Fourways Gardens adopts a park
Fourways Gardens and Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo team up with Ward 94 councillor David Foley to turn the undeveloped open space into a developed park.
Fourways Gardens Residential Estate and Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo teamed up with Ward 94 councillor David Foley to adopt a park. With over two years of back and forth, City Parks finally granted the Fourways Gardens permission to adopt the Witkoppen Park extension on Uranium Road, off William Nicol Drive.
The partnership hopes to turn the undeveloped open space into a developed park over a period of three to five years, which will start off with a ClearVu fence being erected within the next month.
According to Joseph Ndou of Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo, the intention is to turn the space into a flexi park which should benefit the residents. “We are so happy about this partnership, which will promote social cohesion, and healthy living, and increase value in the community. When you have an enclosed park or access-controlled park, it creates a sense of safety in the neighbourhood while taking control of our spaces.
“We do not want our open spaces to be taken over by squatters, which is the main purpose of this partnership. The memorandum of understanding that has been signed states that Fourways Gardens is adopting the park, and this will now afford us the opportunity to dedicate the resources that were meant for this place in other less developed areas.”
Estate manager Charlene Marlin said they realised the park is a cause of concern, “We got hold of our ward councillor who put us in contact with City Parks and we explained our goal to uplift the community by providing a clean and safe space for the entire community to make use of.
“It is very important for us to partner with our local government and make a better community. We will be enhancing the environment and upgrading the landscape by adding more trees and placing a permanent staff member to look after the area. We hope to re-establish some wildlife and natural birdlife while tackling the pollution that is happening in that area.”
Ward 94 councillor David Foley said, “The key factors here are peace of mind and safety. That open piece of land will be turned into something beautiful and maintained on a regular basis. The stream will be cleaned of litter, alien vegetation will be removed, and new life breathed into the area by planting additional trees. The bird life and small animals will now start to thrive in a more protected area. The adoption of the green area and making it a developed park is a win-win for City Parks and the Fourways Gardens plus the surrounding residents, turning the Witkoppen area into a large conservancy.”
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David Foley and City Parks partner to create an improved park in Beverley, Ward 94
