Edleen residents erect fence of protection

EDLEEN residents have decided to take matters into their own hands by building themselves a fence to protect themselves from crime.

The community members, who are a part of the Edleen Park Residents Association, started the initiative after the crime levels in the suburb shot up excessively.

The turning point also came after the murder of Oom Martiens Bann, who died during an armed robbery and attempted hijacking on July 11 last year. The residents have dedicated the fence to Bann.

The committee at the time, John Wilson and Henri Sheffner, paid to have a pre-approval done through engineers and council. The pre-approval was given the green light for all proposed closures. However a full impact study needed to be conducted, and these alone cost R65 000.

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“We have paid this in full from collecting funds and the study is well under way and close to completion,” Wilson, chairman of the residents association, explained.

“We had been collecting money since October/November last year to raise funds to build ourselves fences to protect the neighbourhood from the increased violence in the area,” Avril Drew, committee member of the association, explained.

The fence, built at the end of Flamboyant and Klapper Avenue, has closed off the vlei area behind it to demarcate the area from the open space, which thieves use as a hiding spot after breaking into the homes.

The fence is the first of five that will be erected to close off other sections in the suburb.

The project was started on April 30 and completed this past Saturday, with volunteers working on weekends, and some people working extra hours in the evening during the week to paint the fence.

The project also helped create jobs on the public holiday on May 2 when the residents hired 10 unemployed men to help with the digging for the fencing, because some of the residents were away on the day.

Builders Warehouse also donated some paint, and the residents association would like to extend their gratitude to the company for its help.

“Through the start of this project, we’d also like to encourage other communities of other areas to stand up and do the same for themselves. They can call me if they need to ask any questions on how to start something like this for themselves as well,” Wilson said.

The association is also hoping that other Edleen residents will be inspired to join them in the venture to secure their community, either by donating money to the project or their time by volunteering.

Monetary funds are especially needed because there are residents who are unable to donate cash, such as pensioners and those who are unemployed.

For any donations or advice, contact John Wilson on 082-329-8920.