It\u2019s a heartbreaking sight at a run-down social housing block in Sydney\u2019s inner west.<\/p>\n
A friendly dog, wagging his tail and grateful for company, after being abandoned in the backyard of a boarded-up property.<\/p>\n
Neighbours have been mucking in, feeding and walking him for the past five weeks after he was left behind; according to local accounts, his owner is in jail. <\/p>\n
Nathan Stafford, the man behind Nathan\u2019s Lawns and Gardens, discovered the gentle pitbull while helping struggling Aussies in Glebe to clean up their properties.<\/p>\n
Mr Stafford was angry at the state housing authority, Homes NSW, which he claimed had boarded up the house five weeks ago while the dog remained behind. <\/p>\n
\u201cAt the end of the day, this is their property, and the dog is relying on the general public to walk past and feed it and take it for a walk if it\u2019s lucky,\u201d he told news.com.au.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s appalling, because it\u2019s an animal and it\u2019s bad enough that we neglect the people out here, but now we\u2019re talking animals as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Stafford himself stopped to give the dog a pat and a walk this week when he realised the owner wasn\u2019t coming back.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s innocent,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt didn\u2019t ask for any of this and it\u2019s sitting here on its own, and it\u2019s not fair.\u201d <\/p>\n
The dog was still on the property when news.com.au visited on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The RSPCA was understood to be coming to pick the dog up, but on Wednesday morning he was gone, apparently taken by family members of the owner.<\/p>\n
Mr Stafford said the dog\u2019s ordeal was a symptom of a wider problem in Sydney as boarded-up social housing stood empty and littered with rubbish.<\/p>\n
Just metres from the lively Glebe Point Road, cafes and bars give way to decrepit, slum-like conditions, the streets littered with shopping trolleys and graffiti. <\/p>\n
Across the lane from the property where the dog was abandoned, Mr Stafford pointed to two other empty homes, one with the backyard full of old clothes, suitcases, mattresses and other junk. <\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone was living here, but he didn\u2019t stay here often,\u201d Mr Stafford explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just rented it out to squatters or whoever, and they\u2019ve come in here and they\u2019ve completely trashed the backyard.<\/p>\n
\u201cHousing have come and boarded it up and the rubbish has been sitting here forever, and there\u2019s rats.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it\u2019s still livable inside. It needs a quick clean and whatnot, but you could stick a family in there – aren\u2019t we in a crisis?\u201d<\/p>\n
Just 70 metres from those properties, another pair of brick double-storey apartments are freshly boarded-up and abandoned.<\/p>\n
They were occupied until Tuesday night, when a fire broke out and forced the residents of both homes to evacuate. <\/p>\n
One of the properties – where the fire started – has a backyard completely choked with rubbish and broken furniture that is spilling out onto the street.<\/p>\n
Hours before the fire, Mr Stafford had told news.com.au the property was unsafe because of the extreme hoard of junk in the backyard.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve told housing about this multiple times – nothing. And then I called the fire brigade who have come out and assessed it as a fire risk.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have texted (NSW Housing Minister) Rose Jackson personally, on her personal number, to come out and sort this out and nothing has happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Stafford met with Ms Jackson in 2024 and took her on a tour of the area – impressing on her the need to clean up social housing – but he says that meeting also yielded no results. <\/p>\n
\u201cHousing needs to come through this whole area that they\u2019re meant to be looking after,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhy are they not doing routine inspection checks? Clearly that\u2019s not happening.\u201d<\/p>\n
NSW Housing Minister Rose Jackson has sent news.com.au a statement about the Glebe property where the fire broke out on Tuesday. <\/p>\n
\u201cPeople in public housing deserve to live in dignity, particularly when experiencing complex mental health issues,\u201d Ms Jackson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut when their actions threaten the health and safety of themselves and of the community, we have a duty to step in. <\/p>\n
\u201cHomes NSW has been actively working with this tenant in Glebe since May 2024. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe recognise the severity of the situation, which is why the the matter is subject to current orders from the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Jackson said recent outreach attempts to the tenant \u201chave been rejected, which makes our job very difficult\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cI want to assure people, Homes NSW has the funding and the resourcing required to manage situations like this, but the reality is hoarding is one of the most challenging issues to navigate as the state\u2019s largest landlord,\u201d the minister said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a strong link between mental health issues and housing insecurity. Our approach is always to work with tenants \u2013 sometimes for months or even years \u2013 to resolve situations like this because the alternative could mean sending a vulnerable person into homelessness. <\/p>\n
\u201cI respect Nathan\u2019s passion for these issues and I appreciate when he gets in touch with me.\u201d<\/p>\n
A Fire and Rescue NSW spokesperson confirmed the service responded to a fire at the property on Tusday afternoon.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirefighters extinguished the blaze and the occupant safely self-evacuated. The cause of the fire is being investigated,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n
News.com.au also contacted Homes NSW and RSPCA NSW for comment. <\/p>\n