Despite passionate community objections and a petition with more than 3600 signatures, the new owner of the Palms Oasis Caravan Park is determined to push ahead with its planned closure in the new year.
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Ingenia Lifestyle CEO, Simon Owen made his company’s intentions clear to the protesters who packed into the Pacific Palms Community Centre the popular Blueys Beach holiday accommodation would close on January 31, 2019.
More than 100 residents and park owners crammed into the community centre to voice their concerns and protest the planned development, while more than 1800 watched and commented on the meeting being live streamed on Facebook.
Mr Owen explained Ingenia Lifestyle planned to remodel the park into what he described as a ‘lifestyle community’ for over 55s.
But, at the same time Mr Owen emphasised the park would not be a retirement village.
The site, which would be developed into a similar style as Ingenia’s Port Stephens Latitude One, was bought on the open market in 2017.
He said Ingenia already had development application (DA) approval from the previous owners for 47 permanent homes, while the company planned to lodge a DA for an additional 61 permanent homes.
The houses would be master built, on-site using local tradesmen wherever possible, Mr Owen said.
Mr Owen was firm in his response the Palms Oasis would not continue to operate as a caravan park if MidCoast Council did not give DA approval.
However, the 22 long-term residents would retain their existing sites.
“The status quo for the park cannot continue.”
Pacific Palms Community Association president, Judy Donnelly explained the Great Lakes had the largest aged population in NSW.
“Do we need to increase it, shifting the balance even further away from a diverse community,” Ms Donnelly said?
“Or, do we need to encourage younger families to live here, people who can work or start businesses, put their children in our schools and in nippers, join the P&C, patrol the beach on the weekends, and most importantly for some, we need young people to make our coffee for us,” Ms Donnelly said?
“If we encourage the growth of housing that targets the elderly, our community will wither and die, younger people won’t want to live here and our image as a holiday destination will suffer,” she said.
“We need a younger more vibrant population, as our previous council recognised in the strategic development plan for Pacific Palms.”
Fourth generation tenant, Greg Carluccia described as disgusting the manner in which long-term tenants were notified they would be evicted.
“Eviction notices were slapped on our caravans,” Mr Carluccia said.
The Carluccia family, who had been been visiting the park for 10-12 weeks annually during the past 24 years, received two eviction notices in the past two months.
“We got an eviction notice in September so we sought legal advice – which was deemed unlawful – and then we were re-evicted in late October,” Mr Carluccia said.
He explained the family’s eviction was a second in 55 years, firstly at Sandbar where a similar project had been proposed.
“But, that was never built.”
“So, now we have nowhere to go, there is nothing that can take all the vans.”
He said caravans had to be removed at the owner’s expense.