Doubleview resident forced to pay $2k for streetlights still waiting seven years later

A Doubleview resident who was left frustrated after having to pay $2000 to her council for streetlights near her property seven years ago has now been told installation will not occur until the 2025-26 financial year.

Hayley Hamilton built her home on a subdivided block on Brodie Lane in 2017 but was left stunned after she and two neighbours had to split a $7000 bill from the City of Stirling to install streetlights on the right-of-way lane.

Ms Hamilton said her family stressed to pay the bill upfront and were initially told the lights would be installed by 2021.

“It was awful because when you’re building a house it’s a huge expense for everything, so to have that extra $2000 put on top of the bill was really hard,” she said.

“At the time we were a single income family with a baby, so it was really tough.

“My family helped us so we came through with the money and for what; it’s been years and you had to rush to give it to them within 30 days.”

After 2024 arrived without any signs or communication about the streetlights, Ms Hamilton demanded a refund from the city, which was denied.

She has now been given an expected completion date of the 2025-26 financial year.

“Really, I’m never going to see this ridiculous street light,” she said.

Ms Hamilton said the $2000 for the streetlights did not even guarantee it would be placed near her home.

“Brodie Lane runs from Doubleview all the way down to Scarborough Beach. They said it could go anywhere along there but that in itself is really unfair that I’m paying for it and it can go anywhere miles from my house,” she said.

“But it hasn’t gone anywhere; it still doesn’t exist.

“The light may not even be on my house and my portion of the lane is pitch black. There’s no lighting down here at all and we’re three houses away from the main street where the nearest streetlight is, so there is no lighting along this section.”

The city said it was aware of Ms Hamilton’s complaints and its local planning scheme included a development contribution plan for right-of-way improvements.

“The contribution paid by the Doubleview resident in question resulted from a development application and the requirement to pay a contribution was listed as a condition of their Development Approval in 2016,” a city spokesperson said.

“The works for the ROW in question then go into an extensive list of construction projects which are prioritised in order of their importance to the broader community.”

The city did not specifically address the reasons for the delay but said it was “not possible” to co-ordinate streetlight construction with development contributions.

It said the contribution went towards illumination of the entire laneway rather than one specific light.

“Each laneway is assessed and assigned a priority ranking score based on various factors, and the schedule of projects are undertaken in an orderly and prioritised manner,” the spokesperson said.

“This means that construction and/or lighting upgrades can sometimes occur before individual contributions are made, and sometimes after contributions are made.”

The city said the funds were held in trust until the works for the specific laneway are completed.

“The funds are then transferred towards the projects to offset the cost of the works. It is common that contributions have not been received from all abutting property owners and in such cases, the city is required to fund the remaining cost of upgrades,” the spokesperson said.