A sign urging truckies not to disturb Christchurch retirement village residents prompted an outburst from the complex owner who wanted the sign removed from a fence he said was his property.
John Tooby, owner of the $80 million Lady Wigram Retirement Village, used the f-word frequently and called four elderly residents a pack of “bloody kids”, it’s reported.
His tirade was recorded by a Christchurch Star journalist visiting tenants about their ongoing issues with trucks on Lodestar Ave.
Residents have been to the Halswell-Hornby-Riccarton Community Board, the police and Wigram MP Megan Woods about the problem.
Tooby told the pensioners he was “f***ing pissed off” they had contacted the Christchurch Star about their campaign to stop the trucks.
“Yes, I’m not happy, I’m not putting up with that s**t,” the Star reports.
He told them the rest home fence they put the sign on was his property and it had to be taken down.
The sign urges truckies to return to a previous route, as residents are concerned about noise – despite window double glazing – and trucks travelling past their homes rattling items in their units.
Tooby has been involved with building projects since the 1970s, and set up Golden Healthcare Group, which owns the Lady Wigram Retirement Village.
He later apologised to one of the pensioners.
The Star says it unsuccessfully tried to talk to Tooby after his tirade.
