Fence fight man builds his portfolio
SOVEREIGN Islands resident Christian Wenzel – who last year won a bitter legal battle against his neighbours over a $17,000 fence – has been building his commercial property portfolio.
Queensland Government records show an entity linked to Mr Wenzel was the buyer of a fully leased industrial warehouse at 11-13 Olympic Circuit in Southport, which sold at auction in May for $1.548 million.
The seller was a company associated with AV Technology founder Kevin Chatfield. Mr Wenzel was also behind the purchase of building units in the Logan suburb of Hillcrest in April, which sold for $1.3 million.
Mr Wenzel and wife Karina Wenzel had been locked into a struggle with neighbours Ron and Pamela Fisher since 2012.
The fight started when the Wenzels demolished the boundary fence on their land and started building their own fence.
Mr Fisher claimed to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal that Mr Wenzel had wilfully damaged the column on the boundary of the properties at the front of the homes, cutting two thirds off it, a light fitting, electrical wires and cap from the top.
Mr Fisher demanded Mr Wenzel pay $700 and return it to its original state.
The fight led to headlines in the Bulletin after Mr Fisher’s submission included CCTV stills of Mr Wenzel working on the fence, photos of their laundry hanging up and a photo of him waving to his neighbours as he gets in his car.
The QCAT adjudicator dismissed the claim, stating Mr Wenzel was entitled to demolish the two-thirds of the column because it was on his property and not on the boundary. Mr Fisher’s other applications to QCAT about the fence were also dismissed.