Aldi is locked in a legal battle with the body corporate that administers the property it occupies at Gungahlin Square, which the supermarket chain plans to leave.
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The company needs consent from the body corporate to apply for changes to the crown lease purpose clause for Units Plan 2995, which specifies that a supermarket must fill the premises Aldi currently occupies at Gungahlin Square.
Aldi wants the terms changed to allow for a supermarket or shop to take on the lease when it leaves, but the body corporate that administers the property has voted unanimously against providing consent.
The body corporate's opposition prompted Aldi to take the dispute to the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal, which has ordered the parties to participate in mediation on September 14.
Body corporate chairman Stef Pashalidis said if something other than a supermarket filled the space, it would damage the liveability of Gungahlin Square for its residents, and the commercial viability of the centre for the other retailers.
"They've gone about it in a big business sort of way without any consideration," Mr Pashalidis said.
"... [Aldi's] pockets go deeper than ours, so they can [pursue legal action] for longer than us, and they know that."
An Aldi Australia spokesperson denied the supermarket chain was trying to change the terms of the crown lease in order to prevent another supermarket operator from moving into Gungahlin Square.
The spokesperson said Aldi planned to leave because it had a growing range of products that it would not be able to accommodate in the store at Gungahlin Square, because there were no viable options to extend those premises.
Aldi is set to open a store at the Marquee development in Amaroo, just a few kilometres from Gungahlin Square, late next year, but the spokesperson said that store was not a replacement for the Gungahlin Square supermarket.
"We are currently weighing up options in the broader area," the Aldi spokesperson said.
"At this stage, the local community can shop at our established stores in Gungahlin and Casey."
An Aldi representative told a February general meeting of the body corporate the current terms of the crown lease were making it difficult to find prospective tenants to fill the premises, and that opening it up to shops other than supermarkets would help find a replacement tenant.
At a directions hearing in the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Wednesday, barrister Kristy Katavic, representing Aldi, said the company did not see the benefits of mediation.
"They feel like they've exhausted explaining the reasons behind it [to the body corporate]," Ms Katavic said.
"My client feels as though they need to get on with it."
Lawyer Maurice Falcetta, representing the body corporate, said he believed mediation would be an effective way to reach a compromise that worked for everyone.
"There are a lot of different interests that need to be considered," Mr Falcetta said, referring to the fact the body corporate was made up of 101 residential owners and 45 commercial unit owners.
The tribunal ordered both parties to attend mediation on September 14.
If they are unable to reach an agreement, a two-day hearing will be held on October 22-23, with the tribunal to decide whether Aldi can lodge an application for changes to the lease.
