Neighbours’ fury as ‘worker accommodation village’ pops up in backyard

Residents of a Perth suburb are furious after what they have described as a “workers’ accommodation village” was built in a neighbour’s backyard.

Photos of the development on Slindon Street in Nollamara show what appear to be three pod-like structures with multiple units, which were constructed after council approved a single granny flat.

A permit to build a residential modular ancillary dwelling valued at $120,000 was granted last October, and the three structures were then lifted onto the property by crane in April.

The City of Stirling is now investigating after residents raised issues of loss of privacy and amenity on the street at a recent council meeting, and confirmed it had received two formal complaints, The West Australian reported.

One local resident, Michael Cain, said the development was “basically a mine camp”, and sat more than a metre above his fence line with a window looking into his kitchen.

“I can understand putting in a granny flat, but not three, you know, not turning a backyard into a workers’ accommodation village,” Mr Cain said.

“I can’t even put up a better screen fence because I’m already at 2.1 metres. To go any higher, I would need my neighbour’s approval, which feels ironic.

“I do think people should be able to do what they want in their backyards, but not to a point where it’s impacting adjoining properties.”

The City of Stirling said a compliance investigation was underway after allegations of “overlooking, noise transfer, increased occupancy, visual bulk, and reduced privacy on adjoining residents” were made at the council meeting.

“City officers have attended the property to inspect the works,” the spokesperson said.

“The city understands that the full works associated with the development are not yet complete, as noted when our officers attended the property to inspect the works.

“The timeframe will depend on the circumstances and the findings as the investigation progresses.”

Header image: The backyard development.

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