Residents of the southern NSW town of Eden want to see RSL LifeCare’s shuttered Roy Wotton Gardens aged care home reopened for housing under the control of a community organisation.
At a meeting on Tuesday night, locals threw substantial weight behind a proposal to investigate a potential lease transfer that would see the home – also known as Nullica Lodge – handed over to a community group and reopened to help relieve housing pressure, either for over-55s exclusively or for younger residents as well.
RSL LifeCare could not attend the meeting as had been planned, and Eden Recovery and Resilience Alliance (ERRA) chair Carina Severs (pictured) told local news services the organisation had been “waiting patiently for many months” to hear the provider’s plans.
“Nullica Lodge is lying empty and has not been operating as a functioning facility while the housing crisis in the region is growing.
“We were looking forward to understanding more about where RSL LifeCare is at with any plans to reopen. We’re an ageing community with critical housing needs and Nullica Lodge is a vital yet currently stranded community asset,” she said.
An RSL LifeCare spokesperson told The Weekly SOURCE that the provider had advised ERRA it would be unable to attend more than a fortnight prior to the meeting, and ERRA had declined an offer to meet with RSL LifeCare representatives earlier in the day; however, the RSL LifeCare representatives had met with Bega Valley Shire Council Mayor Russell Fitzpatrick that day instead.
“RSL LifeCare representatives had a very positive meeting with Mayor Fitzpatrick, including a tour of Nullica Lodge and an opportunity to discuss the future of the Lodge.
“We look forward to remaining in communication with the Mayor and the local community on the future of Nullica Lodge,” the spokesperson said.
Roy Wotton Gardens was closed in late 2021 after RSL LifeCare deemed it no longer financially viable; Anglicare has expressed interest in acquiring the home.
