WA's caravan parks are under threat, warns the peak body for the
state's caravan and camping industry.
The claim comes from the CIAWA in a 45-page submission to the Department
of Commerce in response to a consultation paper on the Residential Parks
(Long Stay Tenants) Act 2006 (RPLD).
The 250-member association is concerned over some aspects of the
government review into the Caravan Park and Camping Ground Act (CPCG).
Its lengthy submission claims that those involved with the review had
failed to recognise or identify that caravan parks provided an essential
housing option for low income or transient residents.
"For example, mixed use caravan parks have met a demand for alternative
affordable housing for 'fly-in fly-out' workers – a demand that the State
Government was unable to meet in a timely or affordable manner," it said.
While the consultation paper identified that in the past decade many
caravan parks had converted to workers accommodation, it failed to
recognise that many continued to provide sites for self-drive tourists and
at considerable cost to their own profitability in many cases.
"Caravan Park operators feel that various State Government policies and
current legislative reviews are aligning to force caravan parks to become
providers of short stay sites only," the association said.
This could be seen in some way as profiteering from the system and abusing
the way it was intended to operate.
"Misinformed comments by some in government about the caravan park
business models and the real nature of the services they provide and
sectors they service cause concern for caravan park operators as to what
the real intentions of the review are and the future of their livelihood,"
the submission pointed out.
"Government implementation of some of the changes identified as options in
this consultation paper and the concurrent CPCG review, runs the risk of
fundamentally changing the business model that almost every commercial
caravan park relies on – a mix of tourist and permanent sites."
Based on stakeholder interviews and survey responses by CIAWA members,
shutting down the mixed use parks would reduce affordable housing in WA
currently provided by caravan parks, it said.
"This will be catastrophic for those requiring affordable housing and it
will have a major impact on government – that of having to provide
alternative (public) housing options for potentially over 28,000 displaced
park residents.
"If the changes that are listed as options in the RIS (the consultation
paper) are implemented, industry estimates it will add $150 per week to
the cost of a weekly site fee. This cost added to the existing weekly site
fee will see the affordability of residing in a caravan park fall out of
reach of most typical residents, with the onus of housing supply falling
to welfare agencies and the State Government of Western Australia."
The association said many people chose to live in caravan parks as a
lifestyle choice, with park managers running the micro-communities.
They acted as security guard, dispute resolver and ensured new tenants
matched the existing community.
But for safeguards in the RPLT enabling them to control who was provided
with a lease, permanent resident would be exposed to anyone moving into
the caravan park.
The newcomers may not be suitable to live in what was a very small
community living in closer proximity than on a housing estate, the
submission said.
"It is important that the role caravan park operators play in managing the
dynamics is recognised as an important part of providing the very
environment residents seek, and that management is allowed to manage this
accordingly."
To read CIAWA's full submission,
click here.
