Ratepayers association aims to team with BCM to fix problems
The Kidd’s Beach Ratepayers and Residents Association (KBRRA) says it is open to working with BCM to help repair the beachfront ablution facilities, which chair Stephen Keet said were in urgent need of maintenance.
“The problems with the facilities are they’re old, they’re no longer as functional as they were, the plumbing is of a poor standard and they regularly break,” Keet said.
“I’ve been living in Kidd’s Beach for 10 years. During that period, the ratepayers together with one of the developers have taken steps to paint some of the facilities, repair them but it’s an ongoing problem and it has been for many years.”
He said the municipality was under-equipped and often had to bring in teams from East London.
“Often the ratepayer’s association uses money from its levies to make repairs.”
The KBRRA, Keet said, now wanted to take a different approach.
“What we see as a future way of addressing these problems is for the municipality and the ratepayers to agree on what standards are expected, to agree how these standards could be met and what resources need to be brought to bear,” he said.
“Who would contribute what? We expect most of it should come from the municipality using rates that we pay but inevitably there will be some things that the ratepayers would be prepared to contribute but we’ll then invoice the municipality if it’s clearly a function of the municipality.”
After a meeting with the municipality on June 23, Keet said they were now busy drawing up a draft terms of reference to clarify how the municipality and the ratepayer’s association would work together on the matter.
“We want to get to the stage where we acknowledge it’ sa long-term problem and that there needs to be responses to problems in a much more effective, faster way.
“This is our new approach. We say ‘BCM, do you agree that these services and facilities are not being managed, serviced, cleaned and being kept in good repair according to the standards that are expected?’
“The answer from BCM has been ‘Yes’, and they want to do something about it.”
Keet thanked ward 31 councillor Bonisile Bangani, who he said had made an effort to make himself available to residents.
“It is encouraging that the ward councillor Bangani made contact with the Kidd’s Beach Ratepayers and Residents Association shortly after taking up his position to establish what the major issues are.
“One of his constructive initiatives has been an attempt to engage the BCMM finance department to send a team to attend to the municipal accounts problems being experienced by so many homeowners.
“This has still to come to fruition but we wait for a positive outcome.”
While BCM had indicated it would respond on its involvement, this had not been received by print deadline.