One year ago I came off a plane and landed in Sydney. I caught a bus to Canberra and was finally home after nine months of being away.

Perhaps I came back with my tail in between my legs. It had felt like a long time away. I had no job to go to, no savings left and I was tired from the 9 months I had just lived. Nevertheless, my spirits were lifted, I saw my family again, I realised Canberra is the place for me now and I had my fiancee with me.

I didn’t know how soon my fortune would come, I just knew that it would some day. I was looking forward to going back to university. To find work in my field of study, to embark on my career, and to achieve whatever it was I desired.

I came back with a new appreciation of the city I’ve grown up in. I love it’s peacefulness and small size. I like a city centre that I can walk through on the weekends without feeling exhausted. I cherish the clean air I breathe. I love the fact that I can go to the markets and not have to settle for less than average food. Canberra’s a great city, I just hadn’t realised it before. I do concede that the people here are unfriendly compared to other parts of Australia – and the world – but I enjoy the pace of the town. You don’t feel or see the stress that bigger cities have.

I knew that in the following months, my life would improve and things would pan out the way I’ve always wished. It was so good for me to get out of Canberra to see what life is like outside.

Life outside can be tough. I’m glad I’m here. I plan to be here for at least the next ten years – although I’ll stay much longer than that. I was educated here, I grew up here. I sometimes find myself in parks and places that I would go to when I was a child and the memories would come racing back. There are many parts of Canberra that give me nostalgia.

I’m glad I’m working and living here. I plan to contribute to this city for many years to come. Everyone is defensive of the place they’ve grown up. I have no hesitance to defend it each and every time someone starts to complain about there being nothing to do. When you live in other places that don’t offer the same luxuries as Canberra, you can come back realising “what can’t you do here?” Canberra is what you make it, the only task is having to decide your adventure as opposed to it coming to you.

Upon entering the Canberra Centre car park today, Saturday 26 of December 2009, I paid close attention to the Centre’s rates.  It shows the prices for normal shopping days and then at the bottom, prices for non-normal shopping days.

It clearly states that for Sundays or Public Holidays, there is flate rate of $2.

I was surprised and disappointed when upon paying for my stay today, the machine charged $5.60 for about 3 hours of parking. Now I know today is not Sunday but I’m pretty sure the 26th of December – otherwise known as Boxing Day – is a public holiday!

I tried to locate the centre’s management office and after finally finding the place, I realise it is closed. I rang the out of hours contact number (a mobile phone number) and to my surprise the number is out of service.

Realising that there isn’t much I could do, I went back into the Canberra Centre, withdrew $20 from an atm, and made my way back to the ticket machine to pay my $5.60 worth of parking.

WHAT THEY SHOULD’VE DONE

They should have placed a sign outside all the entrances to the Canberra Centre car park stating that today parking is charged at normal rates. That the Canberra Centre does not consider Saturday the 26th a public holiday. It just so happens that on the 26th of December every year, the two biggest retailers: David Jones and Myer have enormous stocktake sales.Thousands of shoppers visit the Canberra Centres and other malls on this day.

I’m not going to cry for too long about being overcharged $3.60 but when you consider the hundreds of cars that went in and out of the boom gates today, it’s big cash.

MY COURSE OF ACTION

Having left the carpark, I now have no evidence that I was ever there and complaining to management tomorrow or any other day seems pointless. This is why I rather express my disappointment publicly over the internet – not that It’ll accomplish much either. Perhaps other Canberra Centre customers today noticed the unethical pricing rationale.

My only other satisfactory course of action is to not park in the Canberra Centre this week when I go back to use up the rest of my gift voucher and from then on do my shopping at Westfield Woden or Westfield Belconnen. At least Westfield let you shop for two hours without charging parking and I have yet had a similar incident over there.

To add more insult to this rant, a proud Canberran once mentioned to me that one of the worst planning decisions ever made in Canberra was when the Canberra Centre was permitted to construct on Ainslie Avenue. As it has since then ruined the line of sight from City Hill to Mount Ainslie.

ALL I ASK FOR

We, the customers aren’t stupid.

1. If you put a sign up stating your rates, we can read and accept them before entering but just be honest.
2. If you’re going to charge a flat rate of $2 for public holidays then you should keep your end of the bargain and adjust your ticketing machines to reflect this on every public holiday.
3. If you’re going to be cheeky and charge people normal rates on public holidays, at least let us know before going in and parking the car there for three hours.
4. If you’re displaying an after hours contact number, make sure the number is in use and that the call will be answered.

I think I’ll do my shopping at Brand Depot and Direct Factory Outlet as they have enough parking and guess what? They don’t even charge. Other than that, the two Westfields in town are more reasonable with their pricing system.

Rather than sue me for defamation, I would like it if the Canberra Centre could take on my comments as constructive criticism and see to it that this doesn’t occur again. I’ll be watchful of their pricing during the rest of the year to see if this was a one-off or a regular occurrence.