The Lismore App visited the site of the new Lismore Temporary Housing for flood-affected people at Southern Cross University today to get an update.

Our previous story had a sneak peek of the new accommodation while the pathways and garden area was under construction SCU Temporary Housing Village: up close and personal.

According to Kristie from Resilience NSW, despite delays due to weather and increased teams and work hours, people can expect to be moving into the 52 homes in the next 2 weeks.

“It’s our goal and commitment to have as many people across our region housed in their pods by Christmas, and if this means extending work hours and increasing teams, then that’s what we will do," Kristie said.

“We are looking at further sites across the region, as we know there are 2000 families needing homes, and currently we have 11 sites underway or open.”

Murray Saul, NSW Government Public Works Program Director for all of the North Coast works, told The Lismore App “a lot of planning has been underway, from finding builders to the design work. We wanted to make sure that these homes were well thought out and good to live in, and planned adequately.”

While there is still some work left to be done, namely on the car park which has been delayed more than once by the weather, the pods are close to complete. 

All pods are secured with concrete and chains to the safety standards of mobile homes and this will protect them from high winds, and weather events. They have all got solar lights on the pathways, as well as fire blankets, fire extinguishers and hydrants as well as a hydrant at the entry point for firefighters to plug straight into, all to high safety codes. 

Murray also said that extensive work had been done to mitigate the water seepage from the former quarry site, all of which is now underground and unseen, but that too, took time to work through.

This site build began in July 2022 and will be delivered by the end of October. That’s 52 more homes, out of the 2000 that are required, on top of sites such as those in Coraki, Wardell, Ballina, Mullumbimby and Wollongbar sites already delivered or in progress. 

“Some sites will have pet-friendly options, some won’t, this is all dependant on the lease we have with the landowners, and some sites, such as that in Pottsville, will have Environmental constraints which prevent it, but it’s not to be ruled out entirely," Kristie explained.

Along with the caravan 'At Home Program', Kristie says Resilience NSW is working hard to ensure that residents who have registered their need are housed in the best scenarios for them, available. 

At the SCU pod site, there will be on-site offices for staff and 24/7 security, as well as a playground for the kids and a barbecue area for residents. Each pod has its own washing facilities and amenities and there are 4 accessible units for people who are disabled. 

The 3 bedroom pods can house up to 12 people with bunks and are very spacious, with all new appliances, beds and furnishings. 

People who move in will receive a welcome pack from North Coast Community Housing which includes all their cutlery, bowls, plates and cookware, and families can speak with the housing provider to get further support in the way of other items, such as toys or bedding. 

The aim of Resilience NSW is to house all 2000 families on their lists, says Kristie and she says the hold-up, aside from the weather has been pushback from residents of proposed sites not wanting pods built “in their backyard” and council processes around approval being required before their work can begin.

The good news say Murray and Kristie is the process has now become streamlined, they have their off-site builders and on-site tradespeople and the design work is all done. Now all that is holding up the development of these sites, which provide housing for those who lost their homes and everything they own, a safe, healthy, affordable and secure place to live for 2 years, is the process of finding, and securing adequate sites through council and the communities support.