Battlers given 3 months to find new home

Gympie’s only commercial caravan park will be shut permanently after years of controversy and neglect

Gympie Caravan Park residents will have to find a new home after the council voted to shut the troubled resort saying it could not afford the significant work needed to reopen it.

The Jane St park was closed to new tenants in June last year after the Brisbane Supreme Court ruled the managers had breached their lease.

Although work on the park's infrastructure including water and sewerage services, electrical supply and asbestos removal, the council said Thursday significant work was still needed by either the council or a commercial operator still needed to be done.

A press release following the vote said the council did not have the budget to do this.

The council says it does not have the budget needed to complete the necessary safety work on the park.

Residents of the 15 tenanted sites now have three months to find a new home.
"A decision regarding the park was needed as residents have the right to know the outcome so they can make a decision regarding their future." CEO Shane Gray said.

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"The issue has been going for many years now.

"This isn't how we'd like to have managed the park, however we'll do all we can to support the residents with this decision.

CEO Shane Gray says the council will support the residents who are being forced from their homes as a result of the shutdown.

"We will connect the residents with the services they may require to help them transition out of the park - whether that be community housing, finding accommodation within another park, support services - we'll do everything we can to help the residents."

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Mr Gray said a report will be compiled with options for council regarding the long-term use of the site.
"The site itself is crown land, with council as the trustee and we need to look at what the best options are for this site, while also appreciating that at this time, council do not have the budget to commence any major work here."

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