Developer blames pandemic lockdowns for collapse of six companies

A property developer has blamed rent relief rules and the pandemic for the collapse of six of his companies.

CBD Development director Guo Jing Chen, who is behind an almost complete $400 million tower complex in Box Hill that will be unaffected by the administration, said that during Melbourne’s lockdowns tenants vacated his properties and agents were unable to re-let them.“These companies were heavily impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic and [by] government policy, including rent relief measures for tenants,” Chen said.

The escalating number of property-related collapses in Victoria and a slower than expected recovery from the pandemic prompted the opposition’s spokesman for the CBD’s recovery, David Southwick, on Thursday to say the state and city has “lost its mojo”. The city’s office towers were only 48 per cent full of workers in May, according to the most recently published survey of Property Council members. Business owners have cited the lack of workers returning to the office as a major barrier to recovery.The companies tipped into administration own or manage more than 90 properties worth $65 million.

Ian Collins, who has run the Evelyn Faye Nutrition store on Bourke Street since 1995, said the city’s recovery was taking longer than it needed to.

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Lockdowns are 2022 equivalent to ' a big kid came and made me do it'

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‘Where the magic can happen’: Stokes pushes for business to take lead in CBD revivalCities Minister Rob Stokes says private investment in public spaces and events will transform the city’s future. natassiazc Personally speaking I would love to work from home. If they’ve to quickly revive CBD, all employees have to return to work at least 4 days a week. Need to return to pre-covid times. natassiazc How about the Government works on making so people can actually get into the city! Hard enough to get to work let alone coming in to do stuff. natassiazc The media & gov worked so hard to dismantle every single arts or music venue in the CBD, you connected artists with violence, we left en masse. Sydney now has no arts ecology & zero international soft power, you got what you wanted & Its not coming back for decades.
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