Park Hill residents want City to ‘walk the walk’
Residents are not happy with the poor workmanship and say that work stopped about three weeks ago. The municipality, however, says that the project is still not complete and that heavy rain has caused a delay.
ORANGE Grove residents in Park Hill have expressed their disapproval of the newly built sidewalks on the street.
Although residents welcomed the new sidewalks, they are unhappy with the poor workmanship and say that the re-tarring of the sidewalks is not entirely complete.
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Speaking on behalf of Orange Grove residents, Eustacia Kinloch said several homeowners had complained on the area’s WhatsApp group which she is an administrator of.
“The project cost R1.6 million which came from the critical infrastructure funding (CIP) budget. Councillor Shontel de Boer was happy to assist and get the ball rolling, and residents were happy to finally have proper sidewalks, but it’s clear that the job was not done properly,” she said.
The project’s inception stemmed from residents’ concerns over sidewalk damage due to fibre installations and exacerbated by the damage during the April 2022 floods. Work commenced towards the latter part of 2022, experiencing prolonged halts, causing inconvenience to residents through the 2023 festive season with uplifted sidewalks and heaps of rubble on the verge which causes pedestrians to endanger their lives by walking on the road and creates an unsightly street.
“The asphalt application appears excessively thin, and the contractor has left a huge hole on the sidewalk where the fibre optic junction is located. At the top of the road, a small section has been left un-tarred and should have been completed as part of the project. After a heavy rain or a few occasions of constant rain, we are certain that the tar will corrode,” she said.
Kinloch reiterated that the sidewalk upgrade was meant to neaten up the area and enhance the appearance of the road, but it is now an eyesore with its untidy workmanship. It is clear that there is a lack of quality control.
“The project appears unfinished, however, residents were informed that it was completed about three weeks ago. We advocate for proper workmanship – thicker tar laid on the sidewalk, and the hole near the fibre junction should be edged as the tar and backfill are already crumbling. There are also two retaining walls that need completion. The final touch is not there. Between the road and the curb stone, the concrete work is extremely untidy. The current standard of workmanship suggests incompetence on the part of the contractor or subcontractor,” she noted.
According to eThekwini Municipality’s spokesperson Gugu Sisilana, the project is not complete.
“The contractor faced disruptions, such as the January floods and subsequent heavy rainfall, over the past few weeks which affected the progress of the project. A list of outstanding snags was issued to the contractor by the municipality to remediate before any completion certificate is issued. This snag list already identified by the municipality duplicates many of the complaints received. The payment for works has also not been processed until the snags are attended to by the contractor. The contractor has been notified to repair the identified snagged items and is currently mobilising resources to attend to the snags,” she said.
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