Community takes over neglected public amenity

A group of residents and local organisations have taken it upon themselves to rescue the neglected van Dyk Park’s Kobus du Rand Park lapa from invaders, while the metro is battling budget constraints.

The Boksburg parks depot is responsible for the upkeep of the property, which used to be rented by the community for functions.
Once an action-packed destination, the council-owned facility has for many years been left at the mercy of vandals and thieves, who reportedly invaded the lapa, damaged the plumbing system and turned the building into a night shelter for the homeless.

Despite the damage done to the property, a group of community members and FF Plus, AfriForum Boksburg, Van Dyk Park Community Patrolling Initiative (CPI) and the Ward 31 councillor have recently joined hands with the metro to claim back the public amenity.
As part of an ongoing project to safeguard and keep the property clean and safe, they recently held a clean-up where they cut the long grass and vegetation, cleaned the yard and interior of the building and replaced the broken door locks.

FF Plus’s councillor Denise Janse van Rensburg said after becoming aware of the plight of the lapa, her party decided to partner with the community and other local organisations to save the public amenity.

“As you can see, the property was in desperate need of this clean-up. We got permission from the department to keep the lapa clean and safe for the community. We know it’s the municipality’s responsibility to do that, but we understand that council is currently struggling with procurement processes and they do appreciate this initiative.

The area’s ward councillor, Simangele Sabe, also came on board as she got her hands dirty cleaning the facility.

“I fully understand the residents’ frustration about this property. This is a problem we have inherited from the previous administration, which left the facility unguarded. However, since I came in as the councillor for the area I have been in contact with the city’s real estate department asking them to fix what had been broken, and protect and keep the property in a good condition. They promised that this issue would get attention.”

Sabe vowed to continue putting pressure on the real estate department to carry out their mandate, and clean and safeguard the property. She also encourages residents to take this initiative very seriously.

“All I can say now is thank you to all those involved in the initiative. This is an initiative I fully support. As a community, we need to look after our environment to make sure that we live in a clean and healthy environment.”

Afriforum Boksburg’s deputy chairperson Gerald O’Kelly said they received complaints from concerned residents about the people who were taking over the facility and turning the area into a crime hotspot, causing those who live around the facility to sleep with one eye open as they remain very wary about what’s going on outside.

They, along with the other organisations, approached the metro for permission to rescue the facility and as soon as they got the go-ahead they sprung into action and started work on the project late last month.

“We were told that some people were vandalising the lapa, sleeping inside and using the facility as a hideout. We have, from now on going forward, decided to keep the lapa cleaned and locked and protect it against vandals. Out patrollers will also be patrolling the area a lot more just to make sure that no unauthorised people enter the facility. We also urge the community to become involved by becoming our eyes and ears, and let us know when they notice something illegal taking place here.”

Meanwhile, Francois Reyneke, AfriForum’s project leader, pointed out that their community outreach programme is not only focused on van Dyk Park.
“We aim to do projects across Boksburg and these projects will include clean-ups, fixing potholes, patrols and other initiatives.”

The Community Patrollers Initiative (CPI) members also participated in the clean-up as they felt that the invasion of the property impedes their mission to repel criminals out of the community.
“I stay just opposite the park and the state of the property invites illegal activities. We have to push the criminals out and take back our community,” said CPI’s Leon van Vollenhoven.

Metro responds
The City of Ekurhuleni acknowledged the fact that the lapa building had been neglected resulting in vandalism and theft, saying the facility has been left unguarded due to budget constraints.
The metro added that the future of the property will be determined in future and this will be based on need and costs.

When asked as to why the long grass and vegetation are not being cut, the metro spokesperson, Zweli Dlamini explained: “Grass-cutting maintenance is done during summer and when there is a function. Grass-cutting maintenance was not required during winter and there were no lapa bookings due to the vandalism. Unwanted vegetation in the paved areas is maintained with herbicide spraying. This could not be done, as we are waiting for the delivery of herbicides.”

The metro confirmed that AfriForum’s request for permission to assist with a clean-up on September 14 was granted and was supported by the metro.
Dlamini pointed out that the volunteers supplied locks to lock up the outside doors to prevent access to the building.

When asked if the city encourages and supports such initiatives aimed at protecting the city’s public infrastructure, Dlamini said: “Yes, such initiatives are supported because these are public amenities in the first place.
“The city is not aware that the community is conducting regular patrols. However, council provides regular patrols of the city’s public infrastructure through the EMPD.”

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