Technopark food court vendors to hike rates if rentals go up

Vendors and food brands operating at the Tejaswani food court at Technopark are planning to increase rates on food items if Technopark authorities finalize rentals on the steep side. Last week, the park authorities suggested rental rates that were higher than what its previous sub-licencee, Vital Links & Services Pvt Ltd (VLS), had charged. Technopark vacated VLS from its premises on July 31 and decided to do away with tendering process as a policy for all its food courts and deal directly with the vendors. "Technopark authorities told us we could continue functioning although our contract was with VLS. They promised us that they would reduce rentals so it could reflect in the pricing of the menu. However, the rent bill sent to my office last week was steeper by almost Rs 5,000 than what I was paying to VLS," said a vendor who did not want to be identified.

While the square foot space was cheaper compared to the VLS, it was the common area billing that added to the zeros, he added. "Technopark continues to use chairs and tables provided by VLS. They had promised new furniture, which has not arrived. When we checked the rental bills, we realized that the calculations were different with each brand," a kiosk owner said. Technopark authorities are likely to revise their initial rental calculations, after going through rent receipts of VLS to understand the break-up of costs. The food court, which started with three counters in May 2008, today brags of 10 counters and seven kiosks and continues to feature several popular food brands. Around 3,000 techies eat from the Technopark food court on weekdays. http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-10-06/thiruvananthapuram/42762696_1_technopark-food-court-vls