A dame shame: historic street falling into ruin

The post-war era homes are becoming a hotspot for criminal activity. 185216_01

By Kyra Gillespie

A piece of Pakenham’s history is falling into ruin, becoming a target for crime and drug activity, local police say.

The 18 small timber houses along St James’ Village on Dame Pattie Avenue in Pakenham are almost entirely vacant, save two.

Detective Senior Constable Butler of Pakenham police said the post-war era homes are becoming a hotspot for criminal activity.

“People are breaking in and druggies are using them as a place to shoot up,” Det Sen Con Butler said.

“As a police officer it’s not only a cause for concern, but also a big disappointment to see a part of Pakenham’s history going down the drain.”

She described the site as “wasted potential.”

“They are lovely little cottages and to see them getting abandoned and run down is really sad.

“It’s not only wasted potential, but perfectly good housing going to waste. It’s so hard to find a rental in Pakenham and these are just going to ruin.”

Retiree Jenny Hall and her husband are the only residents in the street.

Just last week, Mrs Hall had a frightening encounter with a thief, who tried to steal from her and break into her home.

“A man followed me home and tried to steal my scooter,” she said.

“He was standing right behind me and frightened the living daylights out of me.

“The police came and took a description of him; he was tall with dark hair, and was wearing jeans and a yellow jumper with a pattern on the front.”

Mrs Hall said the man then tried to break into their house: “we heard a thumping noise, and then saw him breaking into other houses.”

She said that in the eight years they have lived there that was the only criminal activity that they had personally witnessed.

“Apart from that it’s a relatively quiet street.”

With independent living becoming too difficult for the elderly couple, the Halls soon plan to relocate to a nursing home.

Their relocation will mean the entirety of Dame Pattie Avenue is left vacant.

St James’ Village was built in the late 1950s by St James’ Anglican Church Committee to provide accommodation for elderly people

They are now owned by Anglican aged care service provider Benetas, and have served as Independent Living Units (ILUs) for the last 40 years.

Benetas maintenance officer Ray Brown has been tending to the properties for 17 years.

He believes the recent criminal activity was rare for the street.

“I think that was a one-time thing,” Mr Brown said.

The dedicated attendant admitted that the homes were becoming more vulnerable.

“When I first started 17 years ago the units were all full.

“They were kept in great condition at the start, but when people started moving out they were never brought to the next standard.

“It would be good to know why they’re no longer inhabited.”

Benetas General Manager for Strategy, Infrastructure and Housing, Chris Karagiannis acknowledged the units had fallen below standard.

“As Benetas continues to fulfil its mission to provide older Victorians, their families and carers with a full range of high quality community-based services and residential facilities, it has become apparent that the Independent Living Units of the ‘50s are no longer reflective of the standard of accommodation that we pursue for our customers,” Mr Karagiannis said.

“As a result, we have not been taking any new residents into the Village.”

The company spokesman said residents have access to an ILU Liaison Officer any time during business hours, Monday to Friday, and a Benetas 24 hour maintenance helpdesk to deal with any security issues.

On top of employing a maintenance man two days a week, an employee also visits the residents each month for a wellbeing check-up.

On the recent criminal activity, Mr Karagiannis expressed the company’s disappointment.

“We were extremely disappointed to hear that a few of the vacant ILU cottages were recently broken into as the site has not been the subject of criminal activity in the past,” he said.

“We have been in contact with the residents to confirm they are OK and offer any assistance they may require.

“We have also spoken with the local police and requested greater surveillance of the area, plus we are considering what additional action we can take, such as the possibility of introducing a regular security patrol.”

The company is currently developing a ‘five year strategic plan’ to address the future of the Pakenham village.