Dan Murphy’s ‘disappointed’ over West Connex decision

By Andy Young

The site of a current Dan Muprhy’s store in the Sydney suburb of Leichhardt is set to be used as a tunnelling site for the West Connex motorway.

The alternative site was a local school, but West Connex Minister Stuart Ayres, has said that the location of the bottle shop is now the only one being considered for the midpoint access tunnel work.

The Endeavour Drinks Group (EDG), which owns Dan Murphy’s, has said it is disappointed with the decision having only opened the store in recent months.

A spokesperson for EDG told TheShout: “Our local Dan Murphy’s Leichhardt team are disappointed at the decision to resume the site after being embraced and welcomed as part of the local community.

“Dan Murphy's was only made aware that the Leichhardt store was one of many options being considered for a possible 'dive site' after building works had almost been completed. 

“We continued to build and open the store as we were legally compelled to do so as part of our lease commitments. It fulfilled a project commenced over ten years ago to introduce our wide range and much loved shopping experience to the inner-west.

“There's been no further update on the timing of the closure which is still believed to be January/February 2018.”

Fairfax Media has reported that the agency building the motorway, Sydney Motorway Corporation, was looking at alternative sites because of the large compensation bill they face paying to the owners of the site.

Using the Dan Murphy’s site for the tunnel, which is on Darley Road in Leichhardt, has also been criticised by the Leichhardt Against West Connex community group, with a spokesperson saying: "Darley Road is a sub-standard road, long acknowledged as a traffic and accident blackspot. It belies common sense to bring 200 plus trucks onto this site given its history of fatalities."

The design for the project is expected to be released for public consultation in the coming weeks.