No beating about the bush for Community Services
A short drive through each suburb around town revealed crews of workers cutting centre islands and sidewalks, as well as play parks and open fields. In almost every suburb, the grass was literally flying.
Concerns have been raised regarding overgrown grass in town, in a statement by Democratic Alliance Member of Provincial Parliament, Imran Keeka, on January 13.
“The Democratic Alliance is alarmed that the Department of Community Services seems still to be on the kip, and not over their holiday. Grass throughout town is tall, hazardous and terribly unsightly,” read the statement.
Newcastle Mayor, Afzul Rehman, acknowledged the issue, saying; “Grass cutting is always a challenge during this time of the year. Personally, I see an improvement in the cutting, but we are not where we should be. The holiday period also sees our team taking a break, part of which is our effort to curb the R 21-million overtime bill of the municipality. All said, I am told that within the next week we will have all areas cut and neat and be back on schedule. Special focus during this time is areas around schools opening on Wednesday (January 21).”
A short drive through each suburb around town revealed crews of workers cutting centre islands and sidewalks, as well as play parks and open fields. In almost every suburb, the grass was literally flying.
Workers were specifically seen in Paradise on Friday last week, concentrating on sections around the river. Overall, this was in line with the grass-cutting schedule issued by the Director of Parks, Cemeteries and Recreation, Vish Govender.
The statement continues; “Budgetary considerations must also be considered in both maintaining and/or procuring more equipment to ensure efficient services in town.”
Mr Govender said there was no shortage of manpower or equipment in the community services department.
Approximately 90 workers are brought in over the summer season to wield brush cutters and maneuver mowers. 17 tractors, 40 brush cutters, 12 large mowers and 20 smaller mowers form a formidable arsenal of machinery to battle the tide of constantly growing grass.
“Our budgets and equipment are sufficient as we have done intensive capitalisation of the unit in the recent years,” remarked Cllr Rehman.
While maintenance of machines is a costly affair, Mr Govender said the department had taken initiative to cut costs. “We have our own fully functioning workshop where we repair and maintain our equipment. We save council easily R500 000 a year just by doing maintenance ourselves.”
Mr Govender explained the processes followed by the department, the budget and timetable in a bid to reveal to the public the extent of the 300 000 square metre task his department
faced.
The crux of the matter is maintenance of grass around Newcastle is no walk in the park.
“The thing is, we have a system. Our schedule predetermines where we start cutting in each zone and where we stop. If we don’t stick to the system, there would be chaos,” he said. “For purposes of efficiency, we divided Newcastle into three zones. Zone 1 covers areas such as Fairleigh, Fernwood, Lennoxton and Paradise. Zone 2 being Amiel Park, Aviary Hill, Schuinshoogte, Pioneer Park and so on. Zone 3 includes Barry Hertzog Park, upper and lower Ncandu Park and surrounding areas,” explained Mr Govender.
“Our schedule also allows for unforeseen circumstances such as excessive rain, machinery becomes a hazard and cannot be operated during rain,” he continued. “Another factor is excessive heat; it takes workers longer to complete certain areas as they are entitled to more frequent breaks during hot weather.”
He also referred to the challenges and obstacles caused by illegal dumping.
Illegal dumping and fast growing grass slow down the grass cutting process as clean-up crews have to be sent first to ensure the area is safe to be cut.
This is to ensure rubble does not damage expensive machinery.
Another problem outlined was that some residents were privately coaxing municipal tractor drivers to cut grass on their private properties.
“What people don’t understand is these drivers could lose their jobs for this quick buck, the schedule becomes delayed and ultimately it is illegal,” he concluded.
The Department of Parks, Cemeteries and Recreation appeals for patience from the community as teams across Newcastle work to bring the grass cutting back on schedule.
