A single mum who poured her $400,000 life savings into a caravan park and general store in a rural Aussie village has watched on in horror as her dream has been ripped apart. Four years ago, Leanne O’Donnell packed up her two kids and moved several hundred kilometres to Licola — a privately-owned town in Victoria.
It didn’t take her long to become an integral part of the community, which has all but been shut down by the Lions Club, which has owned and run the village for more than 50 years.
Last year, the non-profit terminated Leanne’s lease and ordered her to vacate the town’s only store and caravan park by this Saturday, forcing the mum and her teen son to move into a van attached to her car.
Citing a maintenance loss of $50,000, landlord Licola Wilderness Village, a camp for disadvantaged children that sits directly across the street from her business, will now take over.
On top of that, the mum told Yahoo News Australia she’s been ordered to remove all of her equipment, stock and signage that has been in place for decades.
“I’m not seeing a loss. I’m getting by, I’m not making a million, but I love what I do,” Leanne told Yahoo. “When you love what you do, the money comes second. I work from my heart, and they’re working from a spreadsheet.”
“They’ve got me over a barrel because I invested my life savings into this, and now they just think that they can just come in and take it all away, and I’ve got nothing that I can do about it.”
The decision to end Leanne’s lease has sparked huge backlash in Licola and surrounding communities. Source: Licola Caravan Park and General Store/Facebook
The mum also had to inform families who have been holidaying at the caravan park for generations that they would no longer be able to pay an annual fee to keep their set-ups there all year-round.
“One of the annual [caravanners] has been here for 36 years. One had to pull his father’s van down that he inherited — it’s the last thing he had left of his dad,” she explained, noting there had been many tears shed.
The controversial decision has ignited tensions within the town, which the Lion’s Club has now put up for sale with a predicted price of $6-$10 million.
Australia Post box removed as shopkeeper watches dream dismantled
Not wanting to disrupt service to the community she has come to adore so much, Leanne continued trading until Australia Day.
Now, much to her dismay, she’s watching her dream be dismantled right before her eyes.
“Everybody kept saying it’s just a lease ending. Just deal with it, pack and move on. But I am the only shop in town,” the mum vented.
“This is like a complete erasure of a business and a community and the heritage of the area.”
This week, Licola copped another blow when its only Australia Post box was removed.
Speaking to Yahoo News, an Australia Post spokesperson confirmed its “agreement with the agent of the Community Postal Agency (CPA) at Licola ceased on 23 January after their lease was not renewed by the landlord”.
“We thank the outgoing agent Leanne for her dedicated service to the community,” they added.
Yahoo News understands the shop, trading as an Australia Post agent, received mail two days a week. Other arrangements for mail delivery have been made for the three locals who regularly used the service.
The entire town of Licola is now up for sale. Source: Licola Caravan Park and General Store/Facebook
Single mum forced into caravan as entire town goes up for sale
The Licola Wilderness Village board told the ABC last year it had no plans to close the general store or caravan park, but now the entire town is up for grabs.
“A recent strategic review found that increasing financial pressures, ageing accommodation and infrastructure, reduced school and camp participation, rising insurance costs and limited capacity for reinvestment have made the current facility-based model unsustainable,” the board said in a statement to Yahoo News.
The decision to sell “was not made lightly”, a spokesperson for the group said.
“Lions, volunteers and supporters have poured decades of heart and service into Licola,” they added.
“This decision does not step away from that legacy — it protects it. Instead of investing in buildings and infrastructure, Lions will be investing directly in a larger number of children through a broader, more flexible and sustainable model of support.”
Speaking to Yahoo on Thursday, Leanne described the chaos unfolding as she desperately tried to sell her equipment and stock by the imminent deadline.
“Now I’m moving into a caravan because I’ve got no money to buy a house or buy a business or anything like that, apart from what I get at the end of this,” she said, referring to the $100,000 she hopes to make back.
“Now, I’ve gotta get creative.”
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
