Meriton’s new Covid hotel in Zetland leads to petition from locals

New documents reveal Harry Triguboff’s company is receiving $1m a week to turn his units into hotel quarantine. However, neighbours of a new proposed facility fear the risk is too great.

One of the biggest players in Australia’s property and construction sectors is receiving more than $1 million a week to deliver hotel quarantine accommodation in suburbs across Sydney.

NSW Health tender documents have revealed it is paying contracts valued at $1.07 million per week for Meriton to provide quarantine accommodation at the Meriton Suites buildings in Zetland, Mascot and North Ryde for overseas travellers returning to Australia.

The facilities have each been repurposed from luxury serviced apartment accommodation into temporary quarantine hubs for the exclusive use of NSW Health.

An inside look at the hotel quarantine facility in Zetland.

The contract for Meriton’s Mascot Suites building is valued at approximately $415,555 per week, Zetland at $378,000 per week and North Ryde at $264,390.01 per week.

NSW Health did not respond to questions about how the funds are used.

A Sydney Local Health District spokeswoman said quarantine facilities – also known as special health accommodation – had been an integral part of the “state’s successful Covid-19 response and has helped keep the community safe”.

“The special health accommodation which opened in March last year is located across multiple sites in Sydney most of which are owned by Meriton. It has cared for more than 16,200 people so far with zero transmission of COVID-19 to the community,” she said in a statement.

The Meriton Suites building in Zetland.

“The recent significant surge in Covid-19 cases and their close contacts in Sydney has

resulted in an urgent need for more quarantine accommodation to ensure we can keep the

community safe from the Delta variant.”

Earlier this month, NSW Health had planned to launch a fourth quarantine hotel at Meriton Waterloo but has revised the plans to instead repurpose the building into “community support accommodation” for people who are considered close contacts and unable to self-isolate at home.

#COVID19nsw patients began moving into the Special Health Accomodation at the @MeritonSuites Waterloo today. Still no information or consultation from @NSWHealth. Residents in adjoining buildings that share common areas with the medihotel are fearful for their safety. pic.twitter.com/8vp5fuJ2Ux

— Jay Gillieatt 😷 (@jgillieatt) August 18, 2021

It comes after almost 100 residents signed a petition opposing hotel quarantine at the site raising concerns over the site’s proximity to adjoining units in the dense inner-city environment.

In a letter to residents last week, NSW Health said the community support accommodation was “low risk” and the site had been chosen due to its size and proximity to health facilities.

“The individuals or families referred to Meriton Suites Waterloo are low-risk close contacts who have come into contact with Covid-19 positive people for a short period of time,” the letter stated.

“The occupants are not Covid positive. They are regularly tested by healthcare staff within the hotel, who also conduct daily health assessments for symptoms of Covid. If at any stage, they return a positive test they will be transferred to appropriate health accommodation.”

The hotel suites are used for returning travellers to Australia.

Jay Gillieatt, who lives next to the building, said concerns among residents were heightened due to lack of consultation from NSW Health.

“Initially a lot of people were upset at the lack of information from NSW Health about how risks would be managed and why this (site) was chosen,” he said.

“I appreciate that we need to put the accommodation somewhere but the hotel is attached to residential apartments through common areas and a lot of us thought there was a real risk we could have gotten infected.

“(Community support accommodation) is still not great but because there’ll be less Covid positive people there are less concerns.”

The Meriton Suites hotel building in Waterloo (far right) is part of a precinct which includes both residential units and retail.

In a statement, a Meriton spokeswoman said the contracts for the Mascot, Zetland and North Ryde facilities “vary in length based on the needs of NSW Health but are likely to continue into early 2022.”

NSW Health said the facilities have the “highest standards of infection prevention” including all staff undergoing daily surveillance testing and full vaccination.

Newtown State Greens MP Jenny Leong said communication was vital for residents living near quarantine hotels.

“Our community absolutely recognises the need for quarantine facilities during this pandemic, however, it is critical that residents impacted receive clear communication from NSW Health about these decisions and assurances about what is being done to manage the risks,” she said.

“We have raised these concerns with the Health Minister and urged him to ensure locals are provided with direct information and details of how they can stay safe.”