PICTURED: Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast and Member for Terrigal Adam Crouch, CEO of Pacific Link Housing Ian Lynch, Minister for Water, Property & Housing Melinda Pavey, Executive Manager Assets Pacific Link Housing Llewellyn Visagie
The Central Coast’s only locally based Tier 1 Community Housing Provider (CHP) is making significant improvements to social housing properties across the Central Coast, Lake Macquarie and Hunter regions.
Pacific Link Housing has received a grant of more than $1.2 million from the NSW Government to upgrade 73 social housing properties, create local jobs and stimulate the local economy.
The Land and Housing Corporation (LAHC) Capital Works Program over recent months has delivered maintenance works such as roofing, fencing, painting, flooring, bathroom and kitchen renovations.
Minister for Water, Property and Housing Melinda Pavey and Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast Adam Crouch visited a newly-refurbished complex of seven dwellings at Long Jetty last week.
“The combined efforts of the NSW Government and Pacific Link Housing have significantly improved the property, creating a safe and secure home for older single women,” Mrs Pavey said.
“I continue to be very impressed by the way that a regional community housing provider like Pacific Link Housing can flex and innovate to lead the local community and produce such fantastic outcomes.”
Mr Crouch said Pacific Link had utilised the NSW Government funding as a catalyst to attract additional in-kind support from businesses, including a local landscape supplier and Westfield.
“To walk through this facility and see the work Pacific Link Housing has undertaken in a very short timeframe is just fantastic. This project has not only created better social housing but has also supported local jobs at this critical time as we continue to recover from COVID-19,” Mr Crouch said.
Ian Lynch, CEO of Pacific Link Housing said the NSW Government funding enabled it to gain the additional in-kind support from our corporate donors, allowing us to go the extra step and turn the property into a place where new residents can feel completely at home.
“Pacific Link hosted a corporate volunteer day with a team from Westfield Tuggerah who helped to revamp the gardens, as well as providing individual raised veggie gardens and household items for the new tenants. In addition to this support, the Community Greening team at Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens donated plants and Treecorp Solutions provided mulch at no charge. Lead contractor on this site, Termi Mesh, also upgraded the new kitchen bench tops to stone at no cost,” Ian Lynch said.
Due to the extensive renovations, Pacific Link relocated the previous tenants to other suitable housing to allow for the works to be completed. “New tenants are already moving in. All residents at this site, will be single older females – a cohort overrepresented in the housing waitlist” Mr Lynch said.
Pacific Link are partnering with Baptist Care in relation to the allocation, transition into community housing and ongoing support, ensuring the new tenants have all the resources and assistance to live independently in the local community.