Maroubra construction site a ‘nightmare’ for neighbours

One man has been forced to move out of his home and another is without vital wheelchair access due to a building disaster in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

Hayden Alexander is having trouble getting into his home because of damage to the driveway. Picture: Richard Dobson

Neighbours are counting the cost of a shambolic building disaster which has left one man homeless, another without wheelchair access, and a property developer facing a ­financial black hole.

Residents next to the ­Maroubra construction site on Yorktown Pde are hoping developer Nazem Islam can fix the problem.

However Mr Islam, the sole director of company ABDC Holdings, says he is ­unsure whether his construction site or recent “torrential rain” caused a driveway to break like a biscuit and a separate house to crumble.

David McIntyre lives in a neighbouring public housing property with his 23-year-old nephew Hayden Alexander, who has Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Since construction started on the $7 million project to build nine units next door, Mr McIntyre said his driveway has been crumbling.

“The developer has said absolutely nothing,” Mr McIntyre said of Mr Islam. “He’s not once come up to say sorry for the inconvenience.”

David McIntyre and Hayden Alexander are having trouble accessing their home …

… because of their badly cracked driveway. Pictures: Richard Dobson

Mr McIntyre said his nephew was unable to leave the house without assistance because of the gaping cracks in the driveway.

The state government has since paid for an alternative accessible entrance to the property, but the damage has also meant they have to park on the road to get Mr Alexander inside.

“Think of winter, pouring down rain — it’s a nightmare,” Mr McIntyre said.

In March, tenant James Ward-Collins was forced to move out of his home, located on the opposite side of the construction site, with just 12 hours notice. He gave up his home with a backyard to now live in a small apartment with his 40kg dog Maxwell.

“It was like a sinkhole down the side of my house,” Mr Ward-Collins said.

“All the bricks started to fall. I got a call from the builder saying that the house is starting to crack and it’s bad.”

James Ward-Collins and his dog Mazwellin front of their damaged rental home. Picture: Richard Dobson

Mr Ward-Collins spent six weeks homeless, and claims he was given $4500 by Mr Islam to relocate. Mr Islam said he has given Mr Ward-Collins more than $5000.

The owner of the rental property, HDH Investments, could not be reached for comment.

Asked if paying Mr Ward-Collins the money was an ­admission that his site caused the damage, Mr Islam said: “I can’t give you an answer at this moment.”

The developer said he was unsure whether the damage to Mr McIntyre’s rental home was caused by his project or the recent record rainfall.

“If it’s our fault then we will definitely fix it,” Mr Islam said. “We have not (yet) done an engineering report.”

A Randwick Council spokeswoman said the council had issued an Emergency Stop Work order, which allows only works that make the site safe.

It has also issued two $6000 fines “for development not according to development consent (no erosion/sediment controls and pumping water out of the site without approval)”.

The project faces significant financial difficulties.

“We have put all our money into this project and the costs have gone up,” Mr Islam said. “The cost of construction has gone up 35 per cent.”

Mr Islam paid $2.8 million for the 600sqm site in 2018.

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