Emmarentia Residents Association plans to adopt Botanical Gardens Spruit Park

The Emmarentia Residents Association (ERA) plans to adopt a section of land at the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens.

Read more: ERA meeting focused on park revitalization

Executive committee member Saber Manjoo said the area, which is called Botanical Gardens Spruit Park, was important to them to adopt as way to ensure it remains clean and safe for community use.

This unfenced section covers about 22ha and is situated below the Emmarentia Dam and the fenced part of the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens. The park also includes the convergence of two local streams: the Westdene and Montgomery Spruits.

The process of adoption has now been going on for almost a year, including several months of lengthy community meetings and stakeholder sessions to gather information and prepare a proposal. Along with the many residents assisting with the project, local organisations came forward such as: Dabulamanzi Canoe Club, 1st Greenside Scout Troop, SCP Security, Beagle Watch, CAP Security, and Let’s Work.

Also read: What kind of pollution flows through the Westdene Spruit?

In the association’s application to adopt the park, they cited several key problems the park faces: excessive growth of vegetation, in particular, alien invasive species (AIS), which they say give way to illegal activity, dumping and poor hygiene, with portions of the spruit clogged up with litter and waste byproducts from dumpers, playground facilities in a state of disrepair, inefficient use of the park by runners and cyclists due to a lack of demarcation, erosion in specific areas, and broken or damaged infrastructure.

For these issues they proposed to initiate a maintenance plan that supplements Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo (JCPZ) and City Power’s current grass cutting and occasional trimming of trees. The association’s efforts would address, especially, AIS and natural vegetation overgrowth, and remove any litter that is dumped. They also want to create pathways in the park to improve the efficiency of activities like running, walking, and cycling, and lessen erosion. Installing solar lighting along selected pathways while making sure this does not negatively affect wildlife movements, and installing an adult gym and refurbishing the children’s playground are also on the list of plans.

Manjoo explained that, so far, they have held a few spruit cleanups. On occasion they held a community cleanup day where over 50 people came to the park to clear out rubbish and overgrowth.

The association sees this park adoption as way to add value to the area and, of course, to their properties. Ultimately, however, Manjoo said they want the park to be open, free, clean, safe, and good looking for all.

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