Elderly Couple Fight to Stay in Gold Coast Caravan Park

Although the council’s initial notice reportedly gave residents up to 10 years to vacate, some, including Ms Farlow, said they received letters requiring a decision within eight weeks, raising fears that evictions could begin sooner than anticipated.

Other residents have expressed similar concerns, with some noting they had purchased their caravans or park homes using life savings, under the expectation of long-term tenure. Lyn Farlow, another resident, said she bought her permanent house at the park two years prior for $185,000 and feared eviction would leave her with nowhere affordable to go.

“Some of the residents thought they would die in here — to find out now many of them in their 70s and 80s that they are to move with nothing in their pockets, nothing that will buy them anything else,” Ms Farlow said. “Pretty much 90 per cent will need to apply for assistance to go into public housing.”

Although the council’s initial notice reportedly gave residents up to 10 years to vacate, some, including Ms Farlow, said they received letters requiring a decision within eight weeks, raising fears that evictions could begin sooner than anticipated.

The situation at Kirra Beach Tourist Park reflects ongoing tensions between tourism-driven development and housing security for long-term residents in popular coastal areas. Similar concerns have been raised in other caravan parks across Australia regarding the vulnerability of elderly and low-income occupants to redevelopment pressures.

Other residents have expressed similar concerns, with some noting they had purchased their caravans or park homes using life savings, under the expectation of long-term tenure. Lyn Farlow, another resident, said she bought her permanent house at the park two years prior for $185,000 and feared eviction would leave her with nowhere affordable to go.

“Some of the residents thought they would die in here — to find out now many of them in their 70s and 80s that they are to move with nothing in their pockets, nothing that will buy them anything else,” Ms Farlow said. “Pretty much 90 per cent will need to apply for assistance to go into public housing.”

Although the council’s initial notice reportedly gave residents up to 10 years to vacate, some, including Ms Farlow, said they received letters requiring a decision within eight weeks, raising fears that evictions could begin sooner than anticipated.

The situation at Kirra Beach Tourist Park reflects ongoing tensions between tourism-driven development and housing security for long-term residents in popular coastal areas. Similar concerns have been raised in other caravan parks across Australia regarding the vulnerability of elderly and low-income occupants to redevelopment pressures.

An elderly couple on the Gold Coast has publicly appealed to the City of Gold Coast council to allow them to remain in their long-term residence at Kirra Beach Tourist Park, citing emotional and financial hardship if forced to relocate.

The couple, identified in reports as Rosalie Collier and her husband, received a notice from the council stating that permanent residents must vacate the park to accommodate growing tourist demand. Mrs Collier, aged 68, said she has lived in the caravan park for 30 years and fears losing her sense of safety and stability, particularly given her husband’s poor health.

“I just don’t know what we are going to do, where we are going to go — we are only pensioners,” Mrs Collier said in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “My husband is not very well and I thought if anything ever happened to him, I’d be happy here, I’d be safe.”

The council’s decision forms part of a broader strategy to gradually transition Kirra Beach Tourist Park from long-term residential use to short-term tourist accommodation. Officials acknowledged the move could cause hardship for residents but stated that individual circumstances would be considered during the transition process.

Other residents have expressed similar concerns, with some noting they had purchased their caravans or park homes using life savings, under the expectation of long-term tenure. Lyn Farlow, another resident, said she bought her permanent house at the park two years prior for $185,000 and feared eviction would leave her with nowhere affordable to go.

“Some of the residents thought they would die in here — to find out now many of them in their 70s and 80s that they are to move with nothing in their pockets, nothing that will buy them anything else,” Ms Farlow said. “Pretty much 90 per cent will need to apply for assistance to go into public housing.”

Although the council’s initial notice reportedly gave residents up to 10 years to vacate, some, including Ms Farlow, said they received letters requiring a decision within eight weeks, raising fears that evictions could begin sooner than anticipated.

The situation at Kirra Beach Tourist Park reflects ongoing tensions between tourism-driven development and housing security for long-term residents in popular coastal areas. Similar concerns have been raised in other caravan parks across Australia regarding the vulnerability of elderly and low-income occupants to redevelopment pressures.