PRESS CONFERENCE: NO SELL OFF & NO DEMOLITION OF 82 WENTWORTH PARK RD, GLEBE
Tuesday May 27, 12 noon Outside Public Housing estate 82 Wentworth Park Road, Glebe
The ALP Premier Chris Minns and Housing Minister Rose Jackson have boarded up 82 Wentworth Park Rd, Glebe public housing estate in preparation for demolition. The original public housing estate tenants were initially evicted two years ago by the Liberal state government. The state ALP government then approved the site for demolition.
Activists occupied 82 Wentworth Road, Glebe for six days in 2023 and won a reprieve for the inner city estate for two years.
Housing activist groups, Hands Off Glebe and Action for Public Housing did not publicly announce the reprieve for 82 Wentworth Park Road Glebe in order to secure the safety of new tenants.
When announcing the reprieve on demolition for the 82 Wentworth Park Glebe estate almost two years ago, Housing Minister Rose Jackson declared the dwellings would be homes for tenants fleeing domestic violence. The Minister asked housing activists not to announce the estate was being re-filled, for the survivors' safety.
Emily Valentine, Hands Off Glebe, said “how safe are the survivors of DV who’ve been evicted from 82 Wentworth park now? This is a war on the homeless community. Wentworth park is home to many people living without a home who now have to look at the boarded up houses in 82 Wentworth Park Road. We’ve had architects develop a plan for 82 Wentworth which would increase density, but keep the estate in public hands, but the government has ignored it. “
Andrew Chuter, Action for Public Housing said, “we should not be demolishing public housing. Sydney’s rents are astronomical and the waiting list for public housing is 65,000 high and rising. We’re the city and state with the highest homelessness rate in the country, doubling within a year. In 2022, 34,000 people were homeless in New South Wales. In 2022, homeless emergency services reported the homelessness community rising to 62,000.”
Carolyn Ienna, former 82 Wentworth Rd, Glebe tenant, First Nations and A4PH activist said, “this is a sell off of public lands. But turning homes into profiteering ventures is the cause of the housing crisis. On my estate we had two tenants pass away from the horror of the forced removal. Our government clearly doesn’t care about us.”
Karyn Brown, Waterloo South resident and A4PH activist said, “Minns is an eviction and demolition Premier. In five months he has evicted people in Selwyn Street Paddington boarding house, Pine Street Lismore public houses (recovered flood homes), Glebe Wentworth Park public housing estate, and the Waterloo South estate to hasten the sell off of public lands and bolster developer profits. They are evicting people in Mascot public housing estate, Maroubra, Kingsford and have plans for South Eveleigh. This is an unprecedented attack on public housing. We will resist to save 82 Wentworth Park Rd and all the other homes slated for demolition.”
Contact Emily 0424 234 448, Carolyn 0415 362 793, Andrew 0412 723 565,
Karyn 0432 409 711