Peninsula Eco to close amid claims company ‘misled’ cabin owners
After being promised a gated community with heated plunge pools and communal gardens, a group of Mornington Peninsula pensioners has been left out in the cold.
South East
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Shattered pensioners have been given just two weeks for the “impossible” task of moving their villas from a Mornington Peninsula holiday park or face homelessness.
Permanent residents of Peninsula Eco were told on Thursday the Capel Sound park was closing and they had to be out by June 2.
If they were unable or unwilling to relocate their $350,000 villas they would be considered abandoned.
The shock decision has devastated the group of retirees who had planned to live out their days at the beachside park.
Linda Marsh, 75, sold her house to buy into Peninsula Eco after the villa and beach hut scheme was launched at Capel Sound Caravan Park in 2017.
“It was my dream to live there until the end of my days,” she said.
“I was responsible. I planned my retirement. I had no mortgage and no rent and my pension was more than enough for me to live a comfortable life.
“I’ve owned the roof over my head since I was 23 and here I am at 75 about to be homeless.
“It’s not right.”
Russell Flack bought his villa and a 99 year lease off the plan in 2018 and moved in on Christmas Eve 2019 with his award-winning Great Dane Ro.
“I don’t know where I’m going to go now,” he said.
“Even if I could afford $400-$500 a week in rent who would take a retiree with no assets and a giant dog?”
Neighbour Barb Nankivell, 61, who receives a disability pension, said her predicament was even more dire.
“I thought this would be my last home so I spent every cent,” she said.
“I invested in top of the range appliances and fittings to create a really lovely space and now I’m losing it all.”
Shannon Foley, whose 75-year-old mother is a permanent resident of the park, said relocating the villas wasn’t an option for any of the permanent residents and would be difficult for investors who owned single level beach huts.
“The split level villas can’t be moved,” she said.
Relocating a smaller dwelling was costly and required a permit, she said.
She added: “It can’t be done in two weeks.”
Peninsula Eco’s parent company RC 1 was declared insolvent in March and 28 villa owners were told in early April that they would soon receive an offer for their dwellings.
However, receivers Pitcher Partners said “extensive investigations” into RC 1 and Peninsula Eco had revealed the “legal status of cabin ownership is far from certain”.
“It appears that a number of people have been misled about the assets they thought they were buying or leasing,” partner Innis Cull said.
Mr Cull said the situation was “complex, challenging and distressing”.
“ (RC 1) has no funds to complete or maintain the park or to make the park compliant in accordance with fire safety recommendations recently received,” he said.
Peninsula Eco Villas and Beach Huts was launched in 2017 after property owner RC 1 obtained permits to upgrade the caravan park site and add “modern, eco-friendly, one and two bedroom beach villas and huts”.
Up to 10 villas within the proposed 60 dwelling development were available for permanent residents.
A prospectus for the development promised a gym, communal gardens and heated mineral spring plunge pools.
Ms Foley said the concept “didn’t look or sound like a caravan park”.
“The permanent residents thought they were buying into a gated community similar to a retirement village,” she said.
“They understood that they were leasing the land the villas were on and that they didn’t own it.
“But these were long-term leases, up to 99 years.”
On Friday night Pitcher Partners emailed villa owners confirming their leases had been “disclaimed” meaning the agreements had been terminated.
“This means that any cabins remaining on the property will need to be sold, removed or otherwise dealt with,” Mr Cull wrote.
He asked villa owners to consider a proposal to either accept $15,000 to reimburse them for relocation costs or agree to transfer their interest in their cabin to Pitcher Partners.
Single storey cabin owners were likely to be offered $90,00 for their dwelling while owners of double storey villas would be offered about $140,000.
Cabin owners were given until Friday, May 26 to tell Pitcher Partners what they wanted to do via a “non-binding” expression of interest.
No formal offers would be made until after the expressions of interest were received and if people took either offer they would have to promise not to challenge the termination of the leases.
Mr Cull said he was still seeking funds to pay for the cabin purchases should people decide to sell.
If people rejected both offers they would be told to remove their cabins.
“If you do not remove the cabin, I will take steps to have it declared abandoned,” he said.