More resilient strata properties on the Gold Coast
With strata properties particularly vulnerable to natural hazards, research has driven government programs to fund vital retrofitting works.
Gold Coast resident Dr Nicole Johnston could not believe the intensity of Tropical Cyclone Alfred in early 2025. The wind quickly ripped the roof off the communal garage of her apartment block in Biggera Waters, then water started pouring through the edges of her closed windows.
“I’ve lived here most of my life and that event, as well as a tornado [derecho] the previous Christmas [2023], were the worst I’ve ever seen or known,” Dr Johnston says.
“I was living in an older building and replacing the windows had been raised as an issue, but the nature of strata meant there was a reluctance to do the work.”
Dr Johnston, who is an expert in strata and community title, says the nature of these schemes means critical building and maintenance work often falls behind.
“Buildings are costly to maintain. Add to that the complex nature of strata governance models and the fact that these positions are voluntary, and you have many strata properties on the Gold Coast that are not in great shape,” she says.
Following research conducted by the Centre with James Cook University’s (JCU) Cyclone Testing Station that showed the vulnerability of pre-eighties housing to severe winds, the Queensland Government has inspected about 1,400 strata properties in coastal Central and North Queensland under the Strata Resilience Program to assess their eligibility for funding to make them more resilient to cyclones.
At the same time, City of Gold Coast has launched a Severe Wind Strata Building Study and Industry Engagement to assess the resilience and preparedness of a range of strata properties, as part of a broader plan to increase infrastructure resilience to severe wind and tropical cyclone hazards. This study is receiving funding from the Australian Government.
The City’s work is closely informed by the Severe Wind Hazard Assessment for South East Queensland (SWHA-SEQ), conducted by Geoscience Australia along with the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES), Queensland Department of Environment and Science and JCU.
The SWHA-SEQ found that improved building data and vulnerability models are needed for strata buildings, as the models used were based primarily on detached housing types. This is particularly important for the Gold Coast, where strata buildings are prevalent.
The City’s Chief Executive Officer, Tim Baker, says evidence is vital in obtaining funding for government resilience schemes.
“It’s about evidence-based decision making so we can present the case to say this is how we should proceed for funding, at all levels of Government,” he says.