Berkeley Living retirement village now ‘cesspool for crime’, neighbours say

Discarded needles, broken glass, a burnt-out car and graffiti-covered walls — it’s hard to believe this former Patterson Lakes retirement village shut down only two years ago. Take a look inside now.

What a mess: The shell of Berkeley Living retirement village, shut down after a bitter financial dispute, has been dubbed a “cesspool for crime”.

A Patterson Lakes retirement village shut down after a bitter financial dispute has been dubbed a “ghetto” and “cesspool for crime” by neighbours.

Berkeley Living was shut down by authorities in 2017 after the operator abandoned residents and left staff without pay.

Some staff members continued to care for the residents without pay until their evacuation.

Since then, the retirement village has been heavily vandalised and become home to squatters, who have been lighting fires indoors and leaving drug paraphernalia behind.

A rusted-out and partly burnt abandoned car at the former Berkeley Living retirement village.

Broken windows and graffiti-covered walls at the former Berkeley Living retirement village.

The former Berkeley Living retirement village site.

The Gladesville Blvd property is now home to discarded needles, broken glass, a rusted-out and partly burnt abandoned car, and graffiti-covered walls

Kingston Council responded to residents’ concerns by boarding the ground floor but, as yet, their requests to have the second floor closed off have not been met.

Carrum and Patterson Lakes Forum founder Cameron Howe said residents were voicing their concerns about the state of the facility.

Mr How said something had to be done.

“Residents continue to report safety concerns amid regular visits from the police and CFA at this cesspool for crime,” Mr Howe said.

The old Berkeley Living retirement village is now an “eyesore”, say neighbours.

Drug paraphernalia, including discarded needles, line the hallways of the former Berkeley Living retirement village.

The site gets regular visits from police and firefighters, neighbours say.

Neighbours want action to block all access to the buildings.

“While once a private aged care facility, with views of Patterson River, the site has since become an eyesore.

“Action to block all access must be enforced and in consultation with impacted residents.”

Mr Howe said he hoped the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety could assist with reforms to prevent another event where elderly residents were abandoned.

Kingston Council planning and development general manager Jonathan Guttmann said the matter was not straightforward.

“It is not a public building and there are several owners. We have recently met with the fire authority and the police to discuss the building, and both agencies understand that it poses fire and OHS risks,” he said.

The abandoned retirement village is an eyesore.

Broken windows and graffiti inside.

Residents’ families were left devastated when the facility closed.

“We have now received comments from both agencies and will be serving an enforcement order in the coming days to address these concerns.”

Families of the residents involved were left with hundreds of thousands of dollars owing to them when the facility was closed.

The families wrote to Consumer Affairs Victoria to have the situation investigated.

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Kingston Local Area Commander Inspector Matt Mulcahy said police were aware of community concerns.

“The safety of the community is our main priority and local police have been working closely with other agencies including the Kingston City Council and CFA to address any concerns in the area,” he said.

“We’ve also increased our proactive patrols in the area to deter and detect any offending”.