South Road residents left guessing whether their properties will face govt acquisition

More residents and businesses along South Rd face are now waiting to find out if their properties will be among hundreds more to face demolition plans.

Residents and business owners on South Rd at Mareleston fear their properties could be on the chopping block along with more than 100 people facing mandatory acquisition at Glandore.

While discussions are underway with those land owners and tenants south of Anzac Highway for the $9.9bn Torrens to Darlington project, residents between the highway and Richmond Rd are unsure of their future.

Transport Department workers have alerted residents to the project but are yet to confirm which properties will be acquired as plans are not finalised.

It is expected 200 more property owners in the path of the Torrens to Darlington project will be informed by the end of the year.

Owner of Independent Living and Mobility, Siva Madike, was confident the government would acquire properties on the western side of South Rd but has set his business on the eastern side back 15m anyway.

“By my own estimations of where the tunnel is due to come out, I think it will be the other side, but if they took my side I don’t think it would be completely and I could still operate,” Mr Madike said.

Business owner Siva Madike outside his property at Richmond. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

A South Rd resident who wanted to be known as Chris, 82, said he moved there in 1968, raising his children and grandchildren there.

“If they want to take my house they should have to find me somewhere else to live,” he said. “They won’t be able to find me something with the amount of land I have. How much are they going to pay? I’ve heard from other people they don’t pay nothing.”

Jasmine Dowd and her partner have rented a home on South Rd for nine years and are concerned they won’t be able to find a new place to rent at the same price point should they be forced out.

“Moving homes is one of my fears, I have a 17-year-old and 19-year-old living at home; we know there are no cheap units out there,” she said.

The uncertainty is already affecting property sales. Aman Kaur and her husband are looking to buy a vacant lot to establish a car yard.

“No one knows where (the project) will go so we’re not sure what to do,” she said.

The department said doorknocking was done to build “community awareness” and ensure it had correct contact details “for people who want to be proactively informed” when designs were ready.

Originally published as South Road residents left guessing whether their properties will face govt acquisition