By Laura Wakely
A BRIMBANK resident has taken the Sunshine Housing Office to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal twice in the past five years, over ongoing inadequate property repairs.
The tenant, who has a physical disability, said a door with a large gap underneath it was fixed with a step, which imposed on her disability.
A depression in the concrete in an outside area caused a large pool of water, but the works carried out at the request of the office have not fixed the problem.
This is despite the contractor being warned by the Department of Human Services that “it is essential that the finish is non-slip… there be no pooling of water and all falls are towards the drain in the middle of the yard” because of the tenant’s disability.
But documents obtained by the tenant under Freedom of Information and seen by Star found the office had blamed the botched works on “tenant interference” rather than the contractor.
The tenant said she was inside while the works were being carried out and spoke very little with the concreter.
“They put the blame on a tenant to cover-up their incompetency,” the tenant told Star.
“They appear more concerned about their perceived power over one of its constituents rather than their fundamental responsibilities as public servants to the community.”
The tenant said her doctors had approached the office about the need to properly repair the property because of the tenant’s disability, but she said this had made no difference.
She said she felt uncomfortable communicating with particular members of staff at the office, claiming she felt bullied by them.
“It is their decisions and actions that cause the continuing victimisation and harassment I have been subjected to,” she said.
“My finances have suffered because of the costs involved in bringing matters to VCAT all of the time. My health has suffered.”
VCAT has ruled in favour of the tenant each time, demanding the office carry out the works again.
But the problems still exist.
The tenant has taken her complaints to the Ombudsman but said “time will tell” if this action will bring an end to the ongoing dispute.
Sunshine Housing Office spokesperson Brendan Ryan said he was unaware of any investigation of the office.
He said repairs and modifications were completed to Australian Standards to ensure the health and safety of tenants and that staff were expected to treat clients with respect and courtesy.
