Wyndham residents have expressed their disappointment and outrage at the former tenants of the Point Cook Homestead for taking deposits for weddings and other functions just before going into voluntary liquidation.
Readers flooded Star Weekly’s Facebook page last week to express their shock after hearing that the tenants went into voluntary liquidation on July 7, leaving 19 functions, including seven on which a deposit had been paid, in the lurch.
“This is terribly sad news – an historic venue closed under awful circumstances,” reader Deanne Jenkins said. “Those couples would be devastated about their future wedding venue being shut, and losing their deposits.”
Fellow reader Marie Doody said she, too, felt for the couples who had lost their deposit.
“Terrible to take money when you know you cannot honour the contract,” she wrote.
Wyndham council chief executive Kerry Thompson said she could “only imagine the stress that this has caused individuals and couples, who may lose money and will need to find a new venue for their function or wedding”.
Liquidator David Quin, of PCI Partners, said it was unlikely any deposits would be refunded.
One of the affected couples was bride-to-be Jessie Anderson and fiance Nathan Mattia, who paid a deposit for their February 2016 nuptials earlier this month.
Ms Anderson said the couple did not even get a receipt to confirm payment. She said they only learned the Point Cook Homestead was shut down when her fiance went there and found it locked.
Meanwhile, local business people have come forward to offer a helping hand to those who have lost deposits. Wyndham Cache function co-ordinator Danyel Ahmed, who is a member of wedding group Getting Married Here, said she and other local suppliers would offer a range of services at a discounted price.
Likewise, Point Cook resident Sam Charif, who runs Pier 35 Bar and Grill in Port Melbourne, said he would be happy to help out the couples with a discounted offer.
