William Nicol Drive clean-up in full swing

The Florida Hills Residents Forum (FHRF) has embarked on its annual clean-up of William Nicol Drive, much to the delight of residents and the thousands of motorists and pedestrians who make use of this busy link between 14th Avenue, the N1, and Ontdekkers Road every day.

According to FHRF committee member Vincent Tudor Kok, this year’s operation is much lighter thanks to the hard work that went into the initial community clean-up last year.

“Thanks to last year’s massive campaign, where we filled nearly 500 refuse bags just along William Nicholl Drive, we mostly have to do maintenance work this year.

“While a lot of the overgrowth has returned, it is not nearly as hardy as it was, making for much easier going.”

Like last year, FHRF is making use of the services of the Toolbox Empowerment Hub to do the heavy lifting.

“They more than proved their worth last year,” says Vincent.

Andrew Holdsworth, who heads up the Toolbox team, says they’re always happy to help.

Also read: Toolbox revives local park

“We take pride in the work we do,” he says. “Our guys are motivated and excited to help the residents of Florida Hills in this initiative.”

The team took to William Nicol Drive on June 3, starting at Constantia Boulevard and working their way up to Ontdekkers Road.

At the time of the Roodepoort Record’s visit to the site on June 5, the difference was remarkable, with sidewalks cleared of overgrowth and litter, and filled refuse bags all along the road, ready for removal.

“We’re nearly there,” says Andrew. “Once we’ve finished to the end of William Nicol, we’ll move on to some additional spots the FHRF wants us to tackle within the residential area.”

He adds that the Toolbox team continues to work with various residents’ associations throughout the Roodepoort region and looks forward to expanding the initiative in new areas.