Dandenong Hub needs ‘co-ordinated approach’ as homeless people take over fire escapes

More than 30 homeless are sleeping in a maze of fire escapes at a major Melbourne shopping complex, with drugs, crime and anti-social behaviour rife as embattled traders cry out for help.

Anti-social behaviour including blatant drug dealing, violence and public drinking have turned large parts of a major Melbourne shopping complex into a no go zone, with dozens of homeless people setting up camp in fire escapes.

The dilapidated Dandenong Hub — directly behind the newer and bigger Dandenong Square — is full of empty stores while a horde of homeless have moved into a warren of fire escapes that are filled with an overpowering stench from rubbish, feaces and food scraps.

Dandenong Hub has been plagued with anti-social behaviour including blatant drug dealing, violence and public drinking.

Those traders who remain are crying out for help as the centre crumbles with neglect.

Stamp and Coins Den owner Colin Scates said he had recently installed a security roller door — at the cost of $10,000 — after multiple smash and grabs saw him losing stock.

“We would see break ins along this strip of shops every night, if not every other night,” he said.

“They might steal $50 out of the till or random items here and there, but we aren’t the worst affected by the thefts.”

Mr Scates said there were sometimes more than 30 homeless people inhabiting the fire escape, leaving the public unable to use the stairwell.

“Everything you would do in your home, they’re doing in the fire escape,” he said.

“The smell alone is enough but you couldn’t walk through there by yourself.”

Stamp and Coins Den owner Colin Scates recently installed at security roller door at a cost of $10,000. Picture: Gemma Scerri

Dandenong local Mark said the centre’s squatters had previously overrun the top floor, even installing their own washing machine.

“The body corporate hired security guards with dogs to remove them,” he said.

“They’d sneak in before 7pm (when the carpark closes) and start partying or doing whatever they were doing from then on.”

Despite being given their marching orders, an unknown number of homeless people still inhabit the two fire escapes at the Hub, leaving human faeces and food scraps to fester in the darkness.

The entrance into one fire escape in the Hub has been used as a makeshift bathroom.

Empty food wrappers, abandoned clothes and broken glass are strewn throughout a fire escape.

While Mr Scates said most of the fire escape’s residents vacated the area during the day, a Herald Sun investigation still found people still sleeping rough among the human waste while the centre was open to the public.

According to the latest Melbourne Zero information, 69 people are actively homeless in the Dandenong area, with 53 people sleeping rough.

Melbourne Zero is an organisation focused on ending homelessness by 2030 and partners with Dandenong Zero — run by Launch Housing and the City of Greater Dandenong Council.

Launch Housing and the City of Greater Dandenong Council were contacted for comment but failed to respond.

Up to 30 homeless people inhabit the fire escape at Dandenong Hub, some remaining asleep throughout the day.

Real estate agent Jeffrey Richardson — manager of the owners corporation for the business centre of the Dandenong Hub — said he’d spent much of his time over the Christmas period dealing with the ongoing issues.

“We had to engage a security firm that had a military background and dogs,” he said.

“(The loiterers) had repeatedly smashed down doors, and left behind their rubbish and empty alcohol bottles.”

Mr Richardson said a group of known “intruders” often roamed the area in a larger group, intimidating shoppers and traders.

“They can be very aggressive and they have no accountability,” he said.

“Part of the problem is the carpark — they sneak in and hide and then the centre closes and they get in through the fire doors.”

Retailers are dealing with constant crime such as smash and grabs.

A1 Phones at Dandenong Plaza has lost more than $70,000 worth of stock to theft, despite installing security roller doors.

Mr Richardson said the owners corporation had spent thousands on the security company to evict the squatters from the business centre, in a “intensive hit”, where security guards returned daily for weeks on end.

Mr Richardson told the Herald Sun the only way forward was a “co-ordinated approach, to take control of the whole building, search it and lock it down every night”.

“Police availability is already pretty limited, and they can’t arrest the intruders for breaking in,” he said.

“They just say the door was open or broken and they walked in.”

A1 Phones owner Shah Kazemi told the Herald Sun he had been unable to secure theft insurance after experiencing weekly break-ins.

“The same people are doing it and the police are doing nothing,” he said.

“They just ask for the CCTV, arrest the people and then we see them again in the street.”

Crime and chaos have extended to the outer perimeter of the centre, as the Herald Sun revealed Freechoice Dandenong on Langhorne St was one of 1044 stores caught selling illicit tobacco.

The second floor food court remains deserted.

A Victoria Police spokeswoman said Greater Dandenong police “conduct regular foot patrols of the Dandenong CBD and surrounding areas, both during the day and at night” to combat crime and increase public safety.

“The priority for Victoria Police is to link people who are sleeping rough to the services available to them,” she said.

“We work closely with the relevant agencies to address these issues.”

The spokeswoman said Greater Dandenong police also “work closely” with the council and Launch Housing to “engage with people experiencing homelessness” and “ensure they have access to essential services”.

Originally published as Dandenong Hub needs ‘co-ordinated approach’ as homeless people take over fire escapes