We have been serving Wagga community and surrounding towns for many years. As new management, many elderly patients and patients with special needs brought to my attention that they have difficulty accessing the pharmacy due to limited parking spaces available at front of the shop on Main Street (Baylis Street) or rear entry (Wonderland Lane). Directly on Wonderland lane there is a massive carpark belongs to Stuart Mall Shopping Centre which has been fenced so no safe public access has been established to allow customers who park there to easily access rear entry of the pharmacy.
There is an opening available in that fence located at the beginning of Wonderland Lane (next to real estate building) which some patients are using to walk in and out of to reach the pharmacy. There were multiple concerns mentioned by customers with regards to elderly and young children walking down the Lane to access the pharmacy as there is no footpath available to safely walk in that Lane as cars and delivery trucks are constantly using the Lane.
In my first attempt I contacted Stuart Mall management requesting if we can have an opening in the fence directly to the rear of the pharmacy for ease of public access and their safety and our willingness to reserve some parking spaces as we planned to open indoor surgery to better accommodate community needs for doctors and especially after hours.
To which their reply was “Unfortunately we are not able to offer reserved car spaces for Cincotta staff.
 
In addition, we are restricted by a lease clause to have an opening in the fence along Wonderland Lane.”

In my next step I contacted the office of Dr Joe McGirr MP to seek some help. I was referred by the office of MP to contact Wagga Wagga City Council to seek some solution. I contacted the city council but was told the Stuart Mall and the Car Park are private property and council can not do anything about the issue and to contact the Management which I had done as my first attempt to solve the parking problem.
I have exhausted all of my option to find a solution for parking issue which has ultimately affected patients safety and delayed offering extra services for our community in Wagga Wagga.
Hereby I have initiated this petition in support of public requests to have a pedestrian walkway directly to the fenced out Stuart Mall carpark by having an opening in the fence and dedicating some parking spaces for the elderly and people with special needs who seek medical treatment.