It’s time the wrecking ball was brought out on what was supposed to be an iconic building at the entrance to Campbelltown but has now become a giant ugly eyesore.
Cr Paul Lake is urging Campbelltown Council to get tough with Parramatta based developers Dyldam, the current owners of the building.
“Either they fix it or a demolition order is issued,’’ says Cr Lake.
The huge building on the corner of Campbelltown Road and Rose Payten Drive, popularly known as Panjo, was never completed because the original owners ran out of money.
It was bought by Dyldam around 2013.
Cr Lake, a former mayor of Campbelltown, says that it’s ironic council is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a strategy called Reimagine Campbelltown but not acting on Panjo.
“Look at the building now, it’s derelict,’’ he says during our interview outside the security fence erected around the Panjo compound.
“It’s an eyesore. And it’s the gateway into Campbelltown.
“The city of Campbelltown has a derelict building as its logo.
“It’s falling apart and it looks disgusting.
“It’s not the best for the residents of Campbelltown,’’ says Cr Lake.
“It doesn’t fit in with the Re-Imagining Campbelltown strategy.’’
Cr Lake says he actually get asked a lot about what council is doing with the building.
“Somebody the other day asked me, what are they doing with that green building, that green hulk,’’ he says.
“I say: council can only do certain things, it’s up to the owners to take some pride in what they bought.’’
In January and February this year, fed up with the owners’ reluctance to get serious about fixing the building inside and out, Campbelltown Council started to seriously consider the option of a demolition order.
It informed Dyldam that unless they got a move on, a demolition order could be on the cards.
Then Covid-19 happened.
But now that the pandemic fog is slowly lifting, Cr Lake wants some tough action on Panjo and its owners.
In August he will call for an urgent report on what powers council has to act, including demolition orders.
But in the meantime he suggests council’s leadership team should have a serious conversation with the Dyldam management.
“I think the council general manager, along with the mayor, should have a meeting with the owners of these premises and have an open discussion about what their intentions are, what are they going to do with it.
“And then say to them, if you’re not going to do anything to improve it we’ll take further steps – whatever those steps may be,’’ he says.
Cr Lake says it’s possible that if f nothing happens this eyesore could still be there, getting worse and worse, for another 10-20 years.
“The owners could just comply, fix it up a little bit here and there, mow the lawns, and that’s it, not do a thing with it, for 20 years.
“I’ve seen it with other sites in Campbelltown,’’ he says.
The South West Voice contacted Dyldam for comment but we did not get a response by the time we published this story.
