Just when we thought the Reconstruction Authority (RA) had got the message that the Big Scrub homes should be deconstructed, salvaged or relocated, reports are coming in from residents about the ramping up of demolition in Lismore.
Locals have been recording the destruction and sharing it on social media. The community is not happy.
According to Laurie Axtens, North Lismore resident: “In my neighbourhood they’ve levelled three houses in under a week.
“Timbers worth $80/m are all crushed together with roofing and trucked away to landfill sites across the border or worse. What a failed scheme it has been. Now they’re destroying the evidence.”
Residents report the constant demolition noise, including from the early hours of the morning, and many are wondering why.
We can only hazard a guess that this has been spurred on by the imminent deadlines for the relocation and removal of houses from the flood plain.
Communications and press releases from the RA suggest that everything is going well, while in reality, underneath the surface they seem to be in a bit of a panic.
For example, figures available on the RA’s ‘Our Progress’ page show a disconnect between the number of houses left in Lismore and the deadline for them to be relocated by December this year. The numbers and proposed timelines just don’t add up.
The engagement and comms team battle on, but the disconnect between the rosy glow of RA promises and reality is ever-widening. The RA claims that homes bought back under the RHP are thoroughly assessed by qualified experts to “decide on the future use” and “several factors are carefully considered before a final decision is made”.
In fact, a recent fast and furious demolition of a row of houses close to the showground happened in record time, not long enough for careful consideration or notification of neighbours, because as it turns out, the land is needed to expand carparking for the redeveloped showground.
In line with that objective, the sites were cleared of all vegetation, including tree crops and fruit trees, which according to a spokesperson from SOAR (Socialise Organise Art Resist) is contrary to the intentions for the North Lismore of agro-forestry, food forests and rewilding.
The RA had previously assured the community that garden plants could be rehomed to those wanting them.
Many in the community believe this furious smashing of valuable and often heritage materials in a time of shortage doesn’t pass the pub test. One FB post expressed the anger and sadness of many:
“To pay a demolition company over $110,000 to destroy a perfectly good house is really quite criminal in this day and age, but will be seen and recorded as expedient because there is now a timeline that must be adhered to.”
Some concerned residents have written to the RA in a spirit of open curiosity to question the haste of this latest demo round and the secrecy that surrounds it.
The response was typical of the form letters produced by bureaucracies, very probably written by AI.
Take this set of weasel words: “RA will continue to manage the demolition of properties that are not able to be relocated or that are deemed structurally unsafe or a risk to community safety. Where it is economically viable, materials are salvaged and recycled wherever possible, to reduce landfill.”
We learnt pretty quickly after last year’s demolition wars that according to their definition, using rainforest hardwood for mulch qualified as recycling.
Meanwhile workers on demolition sites report reasons for the haste, including: that the demolishers had no storage hence the waste, or they have only just received the contracts and are under too much pressure to get the contracts filled to salvage. It looks like “manage” is not the right word for the hands-off, let it rip approach of the RA.
Generalised reasons such as “privacy issues” were given to explain why the RA could not say if a house was to be relocated or demolished. Which privacy legislation might that be, we ask? Perhaps the often-touted “commercial in confidence”, which since the 22 flood has often reflected a desire to avoid scrutiny or embarrassment and assist the risk aversion of all government agencies and the RA in particular.
This latest round of destruction is contrasted with the naive rosy glow of RA comms, raising again the thorny issue of transparency and the on-going failure of the RA to give detailed, let alone any, explanations, to unpack any of their programs in detail and of course never at any time to apologise.
People are sad and angry about real things that have happened and continue to happen in their community, we are beyond sad. As Jimmy Willing so neatly put it: “There are not many of us left to witness the destruction happening in North Lismore, but it is tragic. Houses made of timber from a bygone era are being crushed up and sent to landfill in the middle of a housing crisis!”
Right now the community wants answers, and they have a pretty good idea where to place the blame. A classic quote from Jimmy Willing sums up what a lot of people are feeling:
“It’s not just my anecdotal view anymore as the reports are coming in loud and clear now. The RA are not just knocking down the houses they are crushing up the gardens too!
“They are sending our orchards off to landfill and destroying the trees that mark the births of children and the graves of our dogs. Make no mistake, the Reconstruction Authority has declared war on the people.
“RA go home!”
