Sparkke at The Whitmore has beer because it brews it, but customers have been cut off by roadworks

One of the city’s most popular pubs has been cut off to foot traffic without warning because of council roadworks.

Rose Kentish and Kari Allen, co-owners of Sparkke at the Whitmore which is losing much of its foot traffic. Picture: Kelly Barnes

A CBD pub and brewery has been cut off from foot traffic until April without warning and wants urgent action taken by Adelaide City Council.

Sparkke at The Whitmore, which also brews and produces spirits, was fully fenced off from Whitmore Square on 27 January, and owners only found out via an email on that morning.

Co-owner Kari Allen said she urgently wanted to tell customers she was still open for business, because no signs had been put up by contractors to direct cars or pedestrians to the venue.

She said the situation was dire for the hospitality industry because COVID-19 restrictions had limited the venue’s crowds from 636 to 208.

The roadworks will span the most important time of the year for the venue, including Fringe, second birthday celebrations, and International Women’s Day.

“We must tell people we are open, we want them here, and this is a huge issue across the hospitality sector,” Ms Allen said.

Rose Kentish and Kari Allen, Co owners of Sparkke at the Whitmore on Whitmore square are not happy council gave them no notice that roadworks would cut off their pub. Picture: Kelly Barnes

“This is a time when we should be working with council and government to make the most of a difficult situation.

“Instead we turn up to open one day and we are totally cut off. We pay a not insignificant amount in council rates, and they have to understand this is damaging our business.”

The Whitmore has become a central part of the local community, and Ms Allen said it was a “deeply engaged contributor to the south west corner of the CBD”.

To continue profitability during COVID-19 it has begun converting brewed products to spirits through a distilling process.

Ms Allen said walk-in business had already dropped 50 per cent because of the road and footpath widening project around the square, and each weekend one quarter of monthly taking was under threat.

“We had the slowest month in January since we opened in March 2019,’' she said.

Council has been contacted for comment, and Ms Allen has applied to present an “emergency deputation” to a council meeting next Tuesday night.

It has told Ms Allen a letter which council says was pushed under the door of the pub two days before the works began, but this did not make it to the owners as they were closed for the Australia Day public holiday.