The management of Abbotsford Convent has been accused of forgetting its community roots following the threatened eviction of pay-by-donation restaurant Lentil as Anything.
Six years after public protests forced the state government to entrust the historic site to the community, there are growing concerns among some tenants that the board of management is pursuing profit over people - a claim rejected by the site's chief executive as "crazy".
Lentil as Anything was told last week its site could be put out to tender when the lease expires at the end of this year, paving the way for a possible high-rent replacement.
Shanaka Fernando and head chef Errol Schwallie at Lentil as Anything yesterday. Photo: Joseph Feil
Restaurant founder Shanaka Fernando said yesterday it showed management was "strongly out of touch" with the community responsible for its very existence.
Thousands of people have since registered their support for a campaign to save the charity restaurant's Abbotsford outlet.
"It's a case of Save the Abbotsford Convent take two," Mr Fernando said.
Lentil as Anything has banded with the convent's other original tenants to address what they claim is a lack of long-term vision and transparency from the Abbotsford Convent Foundation, the body charged with managing the inner-east arts, cultural and education precinct.
Mr Fernando, who was part of initial community protests to save the convent site from development, said tenants had no representation on the board and little idea of what the future held.
He has called for the government to step in and a new board to be democratically elected.
And he said yesterday he would not accept a new lease unless there were "fundamental changes" to the board's aspirations and conduct, such as regular communication with tenants and the greater community.
Convent Bakery owner and coalition member Arnold Salinas agreed there was "a lot of uncertainty about where the convent is heading".
While his own site was secure until 2016, Mr Salinas said whatever happened to Lentil as Anything could be repeated as more leases expired.
He feared a tendering process would increase the rent on the Lentil site, forcing any replacement to be more profit-driven and reducing the convent to a "shopping centre mentality".
"Their driving force is not going to be any community spirit, it's just going to be based on how much money can they really get out of their business," he said.
"For a community space, a tendering process will do a great deal of damage."
Abbotsford Convent Foundation chief executive Maggie Maguire said the board received a letter from Mr Fernando yesterday and was "certainly open to conversations".
"We are looking at having a significant stakeholder meeting so that there can be that conversation between the board and the tenants," she said.
Ms Maguire could not confirm the Lentil site would be open to tender, saying the board was "considering all sorts of options".
She said the board had upheld the original vision for Abbotsford Convent, which was for an arts, culture and education precinct.
ACF funded its operations budget each year through leases, carparking and events but "making a profit is never, ever a priority above our community," Ms Maguire said.
Lentil as Anything is a not-for-profit operation that provides training and jobs for refugees, unemployed and homeless people in four sites throughout Melbourne.
The Abbotsford site employs 60 people and serves more than 500 vegetarian meals each day.
Writer Arnold Zable has organised a petition urging the state government to reverse the Abbotsford decision and Housing Minister Richard Wynne has written to the board recommending the restaurant remain.
Singer Missy Higgins has also leapt to their defence, yesterday describing the restaurant as a "Melbourne institution" that brought "a much-needed sense of culture and community to the convent".
Age readers have voted overwhelmingly in favour of retaining Lentil as Anything at Abbotsford Convent, with 91 per cent of the 3537 votes received by 7pm yesterday saying it was the best venue for the restaurant.
