Adelaide’s controversial car park tax will be diluted, Premier Jay Weatherill indicated this morning.
The transport development levy was announced in last year’s State Budget and is due to operate from July 2014.
Its projected revenue is $52 million over two years. The $2 per day charge will apply to multi-storey car parks, car parks operated by businesses and ticketed on-street parking in the CBD.
Today, the Premier said he would be making an announcement soon on an exemption for business owners.
Asked by FiveAA’s Leon Byner why businesses who rent car parks for use by customers or staff should be penalised, Weatherill shifted ground.
“I’ve asked people to look at that,” Weatherill said.
“For businesses that own car parks as part of their premises, they get an exemption.
“For business that rent car parks for the same purpose, that’s a bit of an anomaly.
“We’ll be making some announcements about that soon.”
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The tax has become a political hot potato with the Property Council, retailers and car park operators backing a TV advertising campaign by the State Opposition, promising to the scrap the tax if they win power.
Weatherill was asked at yesterday’s State Budget lock up if he was considering concessions and had met with prominent union official Peter Malinauskas.
He said he hadn’t.
InDaily understands Malinauskas, head of the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association, has been lobbying hard for changes to the tax where it has an impact on retailers.
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