Close to home
ACOMMERCIAL centre for Ezibeleni – what do you think? Today’s front page story in The Rep about the proposed R50-million commercial centre for the vast residential area which lies adjacent to Queendustria should spark some debate among locals.
The proposal has been in the news on and off over the past few years and has sparked hopes of a financial injection into the Ezibeleni area which is in dire need of development and growth.
Such a development, coupled with plans on local government level to make Queenstown a Special Economic Zone, could help to encourage the financial sustainability of the area and to ensure job creation.
The benefits of a commercial centre would be manifold and of particular benefit to those who call Ezibeleni home.
Doctors’ rooms and space for one or more legal practices would bring services closer to home while a trip to town to buy some basic groceries will no longer be necessary, with a proposed large retailer in the neighbourhood. Pensioners and other residents will be able to make use of banking facilities on their doorstep.
Add to that the plans for a large fuel depot on site at the centre, government offices clustered in the centre and a selection of smaller commercial stores providing a variety of goods and services, and the case for a centre is made even stronger.
Less money spent on transport to and from Queenstown will mean more spent in Ezibeleni, hopefully to the benefit of those who live there. Apart from convenience, it should uplift the general look of the area and positively influence the property market. It could help to further the establishment of Ezibeleni as a stand-alone entity which, although still part of the greater Queenstown, would be able to provide for the needs of its residents in a more extended way than previously. Job creation will also benefit – and it could possibly awaken the entrepreneurial spirit of an area which has, in the past, produced a wealth of talent in various sectors, including business.
It would be good to know what the residents of Ezibeleni think about the proposed development and whether they perceive any drawbacks associated with the plans. In general, however, it is difficult to imagine that a commercial centre will not be beneficial to both Ezibeleni and the broader Lukhanji area.