Owners of Sydney's troubled Mascot Towers have voted to take legal action against the developer of a neighbouring apartment building.
The 132-unit residential block was evacuated in June 2019 after cracks were found in the primary support structure and facade masonry.
At an extraordinary general meeting held last week, a clear majority of Mascot Towers owners voted to begin legal proceedings against Aland, the developer of the Peak Towers building next door.
Research is also under way for a collective sale after a majority vote to review the option of selling the complex.
"In June 2019, significant cracking was seen throughout the slab and structural beams at Mascot Towers following the excavation work next door as Peak Towers was being built," the owners corporation said in a statement on Monday.
"That is not a coincidence. The soil that supported Mascot Towers was removed by those constructing the Peak Towers basement, meaning that the Mascot Towers building loads could no longer be fully supported."
Aland has previously refused to provide Mascot Towers' engineers access to inspect the Peak Towers basement, the statement said.
"Mascot Towers will demonstrate Aland's shoring system at Peak Towers was under-designed, that the piles were incorrectly built, that waterproofing was missing or wholly insufficient, that the basement was not ... sealed from groundwater and that prolonged de-watering was undertaken by Aland beyond recommendations and council permits," Monday's statement said.
The owners corporation wants the state government to take enforcement measures against the parties involved.
It's understood NSW Fair Trading is separately investigating Peak Towers' certification and building work, the group's spokesman said.
Aland managing director Andrew Hrsto has previously said they had not been provided with "a report or any evidence" linking the problems at Mascot Towers with Peak Towers.
"If the owners corporation or their legal representatives agreed to provide Aland with this evidence, we would be happy to review its findings and provide a response," he said in a statement at the time.
Mr Hrsto claimed access to the building was a matter for the owners of Peak Towers, not the developer.
Aland and NSW Fair Trading were contacted on Monday for comment.
Australian Associated Press
