1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:03,440 Speaker 1: Now we know major upgrades to Casuarina Square, costing around 2 00:00:03,520 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: sixty million dollars, are now underway. The shopping center owners, 3 00:00:07,560 --> 00:00:10,200 Speaker 1: Sentinel Property Groups, sees the facelift is going to be 4 00:00:10,200 --> 00:00:13,360 Speaker 1: one of the largest since the complex opened back in 5 00:00:13,440 --> 00:00:16,720 Speaker 1: May nineteen seventy three. Now on the line to tell 6 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:20,600 Speaker 1: us more is Sentinel Property Group CEO Warren Eberst. 7 00:00:20,640 --> 00:00:21,840 Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Warren. 8 00:00:22,760 --> 00:00:24,600 Speaker 3: Good morning, Katie, good morning. 9 00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:26,080 Speaker 2: Good to have you on the show. 10 00:00:26,239 --> 00:00:28,360 Speaker 1: Warren, tell me a little bit more about the first 11 00:00:28,400 --> 00:00:30,800 Speaker 1: phase of this work that's underway now. 12 00:00:33,040 --> 00:00:37,879 Speaker 3: Okay, Well, one of the early focuses on changing the 13 00:00:38,040 --> 00:00:42,640 Speaker 3: core of the dining precinct, which was never designed or 14 00:00:42,680 --> 00:00:46,800 Speaker 3: built for purpose. It's fine if we was down in Melbourne, 15 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:49,720 Speaker 3: but it just doesn't work for the climate we have 16 00:00:49,800 --> 00:00:56,440 Speaker 3: in Darwin. It's not air conditioned, it's semi enclosed. It 17 00:00:56,440 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 3: has a dark roof that has a cobblestone. Floyd can't 18 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:04,000 Speaker 3: push that shopping trolley on it. It's just just awful. 19 00:01:04,080 --> 00:01:07,920 Speaker 3: So we're fully enclosing that air conditioning it, doing a 20 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 3: set ceiling which will be white tiling the floor, getting 21 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:14,440 Speaker 3: rid of rid of the cobblestone, so it will be 22 00:01:15,440 --> 00:01:18,040 Speaker 3: people won't recognize it. And we've got a few a 23 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:21,679 Speaker 3: bit more entertainment food going there, so we're really looking 24 00:01:21,720 --> 00:01:23,399 Speaker 3: forward to that. That will be a game change. 25 00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:24,600 Speaker 2: It will be good to see. 26 00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:26,679 Speaker 1: I mean, when you go into State, you see a 27 00:01:26,680 --> 00:01:29,720 Speaker 1: lot of shopping centers into State have a lot, you know, 28 00:01:29,800 --> 00:01:33,520 Speaker 1: like the idea of food halls and a bit more 29 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:37,160 Speaker 1: entertainment in there and a few more dining options. But 30 00:01:37,240 --> 00:01:39,760 Speaker 1: as you've rightly touched on, you know, in closed, so 31 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:42,000 Speaker 1: it's not hot, you're not affected by the weather. 32 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:44,120 Speaker 2: It does sound as though it's going to be a 33 00:01:44,160 --> 00:01:44,600 Speaker 2: good thing. 34 00:01:45,360 --> 00:01:48,880 Speaker 1: What kind of you know, what kind of retailers or 35 00:01:48,920 --> 00:01:50,480 Speaker 1: what are we expecting in there. 36 00:01:52,800 --> 00:01:56,040 Speaker 3: Well, we can't be releasing too much, Katie, you know, 37 00:01:56,080 --> 00:01:58,639 Speaker 3: because I know ninety percent of the population of normous 38 00:01:58,680 --> 00:02:03,200 Speaker 3: trainers and your radio show exactly possibly more. So we've 39 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:06,560 Speaker 3: got to be a bit careful what we say. We've 40 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:08,560 Speaker 3: got a couple of tenants that we're locking in, but 41 00:02:08,560 --> 00:02:12,880 Speaker 3: we're certainly focused on the family dining entertainment. We want 42 00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:14,840 Speaker 3: to say that so that you can come along with 43 00:02:14,880 --> 00:02:17,919 Speaker 3: your family and mum and dad or dad and dad 44 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:19,960 Speaker 3: or mum and mum, whatever it is. You can have 45 00:02:20,000 --> 00:02:21,760 Speaker 3: a meal and a drink somewhere and keep an eye 46 00:02:21,800 --> 00:02:24,000 Speaker 3: on their children, and their children can have a bit 47 00:02:24,040 --> 00:02:27,600 Speaker 3: of fun and entertainment. So we're really focused on the family. 48 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:31,480 Speaker 3: It's a Casarina Square is such an important part of 49 00:02:31,520 --> 00:02:34,720 Speaker 3: the community up there, but once the shops closed, there's 50 00:02:34,760 --> 00:02:38,640 Speaker 3: really not much to do. So that's the intention is 51 00:02:38,720 --> 00:02:39,400 Speaker 3: to change that. 52 00:02:39,600 --> 00:02:41,760 Speaker 1: Now. I know it's not the only thing. There's going 53 00:02:41,800 --> 00:02:45,480 Speaker 1: to be some other changes. There's going to be the 54 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:48,920 Speaker 1: Woolworths Director Boot Service. When are you expecting that to 55 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:51,880 Speaker 1: get underway and how quickly could it be complete? 56 00:02:52,720 --> 00:02:56,560 Speaker 3: Well, it'll all be finished by what we expect Dune 57 00:02:57,160 --> 00:03:00,960 Speaker 3: next year. So we've already seen some changes in habits 58 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:05,799 Speaker 3: out there with the change of government and some things 59 00:03:05,880 --> 00:03:08,959 Speaker 3: we've done that we've had a massive reduction in crime 60 00:03:09,000 --> 00:03:11,359 Speaker 3: incidents out there and over the last few and we've 61 00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:16,280 Speaker 3: closed the bws, so we've seen much more family shopping 62 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:19,320 Speaker 3: at Wilworth and the average size of the basket or 63 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:21,800 Speaker 3: how much they spend has increase substance because people are 64 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:25,919 Speaker 3: feeling much more comfortable there now. It's currently a five 65 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:29,920 Speaker 3: thousand meter supermarket, a really old tide design that really 66 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:32,080 Speaker 3: you go there because you have to, not really because 67 00:03:32,080 --> 00:03:34,480 Speaker 3: you want to. So we're going to that'll be changed 68 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 3: into the latest and greatest three and a half thousand 69 00:03:36,680 --> 00:03:41,120 Speaker 3: square leter supermarket, and we're going to have a thousand 70 00:03:41,200 --> 00:03:43,520 Speaker 3: meter dark store, so or you click and collect and 71 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:47,080 Speaker 3: that type of thing where now you wander around the supermarket, 72 00:03:47,160 --> 00:03:50,200 Speaker 3: you coals and woolies. You've got the staff there that 73 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:52,280 Speaker 3: are picking things off the shelves, and I know they've 74 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:53,960 Speaker 3: got a job to do, but they always seem to 75 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:57,280 Speaker 3: be exactly where you want to get something where that 76 00:03:57,320 --> 00:04:00,440 Speaker 3: will be done in what they call the dark store. 77 00:04:00,960 --> 00:04:06,200 Speaker 3: And I understand from what I've read that they've already 78 00:04:06,240 --> 00:04:09,360 Speaker 3: moved a lot of their country shopping, so you know, 79 00:04:09,480 --> 00:04:12,200 Speaker 3: people who want a thousand dollars worth of graciers and 80 00:04:12,320 --> 00:04:15,840 Speaker 3: who were at some other supermarkets, wools have already moved 81 00:04:15,840 --> 00:04:19,800 Speaker 3: that into Intercasarina Square, So as I understand, it will 82 00:04:19,839 --> 00:04:22,359 Speaker 3: be the only click and collect in daw And. So 83 00:04:22,440 --> 00:04:26,039 Speaker 3: there's going to be significant changes. And also we've got 84 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:31,600 Speaker 3: some other retailers are going straight. We're widening that will 85 00:04:31,640 --> 00:04:34,760 Speaker 3: Worth small. We've got a farmacy going straight opposite so 86 00:04:35,160 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 3: that we're able to do a wider variety of shopping 87 00:04:38,080 --> 00:04:38,800 Speaker 3: in that area. 88 00:04:38,920 --> 00:04:39,280 Speaker 2: Wlaarren. 89 00:04:39,320 --> 00:04:42,600 Speaker 1: It is good news once complete, but what kind of 90 00:04:42,640 --> 00:04:45,520 Speaker 1: disruptions are we going to see in the meantime? Are 91 00:04:45,520 --> 00:04:48,240 Speaker 1: we expecting that, you know, different areas will be I'm 92 00:04:48,279 --> 00:04:50,960 Speaker 1: assuming closed off for a while here and there. 93 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:54,919 Speaker 3: Without a bloody doubt, it'll be absolute pain in the bump, Katie. 94 00:04:54,960 --> 00:04:58,200 Speaker 3: I think that if you get work done at home, 95 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:01,279 Speaker 3: how you get a new driver will put in it's 96 00:05:01,320 --> 00:05:04,760 Speaker 3: a pain, it is, Well, what can you do about it? 97 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:06,080 Speaker 3: You know you can have no changes. 98 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:09,039 Speaker 1: But what I like that you're honest about it, mate, 99 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:12,120 Speaker 1: because sometimes you know, we hear these you know, this 100 00:05:12,279 --> 00:05:14,520 Speaker 1: spin around whether it's going to be a disruption. So 101 00:05:14,560 --> 00:05:15,960 Speaker 1: I like that you're honest about it. 102 00:05:16,960 --> 00:05:18,960 Speaker 3: Well, it's a good line to you. You'd find out 103 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:22,760 Speaker 3: you're such a good investigative journalist, Katie. No, it'll be 104 00:05:22,760 --> 00:05:25,000 Speaker 3: a pain. We're going to be down seven hundred cars. 105 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:30,560 Speaker 3: But what we've done. Greg Campbell, who is our development director, 106 00:05:31,240 --> 00:05:33,479 Speaker 3: were expected to start on site a couple of months ago. 107 00:05:33,520 --> 00:05:34,920 Speaker 3: But what he did he actually got a lot of 108 00:05:34,960 --> 00:05:37,920 Speaker 3: work done off site, working with our consultants, so a 109 00:05:37,960 --> 00:05:41,320 Speaker 3: lot of a lot of the welding and fabrications being 110 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:45,680 Speaker 3: done off site so that we have the minimal disruption 111 00:05:45,839 --> 00:05:48,760 Speaker 3: time wise on site. But when you're doing where you 112 00:05:48,800 --> 00:05:52,560 Speaker 3: have the underground car parks well Worth, that's going to 113 00:05:52,560 --> 00:05:57,320 Speaker 3: be escavated right out to Trail Road, and then we're 114 00:05:57,320 --> 00:05:59,640 Speaker 3: putting another deck of parking. So there's a lot of 115 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:02,200 Speaker 3: work and a lot of disruptions, but it'll certainly be 116 00:06:02,760 --> 00:06:05,960 Speaker 3: worthwhile and a major change to the center. And we 117 00:06:06,040 --> 00:06:08,120 Speaker 3: wanted ease for people to push their trolley in and 118 00:06:08,200 --> 00:06:13,040 Speaker 3: out and all covered parking and safe, so's it'll be 119 00:06:13,080 --> 00:06:13,719 Speaker 3: worth waiting for. 120 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:17,559 Speaker 1: So Warren, when do you anticipate all of the work 121 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:20,279 Speaker 1: is going to be complete. 122 00:06:19,960 --> 00:06:22,400 Speaker 3: We expect to be all complete by due next year. 123 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:25,360 Speaker 1: Okay, well that's good news, and I know you know 124 00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:27,800 Speaker 1: it is like it is good to see that money 125 00:06:27,880 --> 00:06:30,760 Speaker 1: is being invested into the Northern territory. I think that 126 00:06:30,760 --> 00:06:34,240 Speaker 1: that's a great thing and into the shopping center. You 127 00:06:34,360 --> 00:06:36,480 Speaker 1: touched on this a moment ago, but how are things 128 00:06:36,520 --> 00:06:38,880 Speaker 1: going at the center in terms of crime and anti 129 00:06:38,880 --> 00:06:39,760 Speaker 1: social behavior? 130 00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:42,159 Speaker 2: Are you still seeing that downwards trend? 131 00:06:43,400 --> 00:06:47,520 Speaker 3: We are, Katie. It's every month it trends down further. 132 00:06:48,480 --> 00:06:54,200 Speaker 3: While we had a massive reduction. After the new government 133 00:06:54,240 --> 00:06:57,239 Speaker 3: new laws came in. We found another seventy percent reduction 134 00:06:57,480 --> 00:07:02,680 Speaker 3: in crime in that Woolworth's precinct with the closing of BWS. 135 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:05,919 Speaker 3: Right and what as I said earlier, we've seen a 136 00:07:06,000 --> 00:07:10,320 Speaker 3: substantial increase in the family shopping and the amount of 137 00:07:10,320 --> 00:07:13,080 Speaker 3: time that they spend in the Woolworth buying more things 138 00:07:13,120 --> 00:07:15,119 Speaker 3: because they're not getting hassled. They don't have the problem. 139 00:07:15,240 --> 00:07:23,400 Speaker 3: So it's we also have another major security strategy starting 140 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:25,800 Speaker 3: in August. We're spending another one hundred and fifty thousand 141 00:07:25,840 --> 00:07:32,120 Speaker 3: dollars on some AI camera's got another thirty cameras coming in. Right, 142 00:07:32,360 --> 00:07:34,960 Speaker 3: and while we have three hundred and twenty cameras up 143 00:07:35,000 --> 00:07:37,320 Speaker 3: there now we have two full time people picking up 144 00:07:37,520 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 3: trouble makers. This new system will pick up a change 145 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:43,960 Speaker 3: in body movement, so you know, all of a sudden 146 00:07:43,960 --> 00:07:47,320 Speaker 3: you've seen someone who you're angry with your start striding out. 147 00:07:47,640 --> 00:07:51,560 Speaker 3: These cameras pick up the change in body movement and 148 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:55,320 Speaker 3: the change in facial expressions and with the idea of 149 00:07:55,360 --> 00:07:59,360 Speaker 3: stopping any before it actually happens, where with the current CCTV, 150 00:07:59,480 --> 00:08:01,640 Speaker 3: you see that problem, you're going to jump on it. 151 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:04,080 Speaker 3: This new system that's costs one hundred and fifty thousand 152 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:06,760 Speaker 3: will actually prevent any of those things. 153 00:08:06,760 --> 00:08:08,520 Speaker 2: Now, now look, how does. 154 00:08:08,400 --> 00:08:10,520 Speaker 1: It prevent does it sort of does something go out 155 00:08:10,520 --> 00:08:13,440 Speaker 1: over the loudspeaker or something if you see someone walking aggressively, 156 00:08:13,600 --> 00:08:15,920 Speaker 1: or what happens if someone just forgets their shopping warren 157 00:08:15,960 --> 00:08:18,640 Speaker 1: and they they're striding back in to grab. 158 00:08:18,360 --> 00:08:24,400 Speaker 3: It, Well, I don't think they're going to taste them, hope, 159 00:08:24,440 --> 00:08:29,880 Speaker 3: not not initially, not initially. Maybe for fun, I shouldn't 160 00:08:29,880 --> 00:08:33,680 Speaker 3: say that. No, Well, we've got we've got an enormous 161 00:08:33,679 --> 00:08:38,319 Speaker 3: amount of security people there and if they identify someone 162 00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:42,480 Speaker 3: something's happening, they'll go up to quite very quickly. Instead 163 00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:44,440 Speaker 3: of the situation is if you say, jeez, I've just 164 00:08:44,480 --> 00:08:46,640 Speaker 3: lost my kid with hell, well, then of course nothing's 165 00:08:46,640 --> 00:08:50,000 Speaker 3: going to happen. But if you're if you're chasing after someone, 166 00:08:50,040 --> 00:08:52,200 Speaker 3: there's someone else running away from you, and then clearly 167 00:08:52,240 --> 00:08:54,439 Speaker 3: that that's that's something that they need to need to 168 00:08:54,480 --> 00:08:57,720 Speaker 3: get onto. You know, we have spoken to some of 169 00:08:57,760 --> 00:09:01,480 Speaker 3: the biggest centers overseas that have used and you know, 170 00:09:01,520 --> 00:09:06,040 Speaker 3: there's been some tragic, tragic incidents down south recently and 171 00:09:06,080 --> 00:09:09,719 Speaker 3: we've been assured that if they had this type of 172 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:14,840 Speaker 3: artificial intelligence, those things would not have happened. They would 173 00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:18,319 Speaker 3: have picked up those actions much quicker. Now. I expect, 174 00:09:18,360 --> 00:09:21,079 Speaker 3: nothing is perfect, but we have spending quite a lot 175 00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:23,920 Speaker 3: of money and we have spoken to people that have 176 00:09:24,000 --> 00:09:26,280 Speaker 3: used it and they found it to be an absolute 177 00:09:26,280 --> 00:09:29,440 Speaker 3: game changer for them. So, you know, we've seen the 178 00:09:29,480 --> 00:09:32,440 Speaker 3: massive reduction in crime. And I know we have spoken 179 00:09:32,480 --> 00:09:34,839 Speaker 3: a lot of our retailers and I don't know if 180 00:09:34,840 --> 00:09:39,320 Speaker 3: you've seen any advertisent advertisements that we've been running, you know, 181 00:09:39,840 --> 00:09:43,079 Speaker 3: was it your Casual Way and the ninety three year 182 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:46,720 Speaker 3: old gentleman who and whenever I got there. We talked 183 00:09:46,760 --> 00:09:49,400 Speaker 3: to those people and they say that they have seen 184 00:09:49,720 --> 00:09:53,400 Speaker 3: enormous reduction in the crime and social behavior. It's not 185 00:09:53,440 --> 00:09:55,640 Speaker 3: just crime, but it's just people just being a nuisance 186 00:09:55,640 --> 00:09:58,680 Speaker 3: and yelling and screaming and just making some life. 187 00:09:59,080 --> 00:10:01,200 Speaker 1: Well, we want to be able to do our shopping 188 00:10:01,240 --> 00:10:03,319 Speaker 1: and not have to worry about that kind of thing. 189 00:10:03,480 --> 00:10:06,000 Speaker 3: Yeah, well, so we have made the changes that you 190 00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:08,920 Speaker 3: go on bloody fantastic now, Katie, before you go yeah, yep, 191 00:10:09,080 --> 00:10:11,079 Speaker 3: I didn't see you at the investing in the NT 192 00:10:11,280 --> 00:10:13,959 Speaker 3: conference last week which was absolutely sensor. 193 00:10:14,120 --> 00:10:16,280 Speaker 2: Sorry mate, I was working. I had to be on air. 194 00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:21,240 Speaker 3: Yeah, we've all had excuses, Katie. Yeah you could have 195 00:10:21,280 --> 00:10:23,360 Speaker 3: been there after mixed with some of the people. But 196 00:10:23,800 --> 00:10:26,720 Speaker 3: I'm here in cans that are developing norm of Australia 197 00:10:26,760 --> 00:10:28,200 Speaker 3: conference and I can tell you it's it's not a 198 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:30,040 Speaker 3: patch on the one they had up in Darwy. Yeah. 199 00:10:30,120 --> 00:10:34,720 Speaker 2: Oh good, good, good to hear. Well, Warrant always appreciate 200 00:10:34,720 --> 00:10:35,040 Speaker 2: your time. 201 00:10:35,040 --> 00:10:36,200 Speaker 1: Mate. We are going to have to leave it there. 202 00:10:36,200 --> 00:10:38,320 Speaker 1: We've got a chof off, got our next interview. Thank you, 203 00:10:38,360 --> 00:10:40,600 Speaker 1: thanks so much. I'm having to chat with this sounds good.