A group of unhoused residents at Woody Point were forced to leave their makeshift camp after Moreton Bay Council fenced off the site, citing serious health concerns. The eviction left several people, including a woman escaping domestic violence, without a place to go. Despite offers of emergency housing, some say they have been left stranded with nowhere suitable to live.
Eviction at Woody Point: A Sudden Displacement
Residents at the Gayundah Coastal Arboretum camp were given seven days’ notice before authorities arrived to clear the site on Monday, 17 February. The decision followed a review that found human waste, drug paraphernalia, and other health hazards. Fencing around the area was installed while police supervised as the last few residents packed their belongings and left.
One woman, who had been living at the site for six months while hiding from a domestic violence perpetrator, said she had not yet secured safe housing. She expressed frustration, stating that while housing services had been in contact, they had not yet found suitable accommodation for her and her dog.
Another resident, who gave his name as “Toothpick,” acknowledged the camp was not a long-term solution but felt that the situation could have been handled better. He had secured housing in Caboolture but worried about others who had nowhere to go.
While some community members welcomed the eviction, calling the site an eyesore, others believed the situation exposed the lack of support for people with no home.
Suttons Beach Park Residents Face Fines for Staying Put
The evictions at Woody Point were not an isolated incident. Just days earlier, on Friday, 14 February, Council also issued compliance notices to unhoused people at Suttons Beach Park in Redcliffe, threatening them with fines of up to $8,065 if they did not remove their belongings from public land by Sunday at midnight.
According to the notices, their presence violated council rules about “storing goods on public land,” a regulation that advocates argue unfairly targets unhoused people with no private land to store their possessions.
Beau Haywood, a local charity worker, said the fines were unreasonable, as those affected had no choice but to keep their belongings in public spaces. Some residents, like Trent Heselden, had been living in the park for nine months while waiting for social housing. He described the experience as a cycle of constantly moving from one location to another, hoping not to be evicted again.
Council denied accusations that they were trying to criminalise the unhoused and said the regulations were about keeping public spaces accessible to the broader community. A spokesperson stated that no fines had been issued yet, only warnings.
Council Defends Action, But Housing Support Falls Short
Moreton Bay Council insists that all affected individuals were offered emergency accommodation through Queensland’s Department of Housing. However, some residents dispute this, saying they were not given realistic or suitable options.
Council argues that the removals were necessary due to public health risks, particularly at Woody Point, where the park will now undergo a six-month remediation process to restore the area. Acting Mayor Jodie Shipway defended the decision, saying that camping in these conditions was unsafe for both the unhoused and the broader community.
However, unhoused advocates warn that simply moving people from one location to another does not solve the problem. They say Queensland’s housing shortage is the real issue, with Moreton Bay experiencing a 90% increase in homelessness over the last decade.
While some displaced residents have found alternative housing, others remain uncertain about their future. Without enough emergency or long-term housing options, advocates worry that many will simply move to another park or street, continuing the cycle of displacement.
Published 18-February-2025
