Darwin city carparks to transform into outdoor dining areas

Darwin Council has announced an innovative new plan for new fresco dining area in the city but it does come with controversy.

Good Thanks co-owner Alex James, Darwin Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis and alderman Mick Palmer. Picture: KERI MEGELUS

DARWIN eateries with an adjacent car park will be able to rope off the bay for use as an al fresco dining area as part of a new trial starting in the coming weeks.

Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis said the initiative would provide a boost for businesses by encouraging residents to “come out of airconditioned houses and units and enjoy a beautiful, balmy Darwin afternoon”.

“People sitting outside attract more people so it not only benefits the restaurant and the bar or the facility that’s got it in front of it, it benefits the people around it because people look around at what’s there and decide to spend money somewhere else,” he said.

The initiative was the brainchild of alderman Mick Palmer who said the idea was based on demand from businesses keen to attract more customers but hadn’t been without its critics.

“There’s certainly some resistance to it from other businesses that can’t take advantage of it and see it as a loss of carparking space, that’s something that we need to balance, the interests of the various businesses and the community interest,” he said.

“Part of the trial is the other businesses can assess how it’s affected their business and their trade — obviously we’ve got to listen to that.”

Knuckey’s St’s Good Thanks burger bar will be one of the eateries taking part in the trial and co-owner Alex James said while he understood the reticence of some other business owners, a more pedestrian-centric central business district would ultimately benefit all city traders.

“It’s tricky with all the roadworks and things that are happening currently but I think as part of a greater plan for Darwin CBD if we’re moving carparks to more centralised locations and encouraging people to actually walk through the CBD this is going to encourage further trade for, especially, retail and restaurants and things,” he said.

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“Trials like this that have happened elsewhere have actually proven to have on-flowing economic benefits to neighbouring businesses.”

The free trial will run for between three and six months before the council decides on whether to make it more permanent and how much to charge businesses for the use of the parking space.