Mascot Tower apartment owners told to pay $5 million to fix damage

Apartment owners and residents at the cracked Mascot Towers have been left in “varying states of mental and financial distress” following the evacuation and being notified they would have to pay up to $5 million to fix the damaged building.

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The owners of apartments in the troubled Mascot complex are furious they are being asked to fork out more than $5 million to try to fix the damaged development.

Owners will vote tomorrow night on a special levy of $1 million for slip joint defects, additional emergency propping and engineering and have been told they have just weeks to come up with the money.

The vote for the emergency funds comes after Mascot Towers Owners Corporation voted unanimously in April to spend $4.1 million for a series of “remedial works” related to the ground, upper ground and first floor.

Minutes of the meeting state that the measure was passed by all of the voting members with no one voting against it. The works on the “slab expansion joint” involve “partial removal and reconstruction of the existing non-load-bearing masonry at all three levels”.

Some residents have been given access to their Mascot Towers apartment while others cannot enter any time. Picture: AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi

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The complex was evacuated on Friday night after engineers became concerned about cracks in the primary support structure and facade masonry of the 10-year-old building on Bourke St.

Residents in about half of the 122 units that were ­considered partly accessible have since been told they can briefly return to collect personal items under escort from management and security officers.

All of the other units fall in the non-accessible zone and cannot be entered at any time, along with carparks, recreational areas and some businesses.

Unit owner Matthew Harris said he is worried the development will become an endless money pit.

“We are losing money by the day. First it was $4.1 million and now possibly another one million and the way it’s going that could go up again. Every day is a nightmare,” he said.

“It’s impossible to know how long this situation will go on for. They’re asking for $1 million now but what will be the total amount?”

Owners and residents of the apartments have written a letter demanding further access and revealed the stress it has had on them. Picture: Monique Harmer

The $1 million special levy will also cover costs, without GST, involving $254,000 for propping, $250,000 for engineering, $176,000 for legal fees, $100,000 for the estimated cost of the evacuation, $70,000 for new carpets, $5000 for a media consultant and others.

Owners of 24 properties within Mascot Towers have now written to the management of their building ahead of a scheduled meeting with experts tomorrow to demand further access to the building and information from engineers.

In an email to the building manager, Building Management Australia, strata management company Strata Choice and the executive committee sent on Tuesday, the owners say the “chaos” following the evacuation has put residents in “varying states of distress, not to mention extreme mental and financial duress”.

“We have to express our disappointment and dismay over which the evacuation was handled; there has been a shocking lack of leadership and emergency planning when this crisis happened.”

A crack seen in the car park of the apartment complex. Picture: AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi

In a sign posted outside the building, residents wrote they had addressed a message at Premier Gladys Berejiklian that they were receiving “zero support”.

The email also takes aim at a “lack of transparent and reliable communication” and the “callous and discourteous treatment” displayed by their point of contact at the ­residents’ hotline.

They’ve asked for a timeline for residents who haven’t been able to return to collect belongings and for a second opportunity for those who’ve already been given a 15-­minute window to return.

The building’s six-year warranty has expired.