Government Agency Threatens Legal Action Against City of Moreton Bay Over Homeless Camp

A government agency has threatened to take legal action against the City of Moreton Bay for allowing homeless people to camp at a public park. The City of Moreton Bay council turned Wyllie Park in Petrie into a free, designated campsite for homeless people in August.

Economic Development Queensland (EDQ) issued the council a show cause notice, which gives the council an opportunity to explain why legal action should not be taken. An EDQ spokesperson said the site's lawfully approved purpose was as green space, and not as a homeless camp.

"EDQ has responsibilities under the Act to regulate and ensure land is used lawfully within the Moreton Bay Central PDA," they said.

The Queensland Government has invested over $1 billion in support services and crisis accommodation over the next four years. Wyllie Park is in the Moreton Bay Central Priority Development Area, which means it falls within EDQ's remit.

In August, Housing Minister Sam O'Connor criticised the City of Moreton Bay's decision to turn Wyllie Park into a designated homeless camp. He expressed concerns that clustering vulnerable campers in one area would cause safety risks and strain emergency services.

"We had no idea and we weren't consulted on it either. We found out through the council's press release," Mr O'Connor said.

"We weren't asked about it, and if we were asked about it we would have expressed some serious concerns about this model. We've had other councils look at this and we've expressed that concern to them, and they haven't gone forward."

In March, the City of Moreton Bay was found guilty of violating the human rights of homeless campers by evicting them and destroying their belongings. The Supreme Court ruled that the council should not have evicted the campers when they did not have anywhere else to go.

Mayor Peter Flannery said the camp would provide a place for homeless people to sleep without fear of eviction.

"We did learn from the court case that we shouldn't have been asking them to move when there wasn't somewhere else to go," Cr Flannery said.

"This is providing that somewhere else to go."

Beau Haywood, who runs the charity Nourish Street, expressed concerns that the latest news could mean another wave of homeless evictions.

"I'm disappointed in the Queensland government," Mr Haywood said.

"Although the situation in Wyllie Park wasn't perfect, it was thinking outside the square. My concern now is for the residents of Wyllie Park, and I really hope the Queensland government is planning on providing these people with accommodation."