SOCIAL housing advocates have hit back at Trinity Park residents trying to block construction of 19 new public units at Bluewater Estate.

Fred Morris, president of the Far North Queensland Regional Tenants Advisory Group, said the view that all people living in public housing were troublemakers was misguided and unfair.

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It is understood the Bluewater residents are not against social housing but are against building the units near the site of a proposed tavern in the estate.

Mr Morris rejected that stance though, with Housing Minister Karen Struthers last week telling The Cairns Post the tavern was only a proposal and would be taken into account before the final decision was made.

Bluewater residents fear public housing

Mr Morris said there was social housing throughout Cairns and said he had been inundated by calls from people upset at the Trinity Park situation.

"All of this stuff on TV, all of this stuff in the papers, remember this," Mr Morris said.

"There are nearly 70,000 social homes in Queensland, these trouble makers are a minority.

"We should be able to accommodate any person who lives in Australia in any suburb."

Mr Morris, who has lived in social housing all his life and has been president of the advisory group since 1990, admitted some tenants did cause problems.

But he said most of the time the housing gave shelter to elderly or disabled people, with homes allocated on a needs first basis.

"Yes I admit there are troublesome people but they are no more troublesome than what is in the private sector," he said.

Queensland Shelter executive officer Adrian Pisarski said the Not In My Back Yard attitude of residents was disappointing.

"These comments reflect a prejudice and NIMBYism that will not stand up to scrutiny," he said.

"Tenants of public housing are often senior citizens who have given their all for their community, they may be veterans of wars, or suffering disabilities or recovering from illnesses.

"They do not deserve the unwarranted scorn of those opposing this development."

Attempts to contact the residents' committee at Bluewater yesterday were unsuccessful.

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