A little-known Nepalese charity that has only existed since last year has raised eyebrows after Brisbane City Council awarded it the right to run a seven-day-a-week café out of Teneriffe's historic engine room.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Lord Mayor Graham Quirk announced in August that tenders for a "social enterprise" to run the riverside café would be sought, following a $1.2 million council investment into the building.
On Tuesday, councillors will vote on the recommendation that a nine-year lease be granted to the Uniting Hands Foundation Australia.
According to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, UHFA was only registered as a charity on June 2 last year, but it claimed in its submission to the council to have been operating in Australia and Nepal since 2010.
On Monday evening, its website on appeared to be incomplete, with holding text and stock images.
Under the heading "about us" was the following statement: "Supporting local Nepalese people with their educational resources and providing assistance during disaster relief operations, Uniting Hands Foundation is a registered charity within Australia and Nepal."
The UHFA bid was one of two submitted to the council and had, by some margin, the biggest financial return for ratepayers.
It offered the council base rent of $35,000 per annum, plus percentage rent of 2 per cent of sales over $800,000, 3 per cent of sales over $1 million and 5 per cent of sales over $1.5 million.
A bid by Brisbane charity Footprints had a base rent of $1 per annum, with no percentage of gross turnover and also required the council to install a kitchen exhaust hood.
The UHFA was run by businessman Hom Pyashi, whose restaurants included the recently opened 88FortyEight in one of the Brunswick St Mall's so-called retail pods in July.
Comment was sought from Mr Pyashi, who, according to a council file, donated a minimum 10 per cent of profits to his charity.
That, according to council Labor opposition leader Peter Cumming, should disqualify the venture as a "social enterprise".
"In August, the Lord Mayor held a press conference on the site saying council would partner with a social enterprise to operate the food outlet," he said.
"Cr Vicki Howard also told the Teneriffe Progress Association on August 17 at their meeting that the café would be operated by a not-for-profit organisation.
"...How could this contract be awarded to a social enterprise, as the Lord Mayor declared, which has only been in operation for four months?
"And clearly, this business isn't a not-for-profit, as Cr Howard said, because they say they donate a percentage of their profits to charity."
Cr Quirk backed the UHFA as a worthy tenant for the engine room.
"Uniting Hands Foundation is a registered charity and social enterprise whose work supports people at risk of and experiencing homelessness, domestic violence, drug abuse and unemployment," he said.
"This is a social enterprise with a big heart, with a percentage of the profits raised from the café going back into the foundation to support further charity work."
Cr Quirk said UHFA had "proven experience in the restaurant industry" and would offer traineeships for vulnerable people at the café.
"This commitment will see a two-fold benefit for the community, with a new café and an organisation giving back to disadvantaged members of the community," he said.
The riverside building was built between 1917 and 1927 and served as an engine room to the area's wool stores and as a submarine servicing site during World War II.
CORRECTION: Uniting Hands Foundation Australia was registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission on June 2, 2015 and not June 2 this year as was previously reported.
