More than a third of Macquarie Street’s west side is still closed for business and a number of the remaining outlets are suffering as a result.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Of the two malls and 62 shopfronts on the river side of the main promenade, including those between Cobra and Talbragar streets, 22 were closed yesterday about lunch time.
Shops and food outlets with electrical equipment and car parks on the river incline have perhaps been the worst hit, with both Centro and Riverdale Mall now closed indefinitely.
Centro has two major stores, Coles and Target, with 39 smaller retailers. Riverdale has the town’s only cinema, in addition to Woolworths, Woolworths Liquor and a few other food providers.
For the outlets that are open, customer levels have varied between steady and quiet.
Patronage at the Amaroo Hotel is unusually mild, while Hogs Breath Cafe is open, but still recovering from Saturday’s flood levels.
Other outlets though, like the Mr Beans Coffee Emporium and Troy Grant campaign office, are operating as normal after escaping the damage their neighbours received.
Following a turbulent few days, Amaroo owner Nelson Kelly said his corner hotel has not been able to attract the same number of seasonal patrons it normally does.
“This time of year should be really busy, but there’s not much we can do about that,” he said.
On Monday evening, Mr Kelly shut the hotel down, following a suggestion from Dubbo City Council, but then reopened yesterday morning.
“We told everyone to leave, closed the kitchen down, then had to call everyone back,” he said.
The Amaroo’s car park is completely submerged, but Mr Kelly conceded it could be worse.
“There are a lot of other people who couldn’t reopen,” he said.
Like the Amaroo, Troy Grant’s campaign office now has an underwater carpark, but a working volunteer said that hasn’t lowered morale.
“We haven’t really been affected, except for the fact we have to park our cars on the street,” Pauline McAllister said.
“Our carpark is completely flooded ... It would probably be good if there were more places to park.”
A few doors up from the campaign office, the ANZ Bank branch is closed, with a sign directing customers to Narromine.
As of yesterday morning, the main road between Dubbo and Narromine was closed to all traffic.
Further down the street, one of the lucky escapees was Mr Beans Coffee Emporium owner Sarah Brown.
Ms Brown said her newly-purchased business is “trading as normal”, despite problems in the surrounding area.
“We’ve had a few queries about sewerage and electricity, but so far so good,” she said.
“I think we’ve got about another metre or so in height before we would get into trouble,” she said.
Earlier in the week, Dubbo City Council encouraged businesses to seek advice before continuing to operate in affected areas.
“Food premises in particular need to ensure that food hygiene is maintained by ensuring hot and cold water is available, and that sewer services are maintained to avoid back-up and overflows into premises,” council’s environmental services director Melissa Watkins said.
Most of the closed Macquarie Street businesses have signs on the doors which don’t specify when they will reopen.
FACT FILE
Shops closed:
Centro
Riverdale
OPSM
Scoops and Salads
Tasty Indian
Bay Audio
Jules Crepes
Nails
Flowers by Jenny
Poplars Caravan Park
Two Doors
Travelscene
ANZ branch
Hot Bread Cafe
Subway
Nga Nga Yum Yum
Wesfund
AES.
Red Earth Natural Healing
Mid City Centre
Blush
Jade Boutique
Shops open:
Bob Jane TMarts
Orana School uniforms
Western Automotive Radiators
Graham & Sons
Video Ezy
Sharika
Milestone Hotel
Sticks and Stones
Hogs Breath
Newspower
Hang Loose Clothing
Millers
Sams Warehouse
Dick Smith
2up
Dollars and Sense
MBF
Monkey Bar
Endeavour Chambers
Sussan
Chemist Outlet
Pumpkin Patch
Flight Centre
OEC
Music Matters
Fu Lee Wah chinese restaurant
St George Bank
R. M. Williams
Stephens Patisserie
Troy Grant campaign office
Peter Milling Real Estate
Best & Less
Westpac
TAB
Hair Shenanigans
Mr Beans Coffee Emporium
Have A Look Discount
Sportspower
Chizen Health Club
Leading Edge Computers