Ten days after news broke that Kembla Heights' iconic Ruby's Restaurant was being forced to close, the owner says he's still hoping for a long-term solution.

But Scott Woods says he's been "blown away" by the support he's received from the Illawarra community.

On 28 August, Scott posted on Facebook that he had "devastating news": the owners of his award-winning restaurant, mining company GM3 had "unexpectedly decided not to renew the lease". Scott said he was "heartbroken" and that post generated a social media storm across the region, with hundreds of Ruby's supporters expressing their concern.

Within 24 hours of Scott's social media post, the mining company released a statement saying that they had decided to suspend the decision "at the current time".

Scott was relieved but, at the time of receiving the reprieve, he told The Illawarra Flame: "I don't think we're out of the woods yet."

Fighting back after Covid pandemic

To put the 'David and Goliath' headline into context, Scott regards himself as a "battler". Soon after taking on the restaurant came the Global Financial Crisis, More recently, he struggled to stay afloat through the impact of the pandemic. There have been bushfires and road closures, yet Ruby's has survived thanks, he says, to the loyalty and support of the community. 

Ruby's is a typical small business, getting through each week on pretty small margins; GM3, on the other hand, purchased the then-South32 mine at Mount Kembla and Appin 12 months ago for $2.5 billion.

At the time of the purchase, GM3's chief executive officer, Jason Economidis, said: "We are proud to be part of the communities surrounding our Appin and Dendrobium Mines and we are committed to the area's long-term future for our people their families and the broader community."

That "broader community" is now on edge over the Ruby's situation.

Scott has spent the past 10 days trying to arrange a meeting with GM3 management to reach a mutually satisfactory arrangement about the terms of his lease.

Ruby's is one of the region's most popular wedding venues and Scott is holding bookings more than 18 months out. Weddings, Scott says, are about 50 per cent of his business. 

Despite the current uncertainty, Scott said in the past week he'd still been receiving wedding enquiries; one in April next year and another in June. "I have to be honest with people about the situation," he said.

No idea why he was being asked to close

Scott is still at a loss to understand why the mining company is playing hard ball.

"I've got so many questions, because nobody knows what's going on."

He said the real estate business managing the lease wanted to change the long-term (40 years) arrangement in which a reduced rent was negotiated, but all repairs and maintenance at the historic property would be met at the expense of the operator.

After months of negotiations, Scott said he finally agreed to pay the amount requested, but days later he received the notice to leave.

A spokesman for McGrath Real Estate told The Illawarra Flame: "We don't own the property; we don't make the decisions." He said negotiations had been taking place for many months.

Community support is overwhelming

Scott said he was lost for words about the "overwhelming" support he had received since news started to spread about his predicament.

"It's been fantastic, amazing how many people are getting behind us."

He said, ideally, he's looking for more than a 12-month lease extension. "I'm here for the long haul. I'd like a 10-year lease, plus 10, plus 10," he said.

Members of the close-knit Mount Kembla and Kembla Heights community are still in shock about the situation.

The Illawarra Flame understands the community consultative committee which works together with the mine on matters of importance to the village has never discussed any changes to Ruby's lease. The committee last met just days before Scott received his eviction notice.

Long-time Mount Kembla resident Vivien Twyford is a former member of that community consultative committee, and she is struggling to understand why GM3 has done what it has done.

"It doesn't make any sense. As the owner, they have the power, but why would they do this?" Vivien said.

She said she feels for Scott and the Ruby's team who have no long-term certainty about their future.

"For someone who deals in weddings this is a disaster. What does he say to people who already have wedding bookings?"

A public relations 'disaster'

For decades until her retirement five years ago, Vivien ran one of the region's most successful community engagement consultancies. She was very frank about how she feels this situation has been allowed to evolve.

"As a PR exercise it's been a disaster. They've been foolish and I don't think they've thought this through."

Vivien said she wasn't surprised at the community backlash at the way the much-loved restaurant has been treated. "A lot of local people have enjoyed Ruby's over the years," she said.

"It's an unusual situation where a mining company owns an old miners' village and also owns a couple of businesses. The mood in the village will be very anxious. The locals won't want to do or say anything that might impact on their leases at this time."

A lot of unrest in the community

Well-known Kembla Heights resident, Sarah Widodo, operates the Retro Roast Coffee Van at the foothills of Mount Kembla and is a long-time resident of Kembla Heights. 

"I believe they're just testing the water with Ruby's," Sarah said of GM3.

Fifty percent of her customers live locally, and Sarah says everyone has a theory about what's going on, including her: "I believe it's being driven by the real estate company. They've caused a lot of unrest in the community since taking over a few years ago."

She said people living in Kembla Heights village were too scared to speak out. "We're all living in a housing crisis, and we don't have much choice. I find it sad. We have tenants who've lived in these homes for generations."

Sarah said the villagers feel "threatened" but in a strange way relieved that the Ruby's controversy has exposed a situation which shouldn't be allowed to continue.

"I find it encouraging," Sarah said.

"We are a village and a community, and right now the security of the village is threatened."

'A lack of transparency'

Another Mount Kembla resident, Peter Green, is the nearest neighbour to the GM3 mine, but he's not a tenant.

"They've clearly got an agenda," Peter said, "but there's a complete lack of transparency."

He believes the mine's agenda is driven by future expansion plans and Ruby's is caught up in something much bigger than a dispute over rent.

"I don't think they care about the community's response to the possibility of Ruby's going out of business," Peter said.

"They bought this mine with a clear intention of mining it till 2050. It's now owned by a billionaire family living in Indonesia. I'm sure they don't even know Mount Kembla village exists.

"As a neighbour, there's a sense of entitlement and arrogance. They're not a good neighbour," Peter said.

NF5 says the situation needs resolution

Also offering its support for Ruby's is the community advocacy group Neighbourhood Forum 5 (NF5), which wrote to the General Manager of GM3 this week. While welcoming the news that the Ruby's lease won't be terminated at this time, NF5 is seeking a more permanent solution.

"Our concern is that this small business owner, who claims he was happy to meet GM3's requirement for a rent increase, still has no certainty over his future," NF5 Secretary David Winterbottom wrote.

"This impacts both his business, his staff, and the many hundreds of people who have made reservations for the next 18 months, for weddings and other special events. In our view this is highly unsatisfactory and needs to be resolved as a priority. The situation has been unsettling for everyone who lives at Kembla Heights, who now fear for their future.

"Our Neighbourhood Forum appeals to GM3 to come to an early resolution of the current impasse, so the restaurant owner, and the local villagers can get on with their lives without fear of eviction. At our organisation we simply call it 'being a good neighbour'," Mr Winterbottom said.

When The Illawarra Flame contacted the crisis communications company acting for GM3 on Friday, they told us they had nothing more to add to the statement of 10 days ago, which simply gave the Ruby's team a temporary reprieve.