News / Business
Popular café ‘not permitted’, says rail authority
More than 2500 people have signed a petition calling for a reprieve from eviction order
Mark Phillips
Update – Tuesday, December 10: New Age Coffee has remained open after being granted an extra week before eviction by VicTrack, pending further discussions between VicTrack, Emily Coppock and her landlord.
A POPULAR Brunswick café will serve its last customers on Monday after it was given just five days’ notice that it would have to close.
New Age Coffee in Dawson Street was informed on November 30 that it would be have to close on December 9 under instructions from VicTrack, which owns the land on which it operates.
Owner Emily Coppock said she was told by an email from her landlord that VicTrack had decided the café was “not permitted”.
The impending closure has sparked a community petition calling on VicTrack to reconsider which by midday on Friday had more than 2600 signatures.
Coppock, who has run the café in a former warehouse immediately adjacent to the Upfield railway line since 2019, said she was devastated by the eviction order which was totally unexpected.
“I cried yesterday [Thursday], I was a bit emotional,” she said.
“This is my livelihood. I reckon the amount of hours and days weeks I’ve spent here just trying to improve the joint … It’s an old Brunswick warehouse, it’s so run down, but it works for us.”
Coppock operates the café on a month by month lease in a building that is leased by her landlord from VicTrack. But the notice to vacate gave her less than a week to move out.
She said her landlord forwarded to her by email on November 30 correspondence from VicTrack which stated:
“VicTrack management team has confirmed that, irrespective of how the café at the premises is trading, this use is not permitted and requires you to take immediate action to cease using or allowing any part of the premises either as a café or for any other retail use.”
It gave until the close of business on Monday for action to be taken.
Coppock had not been aware that her landlord had long known that it was not permitted to lease the café space to a retail business and had been in negotiations with VicTrack for several months. The landlord had been offered an option to enter into a retail lease, but had declined.
In a written statement, VicTrack acknowledged the news was distressing for Coppock and her staff, but gave no indication it would reconsider its decision.
It blamed the situation on a failure by Coppock’s landlord to communicate with her about the decision.
“We understand this situation is distressing for the café owner and are reaching out to offer support,” the organisation said.
“Unfortunately, our agents advised the tenant in discussions over several months that their sub-tenant New Age Coffee had to cease trading and they failed to notify them, which is extremely disappointing.”
When Brunswick Voice spoke to Coppock on Friday morning, she had not spoken to anyone at VicTrack and said she was mystified about both why the organisation had determined her business was not permitted on the site, and why she had been given such short notice. She said all her attempts to get an explanation had been met with silence.
She understands that the building would need to be vacated when construction of the level crossing removal project gets underway, but did not expect that to start until 2028.
“They said they just didn’t want retail in the building, but it’s been six years, and I’ve done it all by the books. Got the council permits, got all the receipts, everything.
“And then I still haven’t heard from VicTrack regarding the matter.”
Brunswick Voice made several attempts to contact Coppock’s landlord before publication, but they did not respond.
Coppock opened the café when she was 22 and traded through the Covid pandemic. She now employs four staff and the business is trading as well as it ever has.
Located near the Brunswick Baths, RMIT University campus, Brunswick Secondary College, and the Dawson Street police complex, the café has a steady stream of customers from when it opens at 6.30am every week day to 3pm, and on Saturdays.
“We are pumping,” she said. “That’s why we need three staff [serving in the morning]. We can’t even fit all three of us behind the counter, that’s how busy we are.”
Coppock said she initially kept the news about the closure to herself for a couple of days before telling her staff on Thursday.
One of her employees, Lisa De Fazio, immediately sprung into action by launching an online petition calling on VicTrack to reconsider the decision and to provide a fair and reasonable timeline for New Age to relocate.
It quickly smashed through its initial target of 1000 signatures and by Friday mid-afternoon had 2643 names.
Coppock said she had been overwhelmed by the support of her customers and the Brunswick community.
“It makes me feel very cared and loved for,” she said.
She has now retained legal advice and Brunswick MP Tim Read and Merri-bek councillors have offered to help.
Coppock said it would be “amazing” if VicTrack reversed its decision, but at the very least she would like more time to find another venue for her café. Despite living a 45 minute drive away in Greensborough, she wants to continue to operate a business in Brunswick.
“I’ve done the hard yards of getting all the clientele in and it’d be a bit silly if I went somewhere else,” she said. “I’ve worked so hard for this.”
This story has been updated with comments from VicTrack.
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