Mason Park abandoned

AS THE end of the month draws nearer there are many things to look forward to. For some this means we are closer to pay day, whilst others may be glad to having survived the torture that comes with the so called “month of love” and even moreso that it is now over for yet another year but for those who were looking forward to the launch of the official opening of Mason Park a very unpleasant surprise awaits.

The Vryheid Revitalisation Programme was officially launched in August last year with the promise that locals would witness many changes in the appearance of the town by the end of February 2014.

The upgrading of Mason Park and the expansion as well as improvement of the informal trade spaces and facilities were all part of this project which would give the town a face-lift to the value of R 18.9 million.

In an attempt to make things move along faster, the municipality hired three contractors to tackle the project.

The contractors then started working on the park soon after the launch of the project but closed down during the festive season, like local businesses and companies in town. The problem though seems to have arisen at the beginning of the year as there seems to have been less activity at this construction site.

According to some of the informal traders, a few workers came back and started cleaning up as the park was experiencing a huge overgrowth of grass and weeds (this seems to still be the current state of the park).

“The place is almost always deserted except for the odd few municipal workers who show up everyday either cleaning up or hiding away from the sun under the trees,” said one woman who owns a stall near the park.

It seems as though community members are going to have to wait a little longer to see this wonderful transformation that was going to make Mason Park as well as the informal trading areas a sight for sore eyes.