Deloraine Caravan Park long stayers are worried about where they will live because the local Apex club plans to throw them out.

Deloraine House manager Deb Smith and Meander Valley councillor John Temple are concerned the eviction will create more homelessness in the municipality.

They said that in a market where demand for rental properties is grossly outstripping supply, finding a place to live is not easy.

Ms Smith said, ‘Deloraine House already supports a number of homeless and displaced people and the eviction of the caravan park residents will add to the number of displaced people needing accommodation.’

Last month Apex members told the residents, two of whom are in their 70s and several of whom are employed locally, that they needed to be out of the caravan park a week after the Tasmanian Craft Fair, which is held at the end of November. 

In the face of the park residents’ consternation, Apex members Roy Cresswell and Rhys Weeding took the decision back to the 15 member club.

They refused to say why Apex had made the decision and when asked, club president Andrew Moore told the Gazette he knew nothing about the eviction.

At a meeting at the caravan park, also attended by Apex members Brad Atkins, Kevin van Helfteren and Rohan Sheehan, they announced that the residents now must move by June 2022.

The Deloraine Caravan Park is on untitled crown land by the Meander River. According to the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Meander Valley Council holds a business lease and license and allows Apex to operate the caravan park there.

Residents estimate that Apex makes about $36,000 a year from the park. It’s not known how the funds are disbursed.

Caravan Park resident Gordon Howard, who has lived there on and off for 20 years, said he does much of the handyman work there for free. 

Gordon, 72, along with Maureen Joyce, 79, and other residents took on the cleaning of bathrooms and laundry during COVID-19, while still paying $120 a week rent each.

Aside from potentially making at least seven people homeless, Apex’s handling of the issue has been marked by disrespect for the caravan residents.

At the first meeting, the residents were kept waiting on a cold evening for an hour after the appointed time.

When the residents voiced concern about how an absent resident with mental health issues would take the news, they were told, ‘What are we, social workers? We’re running a business here’.

Ms Smith said at the second meeting, this time two hours late, the Apex members were not interested in discussing how best to handle the situation.

‘I asked them whether they could work with us as two community organisations and they said, “Well, if you have to, you can put in a submission to us”.

‘I asked them where their sense of social conscience was, and one of them said, “That’s not our problem”.’

Also present was Ben Dudman, an adviser to Brian Mitchell MHR, who observed the Apex members’ behaviour.

Mr Mitchell’s office and Deloraine House have written to Deloraine Apex saying the long-term residents are well-
respected and appreciated by the Deloraine community and there is no other location in the town for them to move to. 

‘Furthermore, it is unreasonable and impracticable for the residents to move to nearby towns with similar facilities.

‘Deloraine is a regional community so moving to another town is not as simple as moving down the road to another suburb, and the cost of doing so and then travelling from a new area for work provides an immense financial burden.’ 

Cllr Temple said a number of people had told him their rental properties were to be sold and accommodation was scarce.

‘Even though this is not within the purview of the council, I completely understand people’s concerns about their future accommodation,’ he said.