Teamwork makes the dream work
Florida Block Watch is continuing on their quest to keep Florida safe and clean for residents.
Members of the Florida Block Watch (FBW) descended on the heavily overgrown and polluted walkway between Lelie and Orchid Street in Florida Park on Saturday, July 20, whacking weeds and making the notorious walkway safe for pedestrians.
According to FBW chairperson John Kirsten, the walkway has become wildly overgrown which has resulted in people illegally dumping everything from building to garden rubble.
“When open areas are unmaintained and become overgrown, people, instead of doing their part to clean it, tend to add to the mess.
“Part of our mandate as the FBW is to keep the areas under our jurisdiction clean and safe.”
For this project, Kirsten called in the help of some FBW volunteers, Florida South Resident’s Association chairperson Rodney Churchyard and students from the Construction Education and Training Authority, who, with the help of some brush cutters, a lawnmower, and other tools, made short work of the heavily overgrown walkway.
At the time of the Roodepoort Record’s visit, the cleaning team was just rounding off their effort, having accumulated a large heap of rubble from the walkway.
“It is hard to believe it’s the same space we came into early this morning,” says Kirsten, who adds that among the challenges encountered on the day, the team uncovered a pretty serious rat infestation.
“We call on residents to jump in and lend a hand when you see our teams working in your area. Except for one or two residents, we end up always seeing the same faces at these cleanups.
“It would be nice to see our residents take ownership of their neighbourhoods by becoming involved in the maintenance that is carried out.”
Kirsten has extended his thanks to FBW member Bertie Stevens, who is the main driver of cleanup campaigns for FBW.
Stevens, who is semi-retired, says he, like most other residents, became tired of seeing his local neighbourhood deteriorate.
“It started with me walking my dogs and picking up papers along the way,” he says. “Before long I roped in the FBW to help, and now this is how we spend most of our weekends.”
