Residents concerned about proposed Hilldene Road worship centre

Residents in Hilldene Road in Hillcrest are very concerned about the rezoning of 5, 7 and 9 Hilldene Road from a special residential property to a worship zone.

As one of the residents explained, Hilldene Road is a small, quiet neighbour-orientated cul de sac where the residents watch out for one another and security is maintained by a patrolman on a bicycle, who is familiar with all the residents.

The quiet country road is also used by children to walk to school, joggers, dog walkers and bicycle riders.

The primary uses for the three-acre rezoned property have been identified as a conservation area with a dwelling house, a place of public assembly and a place of public worship, which will consist of a hall being built to accommodate 575 people, a restaurant and shop.

Town planner, Keith Hardie, explained that the restaurant and shop will comprise a tearoom and religious bookshop.

The Rada Soami Satsang (RSSB) South Africa group, which is the buyer, will also apply for special consent for accommodation facilities for staff, a reform school, cemetery, crematorium, créche, museum, library and educational establishment.

There are, however, discrepancies within the plans and written application, which are worrying the neighbours. The plans allow for 200 parking bays, but the written application mentions 200 to 400.

Problems that residents can foresee are traffic congestion, if 400 cars are going to be utilising the narrow road, a service entrance, which is proposed opposite a resident’s private property driveway, the noise factor of the worshippers if the facility allows for indoor and outdoor worship, security concerns, sewage disposal problems and if the special consent applications are approved.

The RSSB group is a registered non- profit association which also operates under the name, Science of the Soul Study Centre. RSSB is a non-denominational international philosophical organisation based on the spiritual teachings of all religions, and dedicated to a process of inner development under the guidance of a spiritual teacher. RSSB was established in India in 1891 and gradually began spreading to other countries.

Robert Hurwitz, spokesman for the RSSB, said, “We are not owners of the property so it would be inappropriate to have any discussion at this stage.”

A public meeting to address residents’ concerns is scheduled to take place within the next couple of weeks, but no information on a date or time has been made known yet.