Changing face of Peregian
Wed 01 June 2011
T W Snowdon, Bachelor of journalism
New development on Queensland's Sunshine Coast continues as a shop that has been part of a community for 35 years will not be allowed to renew its lease.
The Peregian Friendly Grocer has not been given any reason from its landlord why its lease will not be renewed this June.
The Friendly Grocer's retail assistant Margaret Barton, who has lived
in the area for over 25 years and worked at the store for 15 years, said the worst part of it was not knowing what is going to happen.
“We're not the only ones who are worried,” Ms Barton said.
“There's other shop owners who are worried about how it's going to affect them once we close down.
“They're worried that they're going to go under once we go.”
The shop originally opened in 1976 as the Peregian 4-Square, but changed its name to the Friendly Grocer in 1996 when new owners bought the business.
Ms Barton said the shop has always been the hub of the community, with many local elderly people relying on it for their all their groceries needs.
“What worries me most about the older customers is that a lot of them don't drive,” Ms Barton said.
“They come down here and they can walk down and pick up their milk or their bread or whatever, but once we go I don't know what they're going to do.”
Sitting in a prime location, across the road from the beach and surf club, the shop has remained unchanged over the years, even as the buildings around it have undergone extensive renovations and redevelopments.
“This is the last of the old Peregian,” Ms Barton said.
“But if you look at a lot of the new business development around here, like the offices and other spaces, they've all been up for rent for the past two years.
“The area doesn't need any more hairdressers or real estate offices, we've got plenty of them.”
The building's landlords were unavailable for comment, however the development of the business centres are a result of a population surge in Peregian over the last decade, largely due to new residential developments like Peregian Springs.
This has been reflected in property prices, which rose dramatically after 2002, shooting from a median residential sale price of $A271,000 to $A545,000 in 2004, before peaking in late 2008 at $A582,000.
More recently the local caravan park has closed down to make way for more commercial development.
Situated in close proximity to the Friendly Grocer, Ms Barton said she noticed a change in clientele since the parks closure.
“When the caravan park was here you used to get families from overseas staying there for two or three months at a time,” Ms Barton said.
“Since the park has closed we don't get those type of people coming here anymore though.
“Now it's the younger people who come here in the roaming vans and they'll just pull up and stay in a car park somewhere because it's the only option they've got.”
Not all long-term residents are opposed to the new developments though, with some seeing the changes as a way of helping to create a more vibrant community.
Local resident Chris Zaris, who has lived in the town for 31 years, said Peregian has grown substantially since he has lived there, but its atmosphere has not changed a great deal.
“When I first moved here from Sydney, we owned the newsagency and there was a real village atmosphere about the place and it really felt like it was a small community,” Mr Zaris said.
“It's still got that village atmosphere, but now the town centre is a lot busier.”
Mr Zaris said he has welcomed much of the development he has seen in the town, because it has helped add to the area.
“I like having the cafes and more businesses and better class restaurants around the place,” Mr Zaris said.
“The idea of being able to walk down to a good restaurant and have a decent meal is very appealing.
“I think there's even room for one more good restaurant in Peregian at the moment.”
Mr Zaris said his biggest problem with the changes in Peregian is the lack of parking around the town centre.
“Parking has become a major issue now,” Mr Zaris said.
“There's a lot of congestion around the town centre, where people are driving in circles looking for a carpark.
“Maybe they should have thought about building some underground parking in the development across the road from the Friendly Grocer.”
Mr Zaris said he was surprised when he found out the Friendly Grocer was having its lease terminated.
“As a holiday maker, the first place they always go to is the newsagent, the butcher and the supermarket - to grab whatever they need for their weekend,” Mr Zaris said.
“They don't want travel to a major supermarket.
“People come here to relax, not to start fighting with other people at a big supermarket.”
Image(s) designed by T W Snowdon
Enter comments about this article
Submitted Comments
An interesting article. This is happening to communities across the coast. I like your focus on the effect on an old, established business.
Sarah Owen
Don't change what isn't broken, I love the ol' 4-square. I still call it that. But parking does need to be improved since the development of Peregian Springs has increased the number of visitors traveling by car to the area.
Matthew Cleghorn