Uncontained joy turns to approval apoplexy at Eden

The containers were delivered to the site at Eden Wharf in February 2023 and have remained unused due to the time taken for the approval process.

With Christmas, and a busy holiday season, not far away, it seems the approval process to allow hospitality operators to take over the cafes and food outlets, continues with no end in sight.

The idea of food outlets in containers came about after the commercial buildings at the wharf were demolished due to their condition. The area they occupied remains as an empty space surrounded by large stones.

The uncontained joy that greeted the arrival of the containers has long since dissipated as the community waited to see them up and running.

President of the Eden Chamber of Commerce Eric Wolske is clearly frustrated with the situation. Not only is he trying to move it along, but he also has to deal with questions from the community.

"The Chamber of Commerce is getting hammered by the community over this," Mr Wolske said.

"Because they are commercial kitchens there's a compliance requirement by council for the waste water management.

"We would rather have the water trapped internally, treated and grey water released," Mr Wolske said.

"But this needs approval from the Department of Planning and Environment (DPIE)."

He explained that the approval process had to be via council and the internal waste water management system was discussed in January.

"Council makes nice noises but doesn't seem to do anything. I sent an email five weeks ago and called and left a message four weeks ago but haven't had a reply," he said.

Council has admitted that it has been working on the project with the Eden Chamber of Commerce "for many months".

Council said all commercial premises connecting to its sewerage system need to install pre-treatment equipment and obtain approval to discharge trade waste to sewer.

"As these containers propose to sell food that requires a higher level of treatment, state government approval through DPE is also required before the premises can be connected," council said.

We asked what has caused the delay in connecting the containers to a waste water system. We also asked when was it likely to happen and whether it would be in time for Christmas and the holiday season.

However council didn't address those questions, saying only: "When this referral is complete, council will be in a position to finalise the application."