DONOVANS residents Jack and Lyn Houlihan hope the sixth generation of their family will be able to access their Glenelg River shack following the long-awaited certainty of tenure.
The pair are among a number of lessees who are about to start the process of applying for a conditional five-year lease of their shack, to be converted into a long-term lease agreement.
Under the previous State Government, the couple’s riverside structure would have been demolished after the expiration of the life-tenure lease, currently held by Ms Houlihan and her brother.
After years of advocacy by both community members and the South Australian Liberal Party, shack owners have the opportunity to either purchase the site or enter a lease of up to 50 years in return for upgrading the shack to meet safety, amenity and environmental standards.
Ms Houlihan said five generations of her family had used the shack since its construction by Ms Houlihan’s parents almost half a century ago.
“This has been an ongoing issue for as long as I can remember and until now, nothing has been resolved to a satisfactory level,” she said.
“Now we are able to transfer the lease to our family members which is amazing.
“We tried to do it years ago for our family and we could not do it.
“There has been five generations of our family who have used the shack and if it was demolished it would have been devastating for our family history.”
Ms Houlihan said the new conditions provided incentive for owners to invest in the property.
She praised the efforts of the State Government, namely Environment Minister David Speirs who recently visited Donovans, for his long-time efforts on lease retention.
“It gives people so much certainty they can go ahead and improve their shacks, which for many people is something they have never wanted to do before because we did not know when they might have to come down,” she said.
“There are so many down there that do need a lot of work, but you are not going to spend money on something that could be destroyed soon after.
“The Liberal Party and David Speirs have done a great job and has been down a few times, which made people really feel it was going to happen.”
Mr Speirs said the government had honoured its pre-election pledge to create new opportunities for families to retain shacks.
“Many shacks have been held by the same family for generations and these people have a strong connection to the local area, as well as a desire to be good environmental stewards,” he said.
Glenelg River Shack Association president Brett Orr said lessees were excited to start the upgrades and meet the new standards.
“The Liberal government made an election commitment to provide certainty of tenure for lessees in return for upgrading the shack to meet contemporary safety, amenity and environmental standards,” he said.
“This government has honoured its commitment and has provided certainty to so many people who have cared for these icons of the river.
“The shacks now have a future due to this government and we look forward to meeting the standards with integrity.”
Grant District mayor Richard Sage welcomed the changes, saying it would bolster Donovans and the Glenelg River as a tourist attraction.
“The shacks on the river for decades have been a great place for families and continues to be a well-kept secret,” he said.
“It is one of the cleanest waterways in Australia that has natural beauty and serenity right on our doorstep.
“The decision to offer leases has really cemented how important the shacks are and opens up the experience to let other people enjoy it.
“It has been a long time coming and it is a pity it did not come a lot earlier for those people who have removed their shacks.”
