Fiona Matz bought a small and sunny weatherboard cottage last year as a fresh start to a relationship breakup and a haven in which to bring up her two young sons, Tim, 9 and Alex, 7.
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Her chosen suburb of Ainslie was a blessing as the boys settled into a wonderful local school and Ms Matz made some strong neighbourly friendships.
But the last year has been a Mr Fluffy nightmare after confirmation came in June that her otherwise unremarkable but much loved home contained the menace of loose amosite asbestos.
And now Ms Matz is appealing to the ACT government to rethink parts of its buy-back and demolition scheme in order to give owners like her even a small chance to remain on their land to minimise disruption to their children's lives.
She and her boys desperately wants to remain in Ainslie, where their community surrounds them.
Unfortunately, Ms Matz is also acutely aware that land values in the inner-north suburb, are likely to escalate further than others as she waits for the government to demolish her home, revalue her land and sell it back to her.
"I do appreciate everything the ACT government has done this year to accommodate this situation in terms of financially assisting us," Ms Matz, an ACT public servant, said.
"But the thought of leaving my home, my street, my suburb, just leaves me feeling devastated. And I feel my boys have been through enough upheaval."
Because of the age of her home Ms Matz said the initial asbestos assessment led to the laundry, bathroom and all the cupboards being closed off entirely – such was the level of contamination.
To this day, she is wearing clothes donated by friends and strangers.
Winter was particularly devastating as the family had to shower in a portable backyard shower which was prone to freezing over.
She will never forget the kindness of neighbours – some dealing with their own Mr Fluffy nightmare – for accommodating her and her sons' regular hot showers.
Like many parents, the guilt at potentially exposing her boys to harmful fibres weighs on Ms Matz constantly. She tries not to think about it, instead channelling her energy into fighting for her land.
As a single mother and sole wage-earner, buying back land and rebuilding a modest home would be a stretch. But Ms Matz is desperate to at least consider the option.
In her submission to the ACT Assembly's Standing Committee on Public Accounts Ms Matz called for the Government to publish as soon as practicable, the demolition schedule to allow affected householders to make informed choices about whether to re-acquire their blocks.
She also asked for certainty about the repurchase price in order for families to factor that into their budgets as they consider rebuilding and rental accommodation during the demolition process.
Ms Matz has suggested calculating the price based on unimproved land value of the land at the repurchase date of October 28, 2014, or capping the price of remediated land at a reasonable percentile of the total value of the "surrender sum" paid to homeowners under the scheme.
"A more equitable model should be offered to people wanting to reacquire their land and rebuild – one that is sincere in its attempt to make repurchasing of the blocks realistic for those with a deep attachment to their current location," she said in her submission.
Until she hears otherwise, Ms Matz remains trapped in a strange holding pattern – not able to move forward, and certainly not able to face the prospect of leaving the place she desperately wanted to make a happy home.
