NewsLocal can reveal the NSW Government advised residents and business owners surrounding designated metro precincts that land acquisitions wouldn’t be finalised as expected on March 12, instead Sydney Metro has delayed finalisation until March 19 or later.

In a letter sent out to affected parties on Friday morning — when gazettal documents were expected to be released — a Sydney Metro representative said Governor approval was required before acquisition notices could be handed down.

“Sydney Metro has commenced the process of seeking approval for the publication of the acquisition notice,” the representative told property owners. “At this stage Sydney Metro is targeting an acquisition date of on or shortly after March 19.

“However, decisions of the executive are outside of Sydney Metro’s control, including the timing of any such decision.”

Acquisition lawyer, David Newhouse told NewsLocal the delay meant his clients, both those who agree with acquisition prices and those who were disputing the offers made by the NSW Government to acquire their land, wouldn’t be able to begin negotiations with the Valuer-General as planned.

“The Valuer-General and appeal rights to go to court all start when properties are Gazettal by the Government, this means owners and business have to wait another week before the process commences,” Mr Newhouse said.

“The VG has 45 days to determine compensation from the date of Gazettal so that whole process has been pushed back at least another week.” 

However, a Sydney Metro spokesman said there was no delay in the gazettal process.

“The compulsory acquisition process undertaken by Sydney Metro is being finalised as per the statutory timeframes set out in the Just Terms Act,” he said.

NewsCorp has obtained documentation from Sydney Metro notifying landowners gazettal was to be expected on March 12.

The delay comes as a 100-year-old family legacy and a prominent shopfront that has graced Parramatta Rd for almost 50 years will be demolished to pave the way for the Sydney Metro West project at Concord.

Carli and Winston Jeffrey hit out at the NSW Government’s “dodgy tactics” used to compulsorily acquire their third-generation business at 1 Burwood Rd, Concord.

They have accused Sydney Metro planners of failing to be transparent over the refusal of relocation costs claims during the drawn out process which has taken 18 months so far.

Winston Jeffrey’s grandfather, Antony Jeffrey established the shopfront on the corner of Burwood and Parramatta roads, Concord, in 1974, after his father, Gaetano Guiffre, migrated from Italy in 1902.

They started growing flowers in Mascot before opening four stores.

Carli and Winston purchased the business from Mr Jeffrey’s mother and father David and Moira in 2003.

“Transport for NSW and Sydney Metro are destroying a 100-year-old family legacy and an incredibly successful business,” Mrs Jeffrey told NewsLocal just days before their shopfront is expected to be gazetted for development.

“They have told us the building is not iconic, or important to the local community — and our historic business is just like the thousands of others they have relocated across NSW.”

The family — who have lived and worked in the Parramatta Rd site over the 50-year history — are determined to fight for the government to provide like-for-like premises for the business to continue after the bulldozers claim the site for the multibillion-dollar infrastructure project.

“The government won’t even consider the business returning to the site, despite the fact that this will certainly be developed into a mixed-use precinct with commercial sites,” she said.

Mrs Jeffrey told NewsLocal the government had offered a “low-ball” relocation figure to establish Urban Flower at a new site. However, when the business owners called for like-for-like compensation in a counter claim, Sydney Metro representatives refused the proposal without reason.

The family-business have turned to the NSW Valuer-General to make a determination on the value of their business.

“They told us our relocation claim was illegitimate,” she said. “The law clearly states that we should not be disadvantaged by the acquisition, but we are.”

“This is where a 110-year legacy of our family and a third-generation business ends.

“Our suppliers and staff will be left without jobs to put food on the table, all so the NSW Government can be greedy and acquire our entire business site to sell off to investors once the Metro is built.”

Ms Jeffrey said the government had met with the family just once during the 18-month process and contacted them during the negotiation process “a handful of times”.

NewsLocal understands the Valuer-General and Sydney Metro advised property and business owners that land would be gazetted in Burwood, Five Dock and Clyde for the Sydney metro West on March 12.

The Jeffrey family’s lawyer, David Newhouse questioned the significant number of property owners failing to reach agreements with Sydney Metro.

“Negotiations (with the Jeffrey family) stopped three to four weeks early,” he said.

Mr Newhouse said up until Sydney Metro’s latest round of acquisitions, all land owners his firm had dealt with on previous stages of the Metro had reached agreement without intervention from the NSW Valuer-General.

“Unfortunately, next week we have around two-thirds of our matters in the Burwood and Clyde Station Precincts that have not reached agreement with Sydney Metro and these matters are now being determined by the Valuer General,” Mr Newhouse said. “This is very stressful time for those families and businesses who have been involved for months in this difficult process, which has caused disruption to their lives and businesses.”

“There are urgent reforms needed to address the systems’ failures — mum and dad investors are worse off under the current system as they are not put back in the same position when their properties are taken by the Government.”

Mr Newhouse said the NSW Government was no longer paying stamp duty or loss-of-income costs to business owners removed from properties for infrastructure projects.

NSW Valuer-General statistics revealed around 50 per cent of property owners facing compulsory acquisition in Burwood and Concord have agreed to Sydney Metro’s terms for the West Metro project, while 40 per cent of property owner in Clyde and almost all land owner in Five Dock have refused the government’s terms — resulting in referral to the Valuer-General

In the 2020 financial year, 88 per cent of property owners agreed to terms of acquisitions set out by the NSW Government.

While in 2019, Roads and Maritime Services saw 95 per cent of landowners agree to acquisition terms. In the same year, Sydney Metro saw just 55 per cent of property owners agree to their terms of acquisition.

A Sydney Metro spokesman said the department was “very conscious” the acquisition of a home or business resulted in a difficult time for land and business owners: “we make every effort to avoid acquiring privately owned land and businesses wherever possible”.

“Sydney Metro has been working with the owners of Urban Flower since 2019 to reach a mutually agreed settlement,” he said.

“This has included an offer of compensation to relocate their business on a comparable basis, based on an independent valuation in accordance with the Just Terms Act.

“While a commercial agreement was reached for the acquisition of the freehold property, Sydney Metro was unable to reach an agreed settlement on a relocation compensation.”

NewsLocal understands the NSW Government refused claims for the extinguishment of the business, which would have seen Sydney Metro pay out Mr and Mrs Jeffrey.

Urban Flower now has the opportunity to liaise directly with the Valuer-General, providing all documentation for consideration of compensation.

Transport Minister Andrew Constance was contacted for comment.