Fate of Darwin Dan Murphy's to be known within the month

Yesterday Dan Murphy’s parent company Endeavour Group confirmed their intention to move the site of its proposed store in Darwin following community feedback. The decision now sits with the Northern Territory's Director of Licensing who will make a decision within 30 days.

The company has been trying to find a suitable location in Darwin for four years now and consulting with the local communities throughout that time.

“The new site is further away from local Indigenous communities and we believe the change will help to alleviate some of the key concerns,” said Shane Tremble, General Manager Corporate Service for Endeavour Group.

The company has been working closely with the Elders and leaders of both the Minmarama and Kulaluk communities and has committed to a number of measures to mitigate the risk of alcohol related harm. Both of these communities have expressed their support for the revised application.

“We have spent a lot of time having meaningful conversations with local communities to understand their views, listen to any concerns they may have and to address them,” he added. 

At Woolworths' AGM last week, Woolworths Group chairman Gordon Cairns said his company had met with representatives of the nearby Aboriginal communities and understood that there was no opposition to the new proposed site.

"We understand that all current objectors will not oppose the new location," Mr Cairns said.

The proposed site is between McMillans Road and Osgood Drive - near the Sabine Road intersection - and would be in the midst of an already developed area. The site is still part of the planned Darwin Airport Retail Precinct, and is a further 1.3km away from the Bagot Community than the originally proposed site. 

Darwin Airport Central is a central hub of commercial, retail and leisure amenities covering 60 hectares. The Dan Murphy’s store would be the anchor tenant of the proposed Darwin Airport Central retail precinct, worth approximately $30 million of private investment. It is estimated that the development of the store and the retail precinct will create 200 construction jobs, and more than 150 permanent jobs going forward.

The development of the Darwin Dan Murphy’s alone is estimated to inject $15 million to the local economy in the construction phase, including 163 jobs over approximately seven months. 

If approved, the Darwin Dan Murphy's would have the most stringent set of alcohol control policies anywhere in the country, including the development of a Responsible Service and Consumption Plan to ensure that the store has appropriate product ranging, pricing and promotion and a commitment to a precinct management committee to ensure that the area around the proposed store is properly managed. 

“We have been and continue to engage with local communities to listen to and address any concerns they may have and incorporate them as part of our Responsible Service of Alcohol Management Plan. If approved, we are committed to continuing an open dialogue with the people of Darwin,” Mr Tremble said.

The proposed Dan Murphy’s store would be what the retailer classifies as a ‘fine wine precinct’ which means half of the entire product range would be wine, with most falling into the premium category ($20 per bottle or more). The store would have a dedicated Fine Wine area, designed to showcase some of Australia’s and the world’s best wines.

If approved and operational, Dan Murphy's will directly employ up to 40 team members, made up of approximately 15 full time team members and up to 25 permanent part time or casual team members. This represents an additional $6.5 million in salary and wages for the local economy. Additionally, maintenance and cleaning will be contracted to local suppliers. 

If approved, Dan Murphy's Darwin could be trading in 12 months time.