ABC Radio: Dr Nick Kotsomitis on Olympic laws, lost rights and the Centenary Aquatic Centre
Dr Kotsomitis has operated from the Centenary Aquatic Centre for more than 30 years. He had a lease until 2035. He spent more than half a million dollars on fitout and says relocating his highly specialised practice for the proposed National Aquatic Centre and Precinct could now cost well over $1 million.
He says that under the State Government's Olympic POLA legislation where 15 pieces of State legislation were removed, he has effectively lost his rights, lost procedural fairness and is being forced out with no fair compensation and no response from those in power.
This is what happens when laws that exist for a reason are overridden. This is not just about one tenant. It is about the kind of precedent being set when Queenslanders can have leases cancelled, investments wiped out and their ability to seek a fair outcome stripped away in the name of the Games.
Click on the link below and listen from 1:07:13 for the segment (or read the transcript below)
Transcript:
Ellen Fanning: Well, a few weeks ago the Victoria Park Golf complex was forced to shut its doors to make way for the Olympic stadium. But did you know this? In a couple of months the tenants at the Centenary Aquatic Centre are going to have to move out so work can start on redeveloping the pool for the 2032 Games. Think about it. New fit outs, moving costs, very expensive. It turns out despite many of these tenants having years to run on their leases, those leases aren't worth the paper they're written on. They don't get compensation, they don't get a say. Nick Kotsomitis is an orthodontist who runs a practice out of the Centenary Aquatic Centre. There's probably lots of people listening. Nick, he straightened their kids teeth. And they're thinking, well that's a shame because that's a really convenient spot, isn't it? You've got every school imaginable all around there. When did you find out you were being evicted?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Well, we had an inkling that something was going on once they announced the venues or the facilities that they were thinking of. But to date I still have not received any formal notification that my lease is being terminated. So we had an email, just a casual email, saying that more than likely you'd have to be out by the end of August, September. And nothing more concrete than that.
Ellen Fanning: And that was from the head lessor, was it?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Correct. So the head lessor is the Brisbane City Council and the sub lessor, City Venue Management, that was the people I received the email from.
Ellen Fanning: And it was basically saying sort of, kind of maybe end of August probably that's it.And you've got nothing more formal than that except that you know, that's the reality.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Correct.
Ellen Fanning: That seems very strange.How long have you been there?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: I've been there for just over 30 years now.
Ellen Fanning: 30 Years. And how long is your lease for?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: My current lease was supposed to see me out till 2035.
Ellen Fanning: Okay, so when did you sign that one?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: 2017.
Ellen Fanning: So 2017 you signed this long term lease all the way out to 2035, by which stage you would have been there 38 years in that local community. Now when you got that guarantee or you thought it was a guarantee.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes.
Ellen Fanning: With that lease out to 2035 in 2017 you made a big investment in the practice. How much did you spend? What'd you do?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes, well at the time I spent just over half a million dollars and that was in the fit out alone. Obviously a lot of our equipment is quite specialised and I've had conservative estimates to relocate all that equipment would be significantly more than a million dollars these days.
Ellen Fanning: So you get an email, you get nothing more than an email. You've got a lease, you're staring at the lease and you've got a million dollar problem on your hands. How sad, too bad is the conclusion you come to. Did you ring a lawyer?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Several and several barristers have looked at this and unfortunately most of our common law rights have been taken away by the legislation that's been recently enacted.
Ellen Fanning: In order to allow for the Olympics to go ahead?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Correct.
Ellen Fanning: Yeah, listening to an amazing story being told by Nick Kotsomitis, he's an orthodontist, you probably know him, he's straightened thousands of kids’ teeth there at the Centenary Aquatic Centre. They've got offices there in the back of the Aquatic Centre. But the whole thing is going to be closed down to redevelop the pool for the 2032 games. So you've spent all this money, you've had your barristers look at it. What did they tell you exactly about, you know, you can't fight it, but surely you can get some compensation for the cost?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Well, procedural fairness would indicate that, but apparently that's been taken away as well.
Ellen Fanning: So under the act, the Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games Arrangements Act 2021, in terms of compensation under section 53 DFG, no compensation is payable under this act for the cancellation of an interest in land. Subsection 1 does not affect a right to compensation under another act or law. And the distinction seems to be it's a cancellation of an interest, not of taking a land under the Acquisition of a Land Act. So they're basically. So all these smart legal people are saying you're stuck. They passed a law.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Correct.
Ellen Fanning: Have you tried to speak to anybody in power to say, hey, I think you've overlooked something here?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yeah, well, I've written to obviously, local government council, the organising committee for the Olympic Games, anyone I can write to, and I have not had one single response, to be honest.
Ellen Fanning: So that's GIICA, the Games infrastructure mob?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes.
Ellen Fanning: The Premier?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes.
Ellen Fanning: The Deputy Premier?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes.
Ellen Fanning: Lord Mayor?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes.
Ellen Fanning: How about local? The Brisbane City Council, more generally?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes.
Ellen Fanning: City venue management, the sub lessors?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Absolutely.
Ellen Fanning: So nothing?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Nothing. Apart from that email saying you're out.
Ellen Fanning: Are there others at Centenary Pools who've got their offices set up as well that are in the same thing?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Just one other tenant. Tom Barton.
Ellen Fanning: Yeah. And what does he do?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: He's, ironically, he does a lot of work with the Olympic swim team, to be honest.
Ellen Fanning: Wow. And so he's out as well.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yes.
Ellen Fanning: But, Nick, there's something specialist about moving. It's one thing to move an accountancy practice. It's one thing to move a physio practice. Quite a different thing to move an orthodontic practice, isn't it? Just explain what you'd tell a contractor if you had to get them to move.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Well, depending on. Well, we've got to move the chairs and all the plumbing involved with that. There's a specialised cone beam x-ray machine that's very heavy, actually. All the equipment's very heavy. We're on the first floor, so moving all that equipment's going to be quite a logistical problem as well. And then re-setting it all up. Obviously, if there's the new premises that I may lease, if there's a slab involved, they've got to drill through the slab for all the plumbing involved with the dental chair. So compressors, suction units. It's not just stud walls and a paint job, unfortunately.
Ellen Fanning: So there's your million bucks.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Correct.
Ellen Fanning: So, meanwhile, have you accepted your fate? I mean, you just have to go, I guess.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Absolutely. Well, I can't do anything about it, really. I have to go. And look, I'd just like to take this opportunity to say that I'm definitely not against the Olympics. I'm of Greek heritage. I'm actually thrilled that with the opportunity of our wonderful city hosting the Games. So I'm all for it, but I just. Being like most other small businesses, I'm just after a fair go. And I don't think we're being offered that fairness in the way things have panned out with the legislation that they've set out.
Ellen Fanning: 14 minutes past 4. You're listening to Nick Kotzumatis. He's got an orthodontic practice, has had for three decades now behind the Centenary Aquatic Centre. Inside the centre, got an email February this year, saying, look, you know, you might have a lease that runs all the way out to 2035, but it turns out there's a bit of legislation that says you've got to go, the lease is going to be cancelled. There's no compensation and apparently no discussion will be had about the matter with anybody. What about the kids? You know, anyone who's had a child or had orthodontic work done themselves knows you get to know the orthodontic. Well, not so much the orthodontist but the orthodontist practice manager very well. Because you've got to get those young people in over and over again to come and have their teeth straightened and abide by what it is that you need them to do. And it's so much more convenient where you are now. They can walk from all the central city schools to you. What are you going to do with them?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Well, that's still up in the air at the moment. I'm not sure. I'm going to have to quickly organise an alternative venue to allow for those people that travel from the south side to get to an alternative venue such as the one that I've got another practise in Chermside.
Ellen Fanning: But if kids are living at Cooper or Greenslopes, that's not going to follow.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Absolutely. I have patients from past Ipswich and so. Exactly. And my practise is too small at Chermside to accommodate all those.
Ellen Fanning: And I guess the issue is, I mean, you could retire, I suppose. I don't know whether that's what you want to do. But orthodontic treatment plans can take 2, 3 years to complete.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Correct, so those children that I started before I received that notice less than six months ago, a lot of those are in a two, two and a half, three year treatment phase. So what do I do with all them?
Ellen Fanning: If there is somebody in authority listening to this, what would you like to happen? What do you think would be the best outcome here, Nick?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Just assistance, I think. I just don't want to be forgotten in this process. I think I need assistance in order to help relocate my practice to accommodate for those patients that are used to coming to that area.
Ellen Fanning: And what does that assistance look like?
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Just some sort of financial compensation, just to be able to re establish the practice that I've currently got in a similar area to facilitate that sort of process where I can complete their treatments and not disadvantage them, you know, already more than what it looks like I'll have to.
Ellen Fanning: And before I let you go, it's not just you. How many patients would you be seeing at any given time? Because it's not like, there'd be a lot, wouldn't there? Because they only come every now and again, but they come for a long time.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Correct. I've got. At the moment I've got 1200 active patients.
Ellen Fanning: Hell.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: And I've treated over 11 and a half thousand in my time there and now, obviously I don't see them, but occasionally things happen. Their retainers come loose. So there's always a lot of patients that I'm seeing at any given time.
Ellen Fanning: Yeah. So 1,200 patients, ongoing patients to manage, a million dollar fit out and you can't even get an email back from those in authority telling you what's going on. Nick, thank you so much for coming in and speaking about it. We wish you all the very best with it.
Dr Nick Kotsomitis: Yeah, thanks, Ellen. I really appreciate your time.
Ellen Fanning: Nick Kotsomitis, you probably know the name, a very well known orthodontist in Brisbane. Your dentist probably refers you to him if you've got young people who are in the city. At the back of the Centenary Aquatic Centre is where he operates from. He had a lease out till 2035. At that stage he probably would have been happy to retire. 38 years in practice, trying to get a solution so that the games can go ahead, games that he supports. But at the same stage he can also make sure that those young people get continuity of care as well.