Veterans Retreat Gympie founder fights council amid homelessness crisis

The Gympie council has come down suddenly and hard on a Veterans Retreat near Gympie that helps hundreds of homeless and struggling veterans every year, but Mayor Glen Hartwig says the action was a “last resort”.

Mayor Glen Hartwig has defended his council’s handling of a property fight over veterans’ retreat at Mothar Mountain, saying the organisation was only drawn into the stoush as the “last resort” of frustrated residents.

Veteran’s Retreat owner Kylie James said on Friday she was “dumbfounded” by Gympie Mayor Glen Hartwig’s response to her going public with the plight she found herself in following a council crackdown on her Mothar Mountain retreat.

Mr Hartwig on Thursday defended his council’s handling of a property fight over the retreat, saying the council was drawn into the stoush as a “last resort”.

But Ms James on Friday rejected Mr Hartwig’s comments, saying he was playing “Mr Nice Guy”.

Gympie Region Mayor Glen Hartwig says the action taken against Veterans Retreat was a last resort following complaints from neighbours.

The grassroots Veterans Retreat provides critical support to homeless veterans and first responders, but this week found itself embroiled in the potentially devastating battle with the Gympie Regional Council over compliance issues.

Veterans Retreat is located on a rural property at Mothar Mountain and is run by Ms James, a medically discharged veteran who founded the retreat to provide a lifeline for those struggling after service.

Now, the organisation is under threat because of new council demands regarding shipping containers and temporary housing on the property.

Ms James journey to founding the Veterans Retreat began after her own struggles with homelessness following her departure from the Australian Defence Force.

She reiterated that she had only received one complaint about the developments on her property over two years ago, and had since lodged a Freedom of Information request to prove she has not received a single noise complaint.

“We have never received a complaint of that nature,” she said.

“A noise complaint has never been included in any of the correspondence we have received, and the police have never shown up to the property to notify us of any complaints.

“We hold a charity concert once a year which finishes by 9:30pm and we’re all in bed 10pm.

“Our neighbours love the concerts, they join us or sit on their porches and listen to the music.

“We’re older, we’re not staying up really late - and we’re also veterans, we don’t like loud noise.

“We are a wellness retreat, after all.”

Ms James said she had evidence of the council saying “it’s too late for that now” in regards to requiring planning permission for the developments on her property.

She said her neighbours were “shocked” by what Mr Hartwig said in response and they were rallying together to prove their support for the veterans retreat.

“If it wasn’t for my two children, I wouldn’t be here today.” Veterans Retreat has grown rapidly since its inception in 2020, serving hundreds of veterans annually from all over Australia.

“If it wasn’t for my two children, I wouldn’t be here today,” she said.

Veterans Retreat has grown rapidly since its inception in 2020, serving hundreds of veterans annually from all over Australia.

Visitors engage in therapeutic activities such as working on the farm, which Ms James says has saved many lives.

“We’ve had over 890 visitors from across Australia last year,” she said.

“The impact has been phenomenal, people tell me this place has literally saved their lives.”

The retreat operated with the understanding that its facilities, including a five-bedroom donga and shipping containers used for storage, were compliant with council regulations.

“We were told by the mayor and previous planning officers to ‘go for gold’,” she said.

Man airlifted after serious crash between car, buggy outside Gympie

Watch: Sharks and dingoes come face-to-face on K’gari

The trouble began with a complaint was lodged two years ago by a neighbour about developments on the property.

The trouble began with a complaint lodged two years ago by a neighbour about development on the property.

Despite assurances from the council at the time, Ms James recently received a letter demanding compliance for all shipping containers and the donga.

The council has given Veterans Retreat 45 days to either remove the containers or submit expensive and time-consuming development applications.

Failure to comply could result in fines exceeding $725,000.

“I called and asked what shipping containers they were talking about, and they said ‘every single one on your property’,” Kylie said.

Many of the containers don’t even belong to her, but are owned by homeless veterans to store belongings.

Renovations to the donga, which houses veterans, were completed with the help of local business Bunnings in Gympie.

Renovations to the donga, which houses veterans, were completed with the help of Bunnings in Gympie.

“This is a revenue grab. They’re opening a business case to target everyone with a shipping container in the area,” she said.

“There are tens of thousands of shipping containers in the Gympie region, are they going to breach them all?”

Speaking with media on Thursday, Mr Hartwig said the council’s involvement only came on the back of public concerns.

“If there’s no complaint, council doesn’t get involved,” he said.

He said the council had been “dealing with a number of complaints over an extended period of time in relation to the facility there” on issues beyond only the shipping containers.

The situation has taken a significant toll on Kylie James’ mental and physical health, yet continues to provide vital services, prepare for seminars for returning veterans, and participate in national discussions on veteran reforms.

“While the council may support the work Kylie and her team are trying to do, the work they do shouldn’t impede or cause discomfort to other residents that live in the area,” Mr Hartwig said.

“It shouldn’t be the responsibility of other residents living around that area to put up with behaviour or conduct that interferes with their life.

“The issue is the activities occurring on that property... cause angst for other residents in that region and the only lever they have to pull is to make a complaint to the council.

“We end up being the meat in the sandwich.”

He said staff spoke with Kylie to find a solution, and the council’s choices on how it moved forward - including timeframes for the removal of the containers and whether any fine may ultimately be imposed - were dictated by government legislation.

“This council is a snake in the grass, but I’m not going to let them crush us.”

“How many other residents should be impacted by the activities that occur there, before Kylie makes the change herself?

“We don’t want to be involved.
“The only reason we are involved is because the residents have tried to work with her... and as a result of their frustration they’ve involved council... as a last resort, they engage us with ongoing issue that she refuses to deal with.”

The situation has taken a significant toll on Kylie’s mental and physical health, yet she continues to provide vital services, prepare for seminars for returning veterans, and participate in national discussions on veteran reforms.

“If I had all the money in the world, I’d just buy time,” she said. “I’ve worked my entire life for this home, but now I’m at risk of losing everything.

“Councils work for us — I’m paying them for a service, but instead, they’re trying to destroy what we’ve built.
“This council is a snake in the grass, but I’m not going to let them crush us.”