Sleeping pods for homeless people sitting empty at Launceston storage facility

ABC NEWS (Australia)

As the nights get chillier, a Tasmanian charity has rolled out a trailer of sleeping pods for the homeless. But they remain empty amid a breakdown in negotiations with the local council.

Transcript

00:00 As the sun sets in Launceston, volunteers are out collecting donated food and hitting the streets.

00:07 Greg, do you want a hot soup?

00:09 Homelessness charity Strike It Out is making sure people have winter supplies and something to eat.

00:14 Greg Davey is among a group staying at a disused tram yard.

00:18 We've got power and everything, we've got shelter, we've got a fire pot, but most other people are not so lucky.

00:25 They're in tents and well, wintertime is going to be really hard for them.

00:30 Kirsten Ritchie from Strike It Out has come up with a way to provide seven people with a safe and warm place to sleep at night.

00:38 Seven sleeping pods have been fitted into a mobile trailer and another trailer contains two showers.

00:44 But they're currently sitting unused at a storage facility.

00:48 We're coming into winter and there's still no action.

00:51 Strike It Out has been trying to secure a site for the trailers.

00:55 But Ms Ritchie says the Launceston City Council won't come to the table.

01:00 It is ready to go and at the end of the day, be proactive and we're here to help our community members, that's what we're here for.

01:09 The council says the charity needs to provide a detailed written proposal, including a risk assessment.

01:15 It says it will then be able to assess the project's feasibility and ensure it meets safety requirements.

01:21 Strike It Out provided a proposal to council when it expressed interest in this site where an old kindergarten used to be.

01:29 But the charity was knocked back.

01:31 They've actually read our proposal, they've actually looked into it, because then they might actually see too,

01:36 that all the risks that are involved with our project, it stipulates what we've done to tick boxes in that proposal.

01:43 Greg Davey is a former Strike It Out volunteer and strongly supports the project.

01:48 You couldn't get a better set up, but they keep blocking it, they won't let it put it anywhere.

01:52 For now, the project remains out in the cold.

01:56 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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