By JOHN VAN KLAVEREN
NUMEROUS Geelong buildings riddled with concrete cancer will cost owners millions of dollars in repairs, a property management company has warned.
The warning follows discoveries of major concrete cancer issues on the Gold Coast and in other coastal regions.
Ace Body Corporate Management cheif Stephen Raff said strata property stakeholders in Geelong should “get proactive” immediately.
Mr Raff warned that delaying concrete cancer checks could result in crippling repair bills.
A number of buildings in the region have already suffered serious concrete cancer issues, including Geelong Performing Arts Centre (GPAC), Civic Centre car park and Anglesea Surf Lifesaving Club.
GPAC will undergo a $140 million upgrade after concrete cancer and other issues rendered it unsafe and unfit for hosting events, the Independent reported earlier this year.
City Hall has listed $80,000 of works on the Civic Centre car park roof “to mitigate the need for urgent remedial work to fix major structural issues”.
A report said extreme heat loading of the car park’s top level had caused excessive structural movement, cracking and flaking of concrete, which promoted severe concrete cancer and a risk of further major repair work.
Anglesea Surf Lifesaving Club faces a $4 million redevelopment plan because the lower level of the ageing complex, set for demolition, has cracked and broken brickwork and concrete cancer.
Mr Raff said recent investigations confirmed what property sector leaders feared for more than a year, with numerous buildings on the Gold Coast found to be riddled with concrete cancer, or “spalling” as it is known to engineering experts.
“The million dollar holes being gouged into the funds of Gold Coast bodies corporate and property owners should be a trigger for all Geelong strata stakeholders to get proactive now.”
Hyrum Mohring, of North Geelong building repairs business Resourcity, told the Independent the region had many buildings fitting into the age and construction profile for concrete cancer.
“Buildings that are 50-plus years old are at significant risk and Geelong still has a lot of buildings from the ’50s and ’60s.”
Tim Stretton, of Grovedale’s Total Waterproofing Solutions said 30 per cent of his work was dealing with concrete cancer.
“The repair costs are high, because you have to cut out the affected area and treat around it and they are difficult applications. It’s time consuming,” Mr Stretton said.
