Salt's not safe yet

The tale of the Salt family who live in Range View Road has been in the media and tells how Sharon Salt is the tenant of a housing New Zealand state house, but her children are terrorising the neighbours.

She recently won a Tenancy Tribunal appeal to be allowed to stay in her home. However, Housing New Zealand have appealed the decision.

Mrs Salt had been allowed to remain in her home as Housing NZ did not present enough evidence for grounds for eviction.

The police have been constant visitors to the Salt house and he sons are linked to local gangs and have terrorised neighbours, partaken in disorderly behaviour, vandalism, assault and property damage.

This is a tricky situation as Mrs Salt who is the tenant has not done anything wrong herself and therefore she should not be evicted but her children's behvaiour certainly is causing problems and this needs to be resolved somehow. One measure would be to place trespass orders on the children from the house but I do not see this happening.

Mrs Salt has previously claimed that the police and neighbours are targeting the family and with the media's assistance are making a mountain out of a mole hill.

I do not know where exactly I stand on the issue, as I do not think that Mrs Salt should be evicted as it is her children, but the only way to get rid of the children from the street and stop causing so much trouble is to remove the family including Mrs Salt from the street, and the neighbours have a right to feel safe in their homes.

It may be more appropriate for Housing NZ to help the Salt's accommodation in a more accommodating area.

The new of Housing NZ appealing the decision has delighted some of the local residents.