Latest news with #Pyrmont
Daily Mail
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE All hell breaks loose at Ten over my Survivor scoop: ALI DAHER exposes 'internal chaos' over Jonathan LaPaglia sacking, the 'shocking' work culture - and a leak about the new executive producer
There are plenty of sweaty palms at Channel Ten 's Pyrmont HQ after my exclusive story on Jonathan LaPaglia being sacked as host of . Not only are they furious that I broke the news before the launch of the upcoming season - they'd hoped to quietly drop it to the Daily Telegraph at the end of the year - but now there is 'serious internal panic' over the viewer backlash to the decision.
News.com.au
21-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
‘Sickening': Sydney unit owners face levies of up to $220,000 to replace flammable cladding
Owners in a Sydney apartment building blindsided by eye-watering special levies of up to $220,000 to replace dangerous flammable cladding say they have been 'failed' at all levels and left facing ruinous out-of-pocket costs. Sluggish remediation works, drawn-out legal battles and onerous retrospective changes to building codes have left many owners in a seemingly never-ending limbo. Ferres Wang, 43, purchased her one-bedroom unit in Pyrmont's Harbour Mill Apartments off the plan in 2012 for $580,000. The stunning development, built on the site of the old Edwin Davey & Sons Flour Mill near the Sydney Fish Markets, comprises 136 apartments across two 10-storey towers with a distinctive chequerboard exterior. Ms Wang, a tech entrepreneur, said she was attracted to the location close to Darling Harbour. 'Also the design is quite cool,' she said. The building, completed in 2015, was one of dozens identified as high-risk by the NSW government's cladding taskforce which undertook a survey of local properties in the wake of the 2017 Grenfell fire in London which claimed 72 lives. But five years on from the initial fire safety order from the City of Sydney, and nearly two years after entering a contract with a cladding remediation firm, the multimillion-dollar works have stalled. The builder, Hitech Remedial, has identified additional scope that will more than double its initial contract. On Tuesday, owners will be asked to vote on variations totalling $5.96 million, including additional cladding removal, vertical cavity barriers and replacement balustrades. The initial budget for the works was $7.8 million, $5.4 million of which was Hitech's contract. The works are being funded by a no-interest loan through the NSW government's Project Remediate, with up to $19.5 million available. 'The variations are required to properly undertake the work to remove and replace the ACP cladding, and deal with other issues identified during the repairs, and to comply with a fire order from City of Sydney Council to remove the ACP cladding,' Tuesday's strata meeting notice states. Ms Wang said the huge additional cost has left residents stunned. 'On average, each owner here is now facing a $70,000 to $220,000 levy, and we've been warned that even more variations are coming next year,' said Ms Wang, who will be on the hook for $70,000 for her 60 square metre apartment if the variation is approved. For penthouse owners, the bill will be up to $220,000. 'One is retired, he [told me] this is their entire life savings,' Ms Wang said. It's expected residents will be required to begin paying special levies for the works in the first half of next year. Ms Wang, who runs data and AI start-up DataNoLie, says she will be forced to divert money she would have used to invest in growing her business. 'For me this really is hardship,' she said. 'This is a systemic disaster for apartment owners across NSW. It feels like the entire system — strata, builder, tribunal, regulatory bodies — has failed us. The government's retrospective cladding laws place the full financial burden on owners, with no strong legal or audit mechanisms in place.' Ms Wang filed a case with the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) seeking to block Tuesday's vote but her request for an urgent hearing before the meeting was denied. 'I was told this didn't qualify as 'hardship' despite the enormous financial burden and the lack of legal safeguards being followed,' she said. Around 30 per cent of owners live in the building, and Ms Wang said meetings to approve the remediation budgets were only attended by around 30 people. 'More than 100 owners, they don't know, don't care or are Chinese investors overseas,' she said. A spokeswoman for Hitech Remedial declined to comment, saying enquiries should be directed to Project Remediate. The owners corporation has also commenced NSW Supreme Court proceedings against the original developer, Leichhardt-based Ceerose, over the cladding defects. That case is listed for a directions hearing in July. 'We confirm that there are legal proceedings brought by the owners corporation involving Ceerose which are currently in procedural directions stages and include claims related to cladding,' a Ceerose spokesman said. 'The proceedings are being defended by Ceerose.' Similar stories are playing out across the state. As of early 2023, the NSW government had inspected 4182 buildings, with remediation underway or ordered by the relevant authority for 192. The NSW Audit Office found in April 2022 that most high-risk buildings in NSW had likely been identified. A spokesman for the NSW Building Commission said Project Remediate was currently working with around 80 owners corporations to remove combustible cladding through packages of interest-free loans and construction program management services. 'The program also helps owners corporations to resolve underlying conditions that are sometimes revealed when cladding is removed, saving owners from potentially costly repairs in the future,' he said. 'This includes fixing issues with waterproofing or structural components of the building to ensure the new cladding system is safe, weatherproof and structurally sound. Where the underlying issues have been caused by defective work by the building's original builder or developer, NSW legislation allows owners to claim using statutory warranties and other protections available within the statutory periods specified under the legislation.' Strata lawyer Amanda Farmer said since the closure of Project Remediate to new applications, owners had largely been left on their own. 'As far as I'm aware there is no state or federal grant program to help strata buildings cover the cost of replacement,' she said. 'What we're seeing is individual owners are now having to shoulder 100 per cent of these costs coming to them in the way of large special levies at are running into $30,000 a lot, $50,000, up to six figures. It's sickening.' Ms Farmer cautioned against taking the legal route. 'The problem with suing is it takes many years to progress through the court system and you may end up with something of a Pyrrhic victory if the builder and developer have nothing, are straw companies by the end of it,' she said. Other owners have previously sought remedy from builders and developers alleging breaches of statutory warranties under NSW's Home Building Act 1989. In 2020, NSW passed the Design and Building Practitioners Act, which imposed new statutory obligations to ensure designs and building work are compliant with the Building Code of Australia (BCA), with a 10-year duty of care period. 'There may be now in NSW the opportunity to claim under a 10-year warranty period, [but] that's very new and still being tested through the courts,' Ms Farmer said. 'I think buildings should rightly be very careful commencing any litigation now. It can take years to resolve and in the meantime you're sitting in a building with potentially dangerous cladding.' The harsh reality is owners in affected buildings have few options. 'A building has a very strict legal obligation to properly repair its common property, so if it has received advice from an expert fire safety engineer that this is dangerous combustible cladding then the law is very well settled, the owners corporation has to act on that and protect its occupants,' Ms Farmer said. 'It's a really unenviable position for strata owners to be in but from a legal perspective they don't have a choice.' With remediation quotes typically running into multiple millions, many buildings are opting to take out strata loans offered by a handful of boutique lenders. 'It can be a 10 or 20-year loan at interest rates over 9 per cent,' Ms Farmer said. 'In my experience that is usually what most buildings are opting for because they're finding most owners don't have the cash funds. Having a strata loan on the books then impacts the value of everybody's investment. Purchasers looking to buy [will knock the price down].' Ms Farmer said many owners were being forced to simply sell. 'That is sometimes the only option, and as I said it's a really difficult decision because you're going to be taking a hit on your sale price,' she said. 'If you're in a position you have to sell, you have to take what you can get. I'm definitely seeing more of that, not just in the cladding context but all around with our ageing buildings that need a lot of work very fast.' In NSW, former Building Commissioner David Chandler oversaw the most extensive reforms to the state's defect-plagued apartment building sector in response to years of high-profile disasters, like the mass evacuation of residents from Opal Tower in Sydney Olympic Park on Christmas Eve 2018. While the crackdown on dodgy developers was long overdue, concerns have been raised that the onerous requirements under the Design and Building Practitioners Act have sent remediation costs for older buildings soaring. 'The side effect of that very strict legislation is that it also applies to existing buildings, much older buildings that are doing remedial work,' Ms Farmer said. 'Works are now three times, four times more expensive under this new legislation. A leaking balcony that may have cost $50,000 to fix in 2020 is now costing $200,000. That is a big problem, and there's a fair bit of advocacy being done to government at the moment trying to get some relief.'
News.com.au
02-06-2025
- General
- News.com.au
‘Scared of what he might do': Couple finds half-naked stranger in home after holiday
A young couple has been left 'shaken' after they returned home from an overseas holiday to find a stranger had been living in their Sydney apartment and had worn their clothes – some of which were reportedly stained with faeces. Denoora Lyu, a 22-year-old student from the University of Sydney, and her boyfriend William Qu, walked through the door of their inner-city apartment in Pyrmont on February 17 to find Dylan Patrick Yelkovan, 30, standing half-naked in the living room. After seeing the couple, Mr Yelkovan – dressed in blue shorts, a red cap and no shirt – appeared calm and slowly started packing his belongings in a bag, video footage shows. 'I was just setting up the house,' he appeared to tell the couple in the video. 'Yeah, we are living here,' a male voice replied from behind the camera. Mr Yelkovan then calmly walked to another room, where he quickly changed in a hi-vis shirt and pants. When the couple asked him to stay where he was, he put on his shoes and quickly fled out the balcony door. 'I felt really shaken. There was a complete stranger standing in my home, and he wasn't even wearing a shirt. It just didn't seem normal,' Ms Lyu told 7News. 'I kept thinking, what if he had a knife? I was scared of what he might do.' The couple were staying in the apartment temporarily until they could find a new home for the next semester, while their friend, whose name was on the lease, was overseas, 7News reports. The building's manger helped detain Mr Yelkovan, who was arrested and taken into police custody after undergoing an assessment at St Vincent's Hospital. Video footage showed him being led out of a building by two men as police were called. The couple said their belongings had been rampaged through and strewn across the apartment. They claimed the toilet was left unflushed and Mr Yelkovan had worn Mr Qu's clothes, some of which were stained with faeces. 'He unpacked every single box and used everything inside, including the desktop computer, which hadn't even been set up at the time,' Ms Lyu said. 'He pulled out all the spare phones that weren't in use but couldn't access them due to passwords.' Mr Qu's bank card had also been used, with records showing Mr Yelkovan had stayed in the apartment for a week, 7News reports. Mr Qu's money was later refunded by his bank. After the incident, the pair spent a week in a hotel while the apartment was professionally cleaned, leaving them $2,000 out of pocket. Mr Yelkovan was charged with five offences, including one count of break and enter with intent to commit a serious indictable offence and four counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception. Court documents show the 30-year-old pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nine months imprisonment, to be served as an Intensive Correction Order (ICO) – which saw him avoid prison time. Under the order, Mr Yelkovan is required to abstain from drugs and is prohibited from visiting a Pyrmont apartment. The order expires on December 31.
Daily Mail
02-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Young uni student shocked after returning from holidays and finding a shirtless stranger in her unit - and his very bizarre reaction when he is caught
A university student looking forward to coming home after holidaying opened her front door to find a stranger living in her apartment. University of Sydney student Denoora Lyu, 22, found Dylan Patrick Yelkovan, 30, shirtless in her two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in Pyrmont on February 17. She and her partner, William Qu, were shocked to see the stranger in her home, but the intruder didn't return their surprise. Instead, Yelkovan calmly said he'd been 'setting up the house' and began gathering his things. Footage showed the 30-year-old collected items from around the trashed apartment, casually went between rooms to get dressed and used the balcony to escape. 'I felt really shaken. There was a complete stranger standing in my home, and he wasn't even wearing a shirt. It just didn't seem normal,' Ms Lyu told 7News on Friday. 'I kept thinking, what if he had a knife? I was scared of what he might do.' Ms Lyu believed Yelkovan also used the balcony to enter the apartment, which she was temporarily subletting from a friend. The couple were able to perform a citizen's arrest with the help of their building manager and Yelkovan was jailed ahead of a court hearing. On further inspection of the apartment, Ms Lyu found all her belongings had been rifled through, including her computer which Yelkovan had used to listen to music. The stranger had also worn Mr Qu's clothes, leaving them stained with faeces, and left the toilet unflushed. One particularly odd detail which left Ms Lyu disturbed was an attempt by Yelkovan to beautify the home by turning a wine decanter into a vase and filling it with flowers. The couple had to throw out almost everything Yelkovan used and spent nearly $2,000 to stay in a hotel for a week while the apartment was professionally cleaned. But the couple's misery didn't end there. They later found Yelkovan had used Mr Qu's bank card with transaction records indicating he'd spent a week in their home. Fortunately, the bank refunded the stolen money. Ms Lyu never expected to be the victim of an attempted-squatter. 'I've seen stories about break-ins like this before, but when it actually happens to you, it's still really shocking,' she said. Yelkovan was released from custody following his court hearing at Sydney Downing Centre on April 1. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nine months' imprisonment, to be served as an Intensive Correction Order (ICO) for the break-in, running until December 31. The sentence means Yelkovan won't be behind bars but subject to strict supervision, cannot use drugs and must steer clear of prohibited locations - including the apartment in Pyrmont. Ms Lyu has since seen him in Sydney's CBD. Yelkovan also faced driving without consent, reckless driving, breaching a domestic violence restraining order, and multiple counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception. He pleaded guilty to the charges and was handed another ICO running until March 31 next year, with similar conditions of supervision and good behaviour.
Daily Mail
13-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Brother of NRL star Bronson Xerri gets surprising news after alleged violent home invasion - as shocking alleged details are revealed
The elder brother of Canterbury Bulldogs star Bronson Xerri has been granted bail. Troy Anthony Xerri, 33, appeared in Sydney 's Supreme Court on Tuesday for a bail hearing after he had been charged in relation to an alleged violent home invasion last year. Police allege he is one of four individuals who broke into an apartment at Wattle Crescent in Pyrmont on May 21, 2024 and attacked the occupant and robbed his home. Xerri, 33, was arrested by police in July 2024, and was later charged by police with breaking and entering a dwelling and inflicting grievous bodily harm. No pleas have been entered, but his barrister, Gabrielle Bashir, asked the court on Tuesday for his release on bail, citing grounds that members of his family were unwell. During the bail application, his counsel added that Xerri was needed at home to help his wife with their family. The 33-year-old is due to return to court in June. Footy star Bronson Xerri is not accused of any wrongdoing. It is alleged that Troy Xerri, along with the three other co-accused individuals, had gained entrance to the alleged victim's residence by stating that a toilet had been leaking upstairs in the building and that they needed to inspect a bathroom, the court heard. The alleged victim was allegedly hit by one of the men on the head while he he had his back turned to them. The four individuals were then alleged to have ordered the alleged victim to give them money while kicking him. The man lost consciousness and was later found by a member of the building's security team. His hands had been bound together by cable ties, while his apartment had been robbed. The alleged victim was hospitalised and required surgery on the injuries he sustained, with Justice Rothman stating he had sustained 'life-threatening skull fractures and brain haemorrhages, with acute raised intracranial pressure.' He also sustained cuts on his face and arms. 'In essence, these are very serious offences which involve assault causing damage and kidnapping,' Justice Rothman said to the court. The terms of his release on bail require Xerri to provide a $500,000 surety. He is also required to remain under house arrest and wear an electronic ankle bracelet. While on bail, he must also report to police on a daily basis and hand over his passport.
