Melville’s R25m upgrades nearing finalisation
Concerns were raised with officials about the quality of the work carried out - JDA provides feedback.
Residents of Melville will be aware of ongoing work in the suburb by the city under the Melville Activity Street Project.
The R25m project is edging closer to finishing despite a few line items running behind schedule.
Some have however raised concerns about the quality of the work being carried out along Main Road between Kingsway and Sixth Avenues.
The work is being carried out by the Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) who say the construction phase of the work has now been mostly completed.
“The upgrades commenced at the end of 2022 and were scheduled to be completed by October 2023. However, the project was delayed due to a four-week stoppage,” said the department in a statement.
“The major work on the project has been completed. The project is currently still under construction and with snagging (problems) of items needing more attention, as in the images sent for comment.”
The project is set to reach practical completion next month with final completion following after the final snag list is created.
“Once practical completion is reached, the contractor will have 90 days to fix or remedy any snags and work. Before the final completion certificate is issued, between October and January 2024, the contractor will be liable to fix and correct the work that is not up to the required standard.”
“The JDA remains committed to the transformation of the Melville precinct. The quality of work is being inspected weekly and snags or repairs are being implemented while construction is taking place.”
The JDA say they will then do a follow-up themselves for quality checks and any outstanding issues will be rectified before handing over the road and pavements back to the Johannesburg Roads Agency.
When asked about a complaint that the street was now grey and gloomy, the JDA said, “As far as the colour selection of the pavement- goes, we, stakeholders, and the community met several times between 2020 and the commencement of the project at the end of 2022. The concept designs and material palettes were presented to the community for comments. The rationale is that the suburb is trendy and colourful. The grey paving is a way to allow the buildings to stand out without colour clashing.”
The final look and feel resulting from this upgrade will include beautifying elements like landscaping and other elements.
These photos were taken along Main Road to illustrate some of the concerns raised and provide JDA’s responses.
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