By Violet Li
As a beloved agricultural mechanic service in Pearcedale is facing the possibility of being shut down by the Casey Council, about 500 people have signed a petition to save the community business after 15 years.
Phil Hume, the owner of agricultural mechanic service Phil Hume Auto in Pearcedale, said even though Casey Council didn’t explicitly say they would shut his business down, it had given him guidelines that were impossible to fit into.
In a Planning Contravention Notice to Mr Hume in late October last year, the Council said operating under the category of Home Based Business in a Green Wedge Zone, the land must meet the requirements where the net floor area of the business must not exceed 100 square metres.
Mr Hume found the requirement “virtually impossible to do in a rural community”.
“That’s not even about a third of my workshop, so there’s no way I can fit into that,” he said.
Council also required that no motor vehicle might be adjusted, modified, serviced or repaired for gain on-site, which was exactly what a mechanic service was intended for.
The overnight contravention notice has been rather baffling for Mr Hume, given that the business has been operating in the area for 15 years.
“Never been an issue, never been a problem, and now all of a sudden, they state that there’s a complaint. All of a sudden out of the blue, they say I’m a commercial industrial business operating within a green wedge, which I don’t believe is correct,” he said.
“I’m not really industrial, and I’m not commercial. I do all the local agricultural repairs, a lot of ride-on mowers, tractors, and farm equipment.
“It makes sense that you live in that environment or work in that environment to be able to repair in that environment.
“We also do some cars. It’s probably only 20 per cent, the automotive. The rest of it, the 80 per cent, would be agricultural.”
Mr Hume highlighted that the business did not operate late into the night.
“There’s no after-hours, no noise of a night. We’re out of there by 5 o’clock. I don’t like working after that,” he said.
“I try and be respectful and mindful of the neighbours. As you have a look around, it’s not a junkyard.
“We don’t have racks lying around everywhere and bits and pieces. We try and keep it clean and tidy.
“Council hasn’t actually given us an answer on how it’s affecting the green wedge.”
Over the years, the business has served the local community, repairing vehicles for the local disability service, the animal charity, the fire authority, and others.
Mr Hume said he was suggested by the council that he move to a commercial industrial area, but he said there was no such area in Pearcedale.
“You’d have to go out of Somerville, Baxter, which is another 20 to 30-minute drive for my clients if they wanted to come and stick with me and follow me,” he said.
“It makes it pretty hard in that way.”
Several months into the matter, the business owner still found it hard to fathom how the council had come to this decision after 15 years.
“There’s lots of businesses around the area on the properties, whether it be truck drivers with B-double trucks and excavators, machinery, that sort of stuff,” Mr Hume said.
“But to me, if they’re going to shut down one, they got to shut down all. You can’t just randomly select somebody and say, you’re the next one.”
When inquired, City of Casey manager Planning and Building Tania Asper said council had investigated the land in question regarding concerns raised by the community, specifically with regard to the use of the land for motor vehicle repair and servicing.
“This type of use is not permitted in the Green Wedge Zone,” she said.
“In line with council procedures, the planning compliance team has requested a response from the landowner regarding the findings of the investigation.
“As this is an active compliance matter, no further information can be provided at this time.”
Mr Hume said he was not going to go down without a fight.
“This is my livelihood,” he said.
Cranbourne Gardens Ward councillor Michelle Crowther was contacted for comments.
A petition to save the business has gained about 500 signatures at the time of writing. To sign the petition, visit: petitions.net/save_local_workshop
