Residents rally to clean hoarder house at Alfred St Granville

A rancid house harbouring stray cats and resembling a garbage tip has prompted fed-up residents to call on a western Sydney council to crack down on the ‘biohazard’.

The dilapidated house at Granville has been highlighted at a council meeting.

A rancid house harbouring stray cats and resembling a garbage tip has prompted fed-up Granville residents to call on Parramatta Council to crack down on the “biohazard”.

A 48-signature petition was tabled to the council on Monday night when councillor Patricia Prociv highlighted the “deplorable state” of the property at Alfred St on behalf of residents.

“The owner neglects basic upkeep, resulting in overgrown greenery and rubbish accumulation,’’ she said.

“The property has been like this in excess of five years and has become a serious biohazard.

“It harbours over 20 cats and a rat infestation – which pose significant health risks. Dead cats and rats are found on the street and under the M4 (where the owner feeds strays), and the infestation is spreading to nearby homes.”

One of the stray cats in the front yard.

Overgrown grass obstructs pedestrians on the footpath.

Stray cats, ibis, dumped appliances, blankets and a smashed front window could be seen from the front yard when this publication visited.

Garbage has also spilt on to Harmon Lane from the resident’s backyard and was filled with abandoned furniture, a trolley, multiple tins of empty cat food, crates, paint tins and wrappers amid a jungle of overgrown plants.

A petition has been tabled to Parramatta Council to finally crack down on problems.

Cr Prociv told the meeting the long grass obstructed the footpath and made it difficult for pedestrians to pass without encountering fleas and other pests.

“This is a great concern because of the high number of elderly residents in the area, who are forced to walk on the road adjacent to the footpath to get past,’’ she said.

Cr Prociv said the rat infestation had spread to a home on Onslow St and called for council staff to immediately clean the hoarder houses on Alfred St and Onslow St and the M4 area, where residents claim the woman feeds the cats.

The petition also called for the removal of cats so they could be placed in proper care.

“The cats appear sickly and are uncared for medically,’’ Cr Prociv said.

“It is inhumane to leave them like this.’’

The council agreed to inform the owner their actions were “endangering the neighbourhood’s overall wellbeing’’ and to carry out regular maintenance because the “owner is clearly unable to”.

A trolley at is part of the rubbish spilling from the property’s backyard.

More debris on Harmon Lane.

The council is restricted from entering the property pending permission from the resident.

Neighbours wished to remain anonymous but said the issue had been a problem for more than five years.

One woman said she found several rodents in her backyard.

“The rat problems are getting worse,’’ she said.

“We’ve had rats constantly in the last year.’’

A man named the cat litter as the worst problem but estimated there were 40 stray cats on the woman’s property.

“It’s more the cat litter and the odour that’s worse than anything,’’ he said.

“We had a neighbour tell us a snake was in the front. We’ve approached her and told her ‘can you clean your rubbish up?’ and she thinks nothing’s wrong.

“It’s gotten to the point where it’s out of hand. It’s feral.’’

The back of the garbage-riddle house.

The resident said there was once flammable boxes at Harmon Lane.

“There’s everything that you can name in here,’’ he said.

Another neighbour said: “She’s a very quiet lady but there’s too much dirt. In summer I can’t sit outside.’’

The woman is understood to have lived in the house for three decades. She was not home when this publication visited.

A Parramatta Council spokesman said the council had received nine complaints about the site over the past 12 months and continued to work with the resident to improve the property’s cleanliness.

“Council is in regular contact with the residents to assist with information on responsible pet ownership and maintaining healthy premises,’’ he said.