After months of relative calm at Koedoe Park, residents of Wierdapark say the situation has once again deteriorated, highlighting earlier concerns about drug-related activity, squatting, public indecency, and safety risks around the park and nearby primary school.

This follows a period earlier this year when community efforts and police operations brought noticeable improvements, raising hopes that the park could finally be restored for recreational use.

Police spokesperson Captain Johan van Dyk said while the situation had improved compared to the peak of criminal activity earlier this year, law enforcement remained active in the area.

“Drug-related activities in and around Koedoe Park have subsided. Members are strategically deployed to monitor the park,” he said.

He noted that although police still received information about drug dealers from time to time, the intelligence was followed up and dealt with accordingly.

“Weekly operations with the TMPD are underway to address squatters, and no new structures have been identified.”

According to him, police would continue responding to community concerns and maintaining visibility.

Copwatch Security general manager Cassie van Wyngaardt said private security patrols were also playing a significant role in trying to stabilise the area.

He explained that they had two dedicated vehicles patrolling the neighbourhood and assisting both clients and community members where needed.

“We are aware of ongoing problems linked to the park and that there are indeed drug and criminal activities occurring there,” he said.

He added that their teams work closely with the CPF and other security companies to eliminate as much criminal activity as possible.

Wierda Park Residents’ Association (WPRA) chairperson Liza Vorster said the park had now returned to the same troubling state it was in earlier this year, despite community efforts and previous interventions.

“The situation is back to what it was earlier in the year, and cars are once again entering the park and remaining there for hours while people engage in suspicious activities.”

She said that residents were observing public drinking, suspected drug exchanges, suspected vagrancy, and public indecency occurring openly at the fence bordering the nearby primary school.

Despite police confirming that no new structures had been built in the park, Vorster added that squatters had started returning, with residents allegedly identifying at least two new structures.

“One of the homeless individuals was even using the municipal play equipment to hang daily laundry. Fires are also being lit almost every morning and evening for cooking.”

Vorster said the association faced daily challenges in trying to keep the park clean and safe.

She described a growing stench caused by open urination and said residents regularly found human waste, empty bottles, and cans scattered around the park.

“Residents had briefly returned to the park earlier this year to play soccer after previous interventions, but that has now stopped again due to safety fears,” she added.

“Many of the homeless people move between Koedoe Park and the Wierda Park Shopping Centre and are regularly involved in illegal gambling and public drinking.”

Vorster said the most consistent intervention came from private security companies and volunteer groups such as Scorpion, Seek, FADT, Copwatch, Monitornet, AfriForum patrollers, CPF Sector 3 patrollers, and the ICE Community Network.

“These private security companies and all role players have limited authority and do not have the same mandate as law enforcement and authorities,” she said.

Vorster added that this placed an unfair burden on these groups, who were repeatedly threatened while trying to curb illegal activity.

She said the safety of residents and schoolchildren was being compromised daily.

“It is alarming to our community, as some of these kids are unexpectedly confronted with negative scenes,” she said.

Vorster urged authorities to take meaningful action to restore safety, saying the park was currently in the hands of individuals engaging in unlawful behaviour.

She stated that this had already affected property values and contributed to a broader socioeconomic decline in Wierdapark.

Ward 70 councillor Marika Kruger Muller said she was aware of the situation and explained that the presence of homeless people in the park formed part of a much wider homelessness issue across Centurion.

She said when people are removed from a location, many simply return because they have nowhere else to go.

“If people are removed from a site, they may become homeless and just move to another site or return after TMPD leaves,” she said.

Kruger Muller explained that some individuals preferred to stay in their familiar areas and did not want to be relocated.

She added that if the metro did not rehouse or relocate them, they would continue returning.

“On the continued drug-related concerns, I will keep engaging with police to request increased patrols, especially as the festive season approaches.”

Information from the metro also highlighted the challenges associated with homelessness in the area.

Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo previously told Rekord that squatters in the southern region (Region 4) were often reluctant to relocate because they wanted to remain close to economic opportunities.

“Some individuals seek more permanent housing solutions, such as houses, which involves their own set of processes.”

Mashigo confirmed that the southern region had no homeless shelters and that existing shelters were situated in the inner city of the central and western region (Region 3), which added to the ongoing difficulties.

This update comes after residents celebrated progress earlier this year in March, when community structures and law enforcement began clearing overgrown vegetation, conducting operations, and reclaiming the park.

At the time, arrests were made, and residents briefly returned to enjoy recreational activities.

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