Edenvale business faces property damage as Eastleigh Spruit erodes
“I don’t think it is fair for us as a business to pay the full amount to have the spruit stabilised."
A long-standing Edenvale business has appealed to the City of Ekurhuleni (CoE) to take action and repair a section of the Eastleigh Spruit before continued erosion causes further damage to the business’s property.
Representatives from Steelcore Heavy Equipment recently met with Bedfordview and Edenvale News to raise concerns about the CoE’s maintenance and upkeep of the Eastleigh Spruit.
The company, located along Andrew Pretorius Road adjacent to the Eastleigh Spruit, believes the municipality’s lack of maintenance of the spruit and its riverbanks has contributed to structural damage on the property. Large cracks have formed as sections of the property continue to collapse towards the spruit.
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Some of the cracks in the factory are reportedly large enough for a person to fit their hand into.
Avril Naidoo from the company’s sales and finance division explained that new owners took control of the business in June and one of the requirements for the bank loan was to ensure that the Eastleigh Spruit’s banks were stabilised.
She said after getting an assessment, which cost the company R40 000 just to get done, Steelcore was given a quote of R665 000 to rehabilitate and stabilise the neighbouring section of the spruit.
She said if the company did not get this done by the end of August, it would have to pay penalties to the bank.
Naidoo explained that the business, which has been in Edenvale since 1970, said its location is ideal.
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“There are not many business premises suited for this line of manufacturing of metal components.
“Additionally, we are close to the major highways, the airport and all our major suppliers.”
Naidoo explained that initially, when concerns were raised, representatives and officials from the municipality visited the property.
“Municipal officials came out, conducted inspections and compiled reports.
“It is not like the municipality has ignored our request, but I believe that certain people in the various departments’ hands are tied while there are others who make the decisions regarding the physical work that needs to be done,” said Naidoo.
Factory manager Paulos Dlamini explained that the company’s engagements with the municipality began in 2024.
He said the concerns were brought to the attention of the Water and Sanitation Department after the business noticed that infrastructure linked to a nearby sewer line had become exposed due to erosion.
Dlamini said after speaking to one of the head officials at the Water and Sanitation Department, who came to assess the matter, the company was referred to the Roads and Stormwater Department.
He said a meeting between Steelcore, the municipality and one of the neighbouring businesses was arranged.
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“The department officials told us and our neighbouring business they would look at solutions, but then everything went quiet up until our loan application was approved.”
Following this, Dlamini met with the new chief engineer at the Roads and Stormwater Department and explained the situation to her.
“When the chief engineer returned with feedback in May, she told us that the department is busy with the design, which was 95 per cent complete.”
He said no information regarding the design was shared with Steelcore.
Dlamini said in June the chief engineer informed him that with the arrival of the new budget at the start of July there may be a setback on the project as funds are allocated or prioritised elsewhere or to other projects.
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“I don’t think it is fair for us as a business to pay the full amount to have the spruit stabilised. We are prepared to meet them somewhere, but we are not prepared to foot the bill,” said Naidoo.
A request for comment was sent to the CoE, seeking information on the matter, including what solutions it has planned to address the business’s concerns and how it intends to stabilise the Eastleigh Spruit.
The CoE was asked to respond by August 14 at 15:00. However, at the time of going to print, no comment had been received.
