RESIDENTS of a North Albury street say the overgrown yard of an abandoned home is an eyesore and fire hazard that must be cleared immediately.
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The Wingara Street house has been empty for at least four years, neighbours say.
They say squatters have left the once-fully furnished home a mess.
A council spokesman yesterday said the owners — believed to live in Melbourne — had been issued a compliance notice to clean up the yard by today or contractors would be sent in to do the job.
Dry grass of almost two metres in the litter-strewn yard surrounds the house.
There’s an old mattress at the side of the house and mail litters the front stoop.
Inside, broken furniture and rubbish is said to litter the floor.
“Everything’s been stolen,” a resident said.
“Kids were hanging out in there a while ago but I turfed them out.
“It’s just ridiculous, absolutely disgusting that it can get like that.”
The man said he had spoken to the council on a number of occasions and that they had been unable to do anything at that stage, but that now he and others were fed up.
“All you would have to do is a stick a match to it and it will just go up,” he said.
“Try and imagine living next to that.”
Another resident, Alan Grant, who has lived in the street for 18 years, said the house had been empty since the previous owner-tenant died several years ago.
He said squatters had been in the house for about a month last year.
“All it would take is one person to walk past and flick a cigarette into it and it would be gone,” he said.
Mr Grant said he was worried about the place being a fire hazard for his family.
He and another neighbour, Duncan Beilby, said contractors had mown the nature strip from time to time but they had never tackled the yard.
The council spokesman said the owner had been ordered to clear the site by January 1.
“If no action is taken, we will organise a contractor to clear the site next week,” the spokesman said.