by Sahar Foladi
Traders in the Dandenong Hub arcade say more security measures could help to deter anti-social behaviours and unwanted intruders at night-time.
Many of the traders have been operating at the arcade for more than 20 years.
As reported previously by Star Journal, the arcade of 67 leased shops is privately owned by several entities, leaving small business owners nowhere to turn for help.
Karan Singh and his family have owned a fabric store for 25 years on the Walker Street side where it’s safe with no break-ins he says.
But the family bought a second store just across the first one on the opposite side of the Hub, which they claim is run by another body corporate and within 11 months of that store they started to see all kinds of issues.
“There’s a break-in once every two weeks now, You go upstairs, something’s always getting broken in. It hasn’t been this bad ever.
“Recently the Australia Day weekend just passed, we had two or three days off. It’s almost expected when you come back something’s going to be wrong.”
Mr Singh says there’s only one security officer at one time between 2pm-6pm with the other security officer not starting until midnight, leaving troublemakers roaming around freely.
“If you look at the security in the Plaza compared to the security here, it’s completely different. They’re all on top of things, they’re all in action.
“The security we get is very ineffective.
“Just the other day yesterday I told some kids from here to leave because they were spraying soft drinks around everywhere.”
Mark Mannens who has rented his record label store since 1988 is one of the “lucky ones”. He has been able to hold on at the Hub since the nearby Plaza made the arcade “redundant.”
“There are still quite a few little specialty stores around here, which have been able to survive.
“It has changed a lot, not only in appearance – it still looks like it’s stuck in the 1980’s – but also because there’s nowhere near as many people walking through anymore and nowhere near as many customers.”
He has had two break-ins within six months. The front window of his shop is broken, now replaced by a wooden door as they wait for repairs to be completed.
Dylan has been working at the store since 2000, saying “it has never been this bad, ever.”
“At the moment, even if someone’s in the building, not a single alarm goes off. The cops aren’t alerted in any shape or form.
“So, the guy he was here for at least an hour because he turned our whole shop inside out and our neighbours’ (shop).
“They got footage of him just having a smoke at one point, not even rushing. It’s crazy to me.”
According to the traders, the entrance of the arcade which faces the bus stops in Langhorne Street can be easily forced opened, even if locked, with no one to claim responsibility.
Mr Mannens wants the various managerments to “actually get together and make decisions which everybody agrees on”.
“I’m sure it’s a nightmare (to get together) but there’s still no excuse for letting this stuff go on for as long as it has. “
Traders say the break-ins are mainly committed by a middle-aged man, who they’ve also caught on CCTV before. They only wonder why he’s never caught by police or otherwise let out again.
Stephen Rodgers, the head of the Dandenong Hub Committee also advocating for better conditions, used to own a food business before he called it quits.
Now he owns a few stores at the Hub saying hiring security doesn’t come cheap and that Victoria Police should be “pro-active.”
“With what we’re paying now it’s beyond what we can afford.
“The biggest problem is if the police are not pro-active, it’s not their fault – it’s the law.
“If people are drinking in public and they can’t arrest them, security guards can’t do much. They need far more power.
“When the police do catch these people, they don’t do anything about them. They just leave them on the street to go back in again or break into someone else’s premises.
“The entire police force needs to be redirected; they need to use their resources to focus on the problem area to stamp out the problem.”
Greater Dandenong Council chief executive officer Jacqui Weatherill told Star Journal that the council is not responsible for “maintaining or improving this building.”
