R400m broom for city clean-up
TO IMPLEMENT a clean-up campaign for Durban’s central business district (CBD), the municipality has set aside R400 million to make available the necessary resources required to sustain their programme.
The budget was availed to support this ongoing initiative, which began earlier this month and is focused on the CBD’S cleanliness and safety.
ethekwini mayor Zandile Gumede lauded the city’s officials for embarking on the campaign, saying delivering health and safety was a top priority, especially in the CBD.
City manager Sipho Nzuza said that before the end of the year, the city would host a sod-turning ceremony to kickstart the municipality’s investment in the Point Waterfront development, and it would take place in a clean and safe environment to attract new investment.
Since the programme began, city officials have cut verges, pulled down illegal posters and curbed illegal dumping and littering.
The programme also includes maintaining law and order in the area through enforcement of by-laws and firm action against illegal businesses and traders.
Acting deputy city manager for Economic Development and Planning, Phillip Sithole, who was driving the programme, said the budget would ensure its sustainability, which included the appointment of consultants to support the implementation, 200 additional Metro Police and vehicles, employment of security personnel to do patrol duty and legal resources. He added that 10 patrol vans, eight motorcycles and four unmarked police vehicles with rapid response and repair CCTV surveillance facilities will be acquired. “We will also recruit 171 waste management workers, upgrade public and urban realms, construct improved trading stalls for informal trade, activate open spaces and ensure constant collection of garbage in hotspots.”
During the first week of the project, calls were logged about faulty services, which are now undergoing repairs. These include street lights, ablution facilities, parking meters, cameras and potholes.
Sithole said phase two included a plan to reclaim dysfunctional and derelict buildings as a way of minimising filth and disorder in the CBD. He said robust communication with property owners, urging them to take responsibility to maintain their buildings, will commence soon.
He added that the city will form a dedicated team to oversee the urban management of the CBD.
The supply chain management process for this is already under way, to ensure that operations start in October. AS RELENTLESS land invasion and evictions continued in some parts of the city, MEC for Human settlement Ravi Pillay has promised to deliver more houses, to stop the crisis. It was believed that the land invasion issue was sparked after Abahlali Basemjondolo’s interim court interdict, against ethekwini Municipality. The interdict prevented further demolition of the 241 illegal dwellings of listed applicants, provided it was verified. Pillay visited Mariannridge this week to address housing delivery issues and land invasion threats following days of unrest.
He said a housing development was in the pipeline, with the construction camp due to be set up tomorrow , and construction commencing next month. Pillay said the unrest was triggered by a land invasion that took place in the area, by people who were not from the ward. He said the situation aggravated residents from the ward, who retaliated with protest action. “The contractor will be on site as of next week. I can assure you that work has been done, a contractor has been appointed and a contract has been signed. The contractor is ready to hit the ground running,” he told the community. Pillay said the housing project would be carried out in two phases, with the construction of 350 units in phase one on immediate available land, and 150 units in Phase two, which will be built at a later stage, due to