One of the antique dealers who will lose their space in the old bus depot building in Kingston says he was made well aware of the plan at least a year ago and was prepared for the changes ahead.
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David Ferguson, who has run Objective Fine Vintage Design in the building for about 12 years, said he had been consulted along the way and the plans to demolish an annex had not come out of the blue.
''We were made very aware of what was to happen,'' he said.
The Land Development Agency revealed this week plans to demolish the 1980s-built northern annex of the depot building, which houses three antique dealers in the Burley Griffin Antiques Centre.
The removal of the annex will allow the extension of Printers Way and open up an area where trains used to take coal to the power station. It will also connect the markets to the open space of the developing arts precinct.
The agency said the dealers had been on month-to-month leases but been given three months' notice to vacate the building. It had also pledged to help them find new premises.
Mr Ferguson said he was looking to steer away from a physical shopfront and expand his online business.
''It's a new challenge for me, that's how I see it,'' he said.
Old Bus Depot Markets directors Diane Hinds and Morna Whiting also ''wholeheartedly welcomed'' news that the upper-hall roof of the depot building would be replaced between January and April as part of the revamp worth more than $2 million.
The markets will continue to operate throughout the work, shifting stalls to alternative venues including the Fitters' Workshop.
''The Old Bus Depot Markets are very much looking forward to the next 20 years on the Kingston Foreshore,'' the directors said.
