‘My suburb is looking like a slum’: resident

When Mark Sanderson bought into an estate he envisioned settling down in a quiet country oasis with a few like-minded neighbours.

A resident says his new suburb is starting to look like a slum.

WHEN Mark Sanderson bought into an estate he envisioned settling down in a quiet country oasis with a few like-minded neighbours.

But that’s not what he got.

The Nambour resident said overcrowding and parking congestion in the Rosemount Rise estate were having a negative impact on the mental health of owner occupiers who were promised peace.

When Mr Sanderson and his wife Mary Ann purchased their home about three years ago the property list indicated that nine of 43 blocks were approved by council for dual occupancy.

He believes up to 21 are now home to more than one family unit.

“It’s distressing,” Mr Sanderson said.

“The increased population density has completely changed the nature of the subdivision from what we were promised by the estate agents and the developer.

“We moved here to free up some cash and now we’ll never get our money back.”

Mr Sanderson believes his estate could be experiencing a similar problem to Yandina Forest, where secondary dwellings are not being used as intended.

The 2014 planning scheme included a code that allowed for a secondary dwelling to be built adjacent to a main house, allowing families to have elderly parents or young adults living with them as one family unit while maintaining their privacy.

This is different to dual occupancy lots, which must meet certain criteria such as adequate parking and are separately titled.

Mr Sanderson said council should be more vigilant in checking who resides in secondary dwellings.

“They should impose penalties for people who are blatantly breaching the requirements,” he said.

“Because the entire dwellings are being rented out it looks like a slum- the owners of the property don’t want to spend money on maintenance where they don’t live and those renting don’t care.

“Council has been responsible for destroying a beautiful piece of country.

“This is not what we bought into.”

Councillor Greg Rogerson told the Daily in early August that a code to allow secondary dwellings was introduced in 2014 to help residents, not hinder them.

“There were people with tears in their eyes when they were granted the opportunity for their elderly parents to live in a secondary dwelling on their property,” Cr Rogerson said.

Council could not confirm how many dual occupancy and/or secondary dwellings were now approved for Rosemount Rise.

The compliance department sent letters to owners suspected of renting the secondary dwellings to separate family units at Yandina Forest and the issue is being investigated.

Originally published as ‘My suburb is looking like a slum’: resident