Ghost street of Windsor: Homes abandoned, left to rot after floods
It’s the flood-ravaged inner-Brisbane street that’s become a ghost of its former self, with its homes abandoned by owners and renters and left to rot. FULL REPORT
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It’s the flood-ravaged Brisbane street that’s become a ghost of its former self, with its homes abandoned by owners and renters and left to rot.
Uncollected mail has overflowed out of letterboxes, front doors were wide open and windows were boarded up with timber in at least 10 houses along Nicholas St, Windsor.
It’s been more than six months since the devastating February floods that put much of the 4030 postcode under water, but the impact remains.
Residents who were powerless to stop the top level of their two-storey homes becoming islands appear to have not returned while other homes have been reduced to construction sites.
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Nicholas St renter Ben Howlett said the low-lying end of the street had been emptied.
Mr Howlett, 42, lost thousands of dollars in furniture when waters rose a foot above the top floorboards leaving it a “mouldy, stinky” mess.
He said one of his neighbours had had to camp out in backyard tent while other property owners had simply not returned.
“Everyone is gone,” Mr Howlett said.
“One little old lady was camping in her backyard for months, borrowing our hot water.
“There’s wildlife everywhere too – foxes, possums. It’s like a barnyard.”
While the rental was officially classed as “liveable”, Mr Howlett argued it was anything but – and for the six-month aftermath of the disaster, he had had to remain, locked into a lease.
“It was a structural shell and smelt of rot, it really stinks inside, not worth $570 a week,” he said.
“There was mould everywhere, the front deck is falling apart, the floorboards are all bowed. It’s a mess.
“But thankfully we have secured another place in Coorparoo for $100 a week less than here.”
Mr Howlett said he would never have moved into the rental in 2020 had he known of the past flooding horrors and what 2022’s event would unleash.
Other inundated Windsor streets included Maurice, Blackburn, Cullen and Bowen, all victims of the Breakfast Creek breaking its banks.
It comes after 23 flood-affected homeowners in Brisbane and Goodna last week became the first in the state to accept voluntary home buyback offers as part of a $741m state and federal funding package.
Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt said more than 200 properties in Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan and Moreton Bay had been identified for the scheme.
Senator Watt said 500 homes were expected to be secured by the government as part of the fund.
“The flooding we saw last storm season was catastrophic, and its unprecedented nature required an extraordinary response from all levels of government,” Mr Watt said.
“We know this is an incredibly hard decision for many people, and the Queensland government is working closely with every homeowner through each stage of the process.”
Housing plan for flood-hit
A plan to leverage the NSW government to open the way for affordable housing for Lismore flood victims is just a vote away.
A motion for Lismore City Council to negotiate with the Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation (NRRC) to acquire suitable land for flood-affected residents may be tabled at the next council meeting.
The motion would see any potential land developed as social and affordable housing that would prioritise relocation for flood-affected residents.
The NRRC was tasked with accelerating housing recovery, but seven months on, thousands of residents are still without stable accommodation.
Council is currently rezoning existing land to address the housing crisis.
However, without strict regulation there is no guarantee the new housing would be affordable, the proposed notice of motion states.
The motion would call on the state government to use powers to mandatorily acquire land instead of leaving it to property developers who have no obligation to provide affordable housing.
Lismore Council will meet on Tuesday, October 11 at 6pm.
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