Wollongbar residents embrace pod village plan for flood battlers

A plan to pilot ‘pod housing’ for people who lost their homes in the floods has found favour with local residents at Wollongbar which will be the trial site. Here’s why.

Residents and businesses have opened their arms to welcome their fellow man, woman and child at the NSW government’s first earmarked ‘pod city’ site at the Wollongbar Sports Fields.

Locals said they have no qualms about flood impacted residents setting up a temporary home in their backyard while they rebuild what was taken in the floods.

The NSW Government announced on Sunday a $350 million investment in temporary modular housing to give people displaced by floods a place to call home while they rebuild their lives.

It will be in the grounds of the Wollongbar Sports Fields, and will initially include around 25 temporary accommodation pods with capacity to house up to 100 people.

Bella Cox from Wollongbar Foodworks said it’s a really good idea.

“I think there are a lot of opportunities around Wollongbar and Alstonville with support for all the floods that have happened,” Ms Cox said.

“I’ve been working flat out helping anybody I could, delivering and that sort of stuff.”

Bella Cox from Wollongbar Foodworks said the community will welcome families who stay in government arranged pod cities like the one earmarked for Wollongbar Sport Fields.

With around 20 now working at the local grocery store, Ms Cox said they have more food options and are ready to help anyone who needs it.

“It could get quite populated but I genuinely think that because we are already a close community that we’ll welcome everybody,” Ms Cox said.

Kain McGarry, whose workplace was destroyed in the Lismore floods, said the pod city at Wollongbar can only be a good thing.

“I think it’s going to benefit the community,” Mr McGarry said, “with more money going around.”

The only concern could be how residents at Wollongbar’s pod village would access essential services, which sometimes demands travel to Ballina, Byron Bay or even the Tweed.

“If these services are monitored and managed properly then I can’t see it being an issue,” Mr McGarry said.

He believed temporary housing could be for the long haul given the sheer size of the rebuild for the region.

“Our offices in Lismore have been affected and we’re not sure when we’ll be back in there,” Mr McGarry said.

“It’s not just Lismore that has been affected it’s the whole Northern Rivers, so I think we need to do as much as we can and if that’s going to help those that will be out of their properties for 18 months or thereabouts then that’s a good thing.”

Wollongbar Sport Fields will be the site of first ‘pod-city’ to house displaced flood victims while they rebuild their homes.

Wollongbar resident Emily Smith said the pod city is needed.

“I think the government needs to make some sort of accommodation available for displaced families,” Ms Smith said.

“I personally don’t have an issue with them using a space that I know doesn’t get used, like every time I am here I don’t see the fields being used for sporting purposes.”

Ms Smith’s only concern was the welfare and wellbeing of families put into close quarter accommodation.

“Food, toiletries, showers, how are they going to bring that here? And how are they going to be kept safe?

“But other than that I think it is a really positive thing.”