People power: The site will be bulldozed thanks to the vigilance of residents including John and Jim Steele, Loris Beattie, Gary Knox and John Atkinson.
Walls, glass, windows and fittings stood no chance as vandals destroyed everything in sight on an almost daily basis.
Walls, glass, windows and fittings stood no chance as vandals destroyed everything in sight on an almost daily basis.
KMART representatives have apologised for the way they handled the Warlters Street saga.
The parcel of land with numerous buildings and demountables is now owned by supermarket chain Kmart who plan to develop the land.
The site was left unfenced, unguarded and with power still running to certain areas, and quickly became a haven for vandals. It was only after residents spoke with Port News that action was taken and a fence was erected to ward off offenders. Kmart representatives have signed off on a contractor to demolish the site. Initial work began yesterday.
"Kmart sincerely apologises for the situation regarding the St Joseph's Regional High School site," Kmart's general manager Tracie Walker said.
"We understand the lack of security and safety surrounding this site has caused great anxiety and concern for local residents.
"As soon as we were made aware of the situation we began immediately to discuss the demolition of this site with local traders and now have a contract in place.
"Thank you to all of the residents for your patience and thank you for informing us of the situation.
"The site is now secure and work will begin on the demolition of the site as soon as the local council approves our request."
The contractor responsible for the clean up and demolition work is The Bridle Group. Owner Gary Bridle said work would take some time to complete.
"It will take between one and two weeks just to clean up the vandalism," he said.
"The whole process could take up until Christmas time."
