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Melbourne public housing towers demolition to go ahead despite residents’ class action
(www.theguardian.com)
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The Victorian government is forging ahead with plans to demolish three public housing towers subject to a class action seeking to stop the redevelopment.
The move was described by a lawyer for residents as an example of them being “treated as an afterthought”, after the supreme court ordered the class action could proceed to a two-day trial this month.
Inner Melbourne Community Legal said it was notified by the Victorian government solicitor’s office that Homes Victoria – the body that oversees social housing in the state – would sign a contract for demolition works to commence “on or after 19 July”.
Louisa Bassini, the managing lawyer at Inner Melbourne Community Legal, said it was disappointing the government was “steamrolling ahead” with plans to raze the buildings despite the ongoing class action.
At the time, the supreme court justice Melinda Richards rejected their lawyers’ argument that government and the housing minister, Harriet Shing, should be defendants.
The court last week ordered the class action could proceed to a two-day trial, to begin on 28 October, after lawyers acting on behalf of the residents reframed their legal argument.
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