Strife-torn island resort announces closure amid bitter feud

A luxury Queensland island resort has announced its closure ahead of essential services including power and water being cut over a bitter dispute.

Couran Cove Island Resort management has announced the resort has been “temporarily closed” as of Wednesday. Picture: Glenn Hampson

A strife-torn luxury Gold Coast island resort has shut its doors ahead of essential services being totally cut over a bitter body corporate dispute.

Officials from the Couran Cove Island resort announced on social media on Wednesday the resort was “temporarily closed”.

“Due to a number of body corporate issues, including the redirection of levy moneys by a number of body corporate committees, the body corporates were unable to pay for essential services so (the) resort is temporarily closed,” the Facebook post said.

“Thank you for the overwhelming letters of support and we hope to see you soon when we reopen.”

The closure follows months of turmoil at Couran Cove which was developed as a luxury eco-resort on South Stradbroke Island in the 1990s by US billionaire and philanthropist Chuck Feeney with the help of athletics legend Ron Clarke before he became mayor of the Gold Coast.

Residents of the Couran Cove Island Resort on South Stradbroke Island have been without power, water and sewerage since February. Picture: Glenn Hampson

Power and water were cut to dozens of privately-owned apartments and lodges at the resort in February amid claims by management that millions of dollars in body corporate fees had not been paid.

At a fiery body corporate meeting on Tuesday, Darren Phillips – the chairman of one of the five bodies corporate – provocatively swigged on a schooner of beer as angry residents demanded his resignation.

He cut short the meeting after dialling in on Zoom but residents later voted to oust him and replace him with their own representative, as well as appointing a forensic accountant to probe the body corporate’s finances.

A besieged body corporate official at a strife-torn Gold Coast island resort where power and water have been cut off has swigged on a beer at a meeting where angry residents demanded he resign on Tuesday. A post on the Couran Cove Facebook page late Wednesday said the resort was “temporarily closed”. Picture: Supplied

High-flying Sydney businessman Simon Napoli, whose companies provide services to the resort, has said that water, sewage, caretaking and fire detection systems will be suspended from Friday.

Mr Napoli said the service providers were owed more than $25 million by the bodies corporate.

“This appalling situation could have been avoided if the committee members had

simply complied with their legal obligations,” he said.

“We remain committed to working with relevant agencies to deliver suggestions on how to resolve significant infighting between body corporates which has plagued Couran Cove for over a decade.”