Coast landslip disaster: Evacuated residents face hefty fines unless they fix million-dollar homes
Gold Coast hinterland residents forced to evacuate their homes due to a landslip have accused the council of being heartless after being threatened with fines of up to $3 million.
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HINTERLAND residents forced to evacuate their homes due to a landslip say the Gold Coast City Council is being heartless by threatening them with fines of up to $3m.
A Bulletin investigation in May detailed how families could no longer live in their million-dollar-plus homes at the Riverstone Crossing estate at Maudsland because in-ground swimming pools were sliding down hills and wooden decks were on dangerous tilts.
Several homeowners forced to evacuate their properties have received enforcement notices with fines of $600,000 if they don’t comply with council’s requests.
For a corporation, the penalty is $3 million.
Documents reveal property owners returning to their homes can also be hit with on-the-spot fines of $2669 or $13,000. Seven homes have had to be evacuated.
To comply with council’s enforcement notice, residents are being told to get consultants to undertake a geotechnical study on their home sites.
“It costs about $10,000 per home for a geotechnical report,” a Riverstone Crossing resident said.
“Council is being heartless.”Council development compliant officers sent a “final warning letter” to residents last month.
Residents have fired back in correspondence saying their homes should not have been built on “hummocky ground”.
They have questioned why council signed off on development permits.
They also accused the council of being “misguided” and “making an undue threat” and maintained their homes continued to be sturdy on reinforced concrete slabs.
Residents awaiting an investigation by their home insurers estimate it will cost $100,000-200,000 to fix some properties.
They suspect their houses have been built on a water course that covers at least 50m, and the soil used for it was not controlled so compaction did not occur.
The insurance reports will spark a fresh round of talks between lawyers representing property owners, the council and developers Stockland.
Residents say a class action will be considered.
The Bulletin asked council if inspections by its officers in April determined several homes were dangerous to reside in, and whether it would enforce the fines if owners returned or failed to comply with enforcement notices.
Council was asked why it had sent through the final warning of the enforcement notice whilst negotiations were continuing between impacted residents and Stockland.
A council spokesperson said in a statement: “Safety is our number one priority. In accordance with our responsibilities under the Building Act 1975, the City has issued notices to the owners of the affected properties at Riverstone Crossing Estate.
“Notices have been issued as the dwellings are unsafe to inhabit.
“The City is continuing to work with the developer and affected property owners regarding a course of action and remedial works required for individual properties.”
Shock new problem emerges at landslip estate
July 6, 2021
CRACKS are starting to appear in the road outside the multi-million properties impacted by a landslip at a luxury Gold Coast hinterland residential estate.
Concerned Riverstone Crossing residents have contacted the Gold Coast City Council because they believe it was responsible for the maintenance of the road.
A resident wrote to a council officer: “There is a burgeoning issue with the road directly outside of 21 and 23 Greenvale Crescent which could be considered the epicentre of the landslip in Maudsland.
“The road has been compromised via groundwater seepage. However, the recent installation of wells looks to have sped up the roads failure.
“Given the amount of heavy vehicles through the area it is just a matter of time before we end up with a sink hole and potentially serious damage to property or worse.”
The 10m-long cracks in the road appeared in recent weeks after wells were created to suck up underground water from damaged properties.
A Bulletin investigation in May detailed how owners were forced out of their four-year-old homes because in-ground swimming pools were sliding down hills and wooden decks were on dangerous tilts.
Residents have begun investigating the approval process involving the developer and council.
A response was sought from the council about the status of the road.
Impact statements from some home owners show they were worried about dying in their sleep, similar to the 1997 Thredbo ski catastrophe that killed 18 people.
Theodore MP Mark Boothman inspected the road on Monday and is writing to the Deputy Premier to intervene to help.
“(Residents) feel the state should be involved if there are problems with large developments that cause detrimental effects on their homes, to ensure this does not happen again,” Mr Boothman said.
28 MAY: Landslip nightmare: ‘We thought this would be a Thredbo disaster’
GOLD Coast hinterland residents forced to abandon their million dollar homes due to a landslip have spoken of their sleepless nights amid fears of a “Thredbo-type disaster”.
Impact statements from residents show they were worried about dying in their sleep, similar to the 1997 ski catastrophe that killed 18 people.
A Bulletin report this month exposed how five homes had been evacuated at Riverstone Crossing at Maudsland due to a landslip that had caused in-ground pools to slide down a hill and wooden decks to be on dangerous tilts.
One resident’s impact statement read: “Our home was constructed less than two years ago, we moved to southeast Queensland from Sydney to give our children a better quality of life and, for me, who suffers from an auto immune disease, a chance to escape the Sydney winter and live a more pain-free life.
“The dream life we had in our new house ended two months ago when we were affected by a landslip.
“The emotional toll this event has had on our family, my wife and I, in particular, has been incredibly high.
“The stress has been immeasurable and is compounded by the fact that we have been living in limbo for eight weeks with no home to raise our family in and no idea where we will live once temporary accommodation runs out.”
The couple, who have three children under four, said they had lost count of the number of times their eldest had said she “just wants to go home”.
“The home where she took incredible pride in showing people her room,” the young father wrote.
“Home for us was something we sacrificed almost two years of our life to achieve, home was where we envisaged raising our children until it was time for them to spread their wings, our home is now somewhere that is unsafe to live in.
“It’s an incredibly sobering feeling going to sleep at night with thoughts of the Thredbo disaster being the last thing that goes through your mind as you fall asleep, wondering if that night was the night when the house would slip down the hill and how you would make the escape plan with the kids.”
Residents have begun investigating the approval process involving the developer and council.
Photographs show exposed slabs at the back of homes, leaving a 1.3m-long gap between the concrete base and the ground where the soil has been washed away.
They suspect their properties have been built on a water course that covers at least 50m, and the soil used for it was not controlled, meaning proper compaction could not be achieved.
More recent photographs taken show the exposed fill under homes to have various soil components, some of which had cracked from a water flow.
Stockland confirmed the damage to homes was caused by a landslip created by a “localised surge in groundwater after a period of significant rainfall”.
They acknowledged it was a difficult time for residents and those impacted had been given support with temporary accommodation.
Theodore MP Mark Boothman intends to update the Parliament in a speech on Thursday.
May 15: Residents abandon collapsing homes in luxury Coast estate
MILLION-DOLLAR homes only four years old are being abandoned, in-ground pools are sliding down hills and wooden decks are on dangerous tilts.
On a ridge in Maudsland, five houses have been evacuated in Greenvale Crescent and another four below in Riverstone Crossing. Those lower properties are at risk of the higher homes collapsing.
Some of the hinterland properties are surrounded by security fencing and “Danger Keep Out” signs as developers, politicians and residents work out ways to a landslip likely caused by a localised surge in groundwater.
Homeowners are expected to be locked out for at least a year, unlikely to receive future insurance cover and are facing drops in property values.
The Bulletin has obtained photographs showing exposed slabs at the back of homes, leaving a 1.3m-long gap between the concrete base and the ground where soil has been washed away.
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“It’s like an earthquake zone,” an onlooker said.
Some of the properties, which have spectacular views of the hinterland valley, were built four years ago and worth up to $1.3 million. An excavator is operating at one to stabilise the area.
A Riverstone estate source told the Bulletin: “These residents started noticing things change on March 23 with the rain. Everything has deteriorated since then. The homes have become structurally dangerous. It’s like a natural disaster scenario.”
Worse still, some residents contacted the council after a smell started to fill the air in their yards. Gold Coast Water investigations found a sewer and stormwater line had failed due to the land slip.
“There was a smell coming from down below the properties. There was toilet overflow. They’ve put in a temporary sewer main,” a source said.
Stockland, which built the managed residential estate, have engaged surveyors to track ground movement, appointed a geotechnical engineer, offered engineering and fencing help along with up to $550 a week in rental assistance.
Residents were told their personal belongings could remain inside but “do not enter the backyards of the affected homes”.
Stockland’s early investigations have shown “it is increasingly apparent that this event can be attributed to a landslip, caused by a localised surge in groundwater”.
“It is also clear there is some correlation to the recent storm event and high summer rainfall totals. Groundwater levels in the slip area are quite considerable, particularly in the lower level of lots, with a head of water at over 3m above ground level under pressure.”
Residents were told a solution could take a minimum 12 months, and many are uncertain where they are going to live in the short term. If repaired, they will struggle to get insurance for their homes and values will be affected.
They suspect their properties have been built on a water course that covers an area of at least 50m, and the soil used for fill it was not controlled, meaning proper compaction could not be achieved.
A Stockland spokesperson told the Bulletin: “After some weeks of geotechnical investigations we believe that the event at Riverstone Crossing is attributed to a landslip, caused by a localised surge in groundwater after a period of significant rainfall. Our current data is showing that the slip area is not extending further.”
Stockland acknowledged it was “a difficult and uncertain time for property owners” who had been given support with temporary accommodation.
“We are in direct communication with affected households and have met with each and continue to talk through in more detail a long-term resolution that addresses the impact this event has had on them and their property,” the spokesperson said.
Theodore MP Mark Boothman said he had met with the residents and on Friday was seeking a meeting with the office of the Deputy Premier to obtain help for them.
“For most of us our homes are our castles and it is our biggest financial investment,” Mr Boothman said.
“We have an expectation this investment is built on solid ground. When I first saw the damage to these properties I was truly shocked and I could see the utter devastation on the residents’ faces.
“Their lives have been turned upside down. Residents deserve adequate compensation to allow them to move on with their lives. This is not their fault and they shouldn’t have to bear added expense.
“I have made numerous representations to the Deputy Premier’s office and spoken to departmental representatives to plead the case on behalf of affected residents and to push for an equitable outcome for all.”
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