00:03:02,680 Speaker 2: and they'll inapt six months throughout this process, so it 46 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:07,200 Speaker 2: generally takes I am told by the police, approximately twelve 47 00:03:07,280 --> 00:03:11,040 Speaker 2: months to actually deal with an offense. So in the meantime, 48 00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:17,040 Speaker 2: these juveniles are allowed to behave as they please, whereby 49 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:23,440 Speaker 2: they are not showing to have any repercussion if they 50 00:03:23,760 --> 00:03:27,119 Speaker 2: are wearing these ankle bracelets and then reasfend. 51 00:03:27,520 --> 00:03:28,560 Speaker 3: It's unbelievable. 52 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:31,680 Speaker 2: What I'm trying to push for is change at the 53 00:03:31,720 --> 00:03:37,040 Speaker 2: top where these if they're juveniles, were not juveniles. The 54 00:03:37,080 --> 00:03:40,120 Speaker 2: age is really neither here nor there. That they are 55 00:03:40,160 --> 00:03:43,760 Speaker 2: taken out of town rather than just put you know, 56 00:03:43,800 --> 00:03:47,520 Speaker 2: the police call their system the laundromats. They pick them up, 57 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:49,960 Speaker 2: they wash them up, they hang them out to dry, 58 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:53,960 Speaker 2: and they put them out again. That the attrition rate 59 00:03:54,040 --> 00:03:56,760 Speaker 2: in the Northern Territory for police is about eleven percent. 60 00:03:57,120 --> 00:04:01,480 Speaker 2: So how can you possibly expect a police person to 61 00:04:01,560 --> 00:04:04,440 Speaker 2: put on his uniform every day with a positive approach 62 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:06,920 Speaker 2: to what he's going to have before him when he 63 00:04:07,080 --> 00:04:10,360 Speaker 2: knows that there is a great likelihood all he's going 64 00:04:10,400 --> 00:04:14,720 Speaker 2: to do is run the laundromat, be the taxi driver 65 00:04:15,360 --> 00:04:19,279 Speaker 2: pick up the offender, take them in and I listen 66 00:04:19,400 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 2: to the sentinel directors earlier. The issue we also have 67 00:04:27,920 --> 00:04:30,880 Speaker 2: is it's all very well to move the bus into change, 68 00:04:31,080 --> 00:04:36,799 Speaker 2: and again there is another example of the private enterprise 69 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:40,520 Speaker 2: having to have to deal with the public problems, whereby 70 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:44,080 Speaker 2: they have to spend all this money on moving the interchange. 71 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:51,040 Speaker 2: So again they don't seem to want to listen to 72 00:04:51,080 --> 00:04:54,280 Speaker 2: the fact that these are just knee jerk reactions. They 73 00:04:54,400 --> 00:04:58,080 Speaker 2: need the repercussion so that in the meantime, while they're 74 00:04:58,080 --> 00:05:01,359 Speaker 2: waiting to be heard in court, they are not going 75 00:05:01,400 --> 00:05:04,720 Speaker 2: to be back at that interchange, regardless of where it is, 76 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:07,960 Speaker 2: because the police just can't be their capes. We call 77 00:05:08,000 --> 00:05:11,480 Speaker 2: the police for any of our shopping centers, casual in 78 00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 2: a village. Also we have shops in casing a village 79 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:20,159 Speaker 2: that's a Strata title property. They can't get there within 80 00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:24,159 Speaker 2: twenty minutes or forty minutes quite often because they're dealing 81 00:05:24,200 --> 00:05:26,200 Speaker 2: with the last lots that they picked up. They've got 82 00:05:26,200 --> 00:05:29,440 Speaker 2: to be process that removes those police out of the system. 83 00:05:30,600 --> 00:05:34,200 Speaker 3: It is when we talk sorry, it's such like it is. 84 00:05:34,320 --> 00:05:37,840 Speaker 1: So it's such a difficult situation that people are dealing 85 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:39,880 Speaker 1: with at the moment. You know, I like, I feel 86 00:05:39,880 --> 00:05:43,880 Speaker 1: for you guys, I feel for businesses, I feel for homeowners, 87 00:05:44,040 --> 00:05:47,320 Speaker 1: everybody that's being impacted by this, and I just can't 88 00:05:47,400 --> 00:05:52,200 Speaker 1: understand why there's not some urgency from the government exactly exactly. 89 00:05:52,360 --> 00:05:56,880 Speaker 2: So we've had our letters to the Chief Minister. We 90 00:05:57,720 --> 00:06:01,719 Speaker 2: get her letters back and they're these they're just bland 91 00:06:02,240 --> 00:06:06,280 Speaker 2: comments about we understand the situation. We understand it's complex. 92 00:06:06,320 --> 00:06:09,600 Speaker 2: We're always looking for wide and varied ways. There's a 93 00:06:09,640 --> 00:06:13,240 Speaker 2: really simple way to deal with this, and it's going 94 00:06:13,279 --> 00:06:19,160 Speaker 2: to assist with people getting jobs. They set up some 95 00:06:19,200 --> 00:06:22,080 Speaker 2: sort of for want of a better word, out of 96 00:06:22,240 --> 00:06:28,320 Speaker 2: town areas where these offenders need to work. I don't 97 00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:31,080 Speaker 2: I really don't believe community service would work where they've 98 00:06:31,080 --> 00:06:33,479 Speaker 2: got to come back and clean up their own miss 99 00:06:34,839 --> 00:06:38,520 Speaker 2: that that has often proven not to work because of 100 00:06:38,520 --> 00:06:42,320 Speaker 2: the lack of supervisory staff ye and the powers of 101 00:06:42,360 --> 00:06:48,280 Speaker 2: those supervisory staff. So they need to be removed and 102 00:06:48,560 --> 00:06:52,520 Speaker 2: then let's see if they like the way that works 103 00:06:52,520 --> 00:06:55,520 Speaker 2: for them, rather than put an ankle bracelet on them 104 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:57,680 Speaker 2: and then they just turn up the next day in 105 00:06:57,720 --> 00:07:00,680 Speaker 2: the same location. If I can draw talked to you 106 00:07:00,960 --> 00:07:04,640 Speaker 2: as well about the costings. Yeah, so the Sentinel have 107 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:08,680 Speaker 2: said that their cleaning bill is ten thousand a month. 108 00:07:08,839 --> 00:07:11,559 Speaker 3: Yeah, just for outside, just for that car park area. 109 00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:12,200 Speaker 2: Correct. 110 00:07:12,400 --> 00:07:12,600 Speaker 1: Yep. 111 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:16,840 Speaker 2: So our cleaning bill for the last five years has 112 00:07:17,280 --> 00:07:19,800 Speaker 2: hovered around the eight thousand dollar mark. And that is 113 00:07:19,840 --> 00:07:23,240 Speaker 2: for our car park, the Lynx Road area. This is 114 00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:26,800 Speaker 2: for North Lakes shopping Center. I'm speaking specifically the Lynx 115 00:07:26,920 --> 00:07:29,680 Speaker 2: Road area and the inside of the shopping center. 116 00:07:29,840 --> 00:07:31,560 Speaker 3: And so that's a month, is it, Meridith? 117 00:07:32,320 --> 00:07:36,720 Speaker 2: Eight thousand a month? We now are paying eleven thousand 118 00:07:37,040 --> 00:07:42,280 Speaker 2: a month because we have the itinerants coming into the 119 00:07:42,320 --> 00:07:45,480 Speaker 2: shopping center. They too, they leave it on the ground, 120 00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:49,600 Speaker 2: they make mess. We get there the next our cleaners 121 00:07:49,600 --> 00:07:54,280 Speaker 2: get there early the next morning. Even Kate Warten rings 122 00:07:54,360 --> 00:07:57,480 Speaker 2: us frequently during the week to ask us to clean 123 00:07:57,560 --> 00:07:59,880 Speaker 2: up the mess that's been left outside her back to 124 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:05,320 Speaker 2: or so. On top of cleaning costs, we then have 125 00:08:07,040 --> 00:08:12,080 Speaker 2: we did a trial period for a month whereby we 126 00:08:12,120 --> 00:08:15,640 Speaker 2: had security from ten am around the clock through to 127 00:08:15,800 --> 00:08:18,880 Speaker 2: five am, so we were without security from five am 128 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:23,520 Speaker 2: to ten am. That was twenty three thousand dollars for 129 00:08:23,600 --> 00:08:24,080 Speaker 2: that month. 130 00:08:24,640 --> 00:08:28,320 Speaker 3: Wow, it's it's unsustainable Haiti. 131 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:33,679 Speaker 2: On top of that, the security company informed us that unfortunately, 132 00:08:34,240 --> 00:08:39,480 Speaker 2: because of the experiences that security guard experience, they could 133 00:08:39,520 --> 00:08:44,200 Speaker 2: not have only one security guard. They would need us 134 00:08:44,240 --> 00:08:50,440 Speaker 2: to employ two security guards all this safety during certain periods. Goodness, 135 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:56,719 Speaker 2: we know that the dog handlers security guard works. That 136 00:08:56,840 --> 00:09:01,320 Speaker 2: comes also at a massive cost. And look, the North 137 00:09:01,320 --> 00:09:05,480 Speaker 2: Slakes shopping center we speak specifically about it has always 138 00:09:05,520 --> 00:09:10,760 Speaker 2: been a small, quiet, pleasant shopping center for people to 139 00:09:10,800 --> 00:09:15,840 Speaker 2: come and quietly do their weekly shopping. I'm not really 140 00:09:15,880 --> 00:09:20,800 Speaker 2: sure how people would feel with a rottweiler or some 141 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:24,720 Speaker 2: large dogs that they know is capable of aggressions. 142 00:09:26,040 --> 00:09:26,480 Speaker 1: I don't know. 143 00:09:26,559 --> 00:09:31,280 Speaker 2: Just makes you feel safer? Does it make you feel wary? Look, 144 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:37,200 Speaker 2: we own some several properties throughout the city. We can't 145 00:09:37,240 --> 00:09:43,160 Speaker 2: tenant high rise buildings in the CBD because when a 146 00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:49,240 Speaker 2: does show tenants around, they have to step over itinerants 147 00:09:49,800 --> 00:09:53,119 Speaker 2: to get in the door, they have to step over species, 148 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:56,400 Speaker 2: they have to step over rubbish. 149 00:09:56,679 --> 00:09:58,520 Speaker 3: Something has got to change. 150 00:09:58,920 --> 00:10:03,160 Speaker 2: I mean, and all you do, if you walk around 151 00:10:03,200 --> 00:10:08,560 Speaker 2: the city, you will hear everybody say exactly the same thing. 152 00:10:09,200 --> 00:10:12,520 Speaker 2: We have tenants who have their doors locked during the day. 153 00:10:12,600 --> 00:10:16,960 Speaker 2: Now in the city because they can't run the risk 154 00:10:17,040 --> 00:10:19,959 Speaker 2: of being threatened if our terearance come in the door 155 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:20,920 Speaker 2: and they want money. 156 00:10:21,559 --> 00:10:23,440 Speaker 3: It's unbelievable meritis. 157 00:10:23,440 --> 00:10:25,280 Speaker 1: I'm really sorry we are going to have to wrap 158 00:10:25,400 --> 00:10:27,680 Speaker 1: up just because if we have honestly got so many 159 00:10:27,679 --> 00:10:31,000 Speaker 1: people calling through on this issue this morning, you know 160 00:10:31,400 --> 00:10:32,160 Speaker 1: we've got. 161 00:10:32,920 --> 00:10:35,920 Speaker 3: And it's a lot for us to try and sort 162 00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:36,559 Speaker 3: of take in. 163 00:10:36,880 --> 00:10:39,960 Speaker 1: I really appreciate your calling this morning and giving us 164 00:10:40,000 --> 00:10:43,559 Speaker 1: that perspective. I think it is incredibly important for people 165 00:10:43,559 --> 00:10:47,360 Speaker 1: to hear the impact that this is having really very 166 00:10:47,800 --> 00:10:52,160 Speaker 1: broadly across the community on so many people, so many businesses, 167 00:10:52,360 --> 00:10:53,520 Speaker 1: absolutely everybody. 168 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:56,000 Speaker 3: At this point, it is it is. 169 00:10:57,400 --> 00:10:59,720 Speaker 2: I think it's fair to say we are all nearly 170 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:01,280 Speaker 2: reached breaking point. Katie. 171 00:11:01,600 --> 00:11:04,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, Meredith, thanks so much for having a chat with 172 00:11:04,520 --> 00:11:05,120 Speaker 1: me this morning. 173 00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:07,960 Speaker 3: I really appreciate your time, pleasure. 174 00:11:08,040 --> 00:11:09,000 Speaker 2: Thank you.