The council confirmed on Tuesday the troubled camping ground would close today as part of a process agreed last Friday between it and the lessee, Nicholas Irons.
The lease was terminated in September following ongoing complaints about residents’ safety and the condition of the site.
Resident Mick Gillespie, who has lived in a caravan on-site for six months, said it was ‘‘no skin off his nose’’ for him to leave, but this was not the case for all the residents.
He said about a dozen people were still living there as of this week.
‘‘I look around and it’s been bloody hard on some of the people. I’ve kept in touch with the council for ages; they’ve been good, kept me up with a few things.
‘‘But one guy around here, he just read in the paper they had to be out by Saturday. He didn’t even know [and] he has a couple of kids.
‘‘There’s one thing the council have slipped up on, big time - they haven’t taken any thought about the people around here, to the point where, in my view, it was more than just heavy-handed,’’ he said.
Mr Gillespie, who is moving to the Catlins, said it was ‘‘pretty bloody poor’’ that the council gave residents only a week’s notice they would have to move on.
‘‘I was really disappointed.
‘‘We all knew there was a deadline day. I knew what date it was, but there’s a lot of people, because they have nowhere else to go, they don’t understand.
‘‘They thought they were going to be thrown out on the street. It feels to me the council didn’t give a f... about the people around here, whether they were thrown out on the street or not.’’
Mr Irons was tightlipped on details of the settlement, but expressed some frustrations about the saga.
‘‘It’s a very messy situation which shouldn’t have happened in the first place.’’
Mr Irons said rentals in Gore were still limited and so some people had had to leave town to find housing.
‘‘I think [the Otago Daily Times] might have done an article to say the council had options for people, but they never really did. If you speak to some clients, they’ll confirm the council didn’t virtually help them with anything.’’
A statement released by the council earlier in the week said the camping ground’s lessee was responsible for notifying and managing occupants as part of the transition.
The council’s focus was ensuring all statutory requirements were met, it said.
In a statement yesterday, the council said it understood ‘‘this has been an upsetting and uncertain time for many of the people’’ and acknowledged ‘‘the shock some residents are feeling’’.
‘‘Residents were advised last year the site could no longer continue as long-term accommodation and a formal 50-day eviction notice was issued as part of the lease termination process.’’
A council spokesman said residents were formally notified in late 2025 or early 2026 they had to find alternative accommodation, supported by government agencies.
‘‘We understand that receiving these notices is distressing, but residents were given due notice each time, consistent with or exceeding required timeframes.
‘‘We are sorry if some people feel they did not receive the level of support they hoped for.
‘‘Experiences can differ in stressful situations, but we stand by the work undertaken to provide clear information, referrals and points of contact.’’
