Poor maintenance of Fairmount’s Sport Grounds affects neighbours
FAIRMOUNT – Illegal occupants face evictions.
Following a series of complaints from the residents residing nearby the dilapidated Fairmount sports grounds, the City of Johannesburg has finally acknowledged that the situation there is of great concern.
Through its entity Johannesburg Property Company (JPC), the owners of the property, the City said issues such as the lack of grass cutting and maintenance, and illegal occupation of the grounds were worrisome.
Residents in the area have been complaining about the state of decay at the facility claiming that it affected their lifestyles and even devalued their properties.
They claimed that the site had become a den for criminals, a host for big rats and the uncut grass made the entire suburb unsightly.
Vinothan Manikam, the spokesperson for JPC, in her response to questions sent to her by North Eastern Tribune, said they aware of all these issues raised by the residents and were dealing with them.
On the issue of illegal occupation which most residents complained about, Manikam said JPC had not granted permission to the occupants to utilise the facility.
“JPC appointed attorneys last September to issue them with notices of eviction and even though they were served, they still ignored the notices,” said Manikam.
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“The next step is for JPC, through the attorneys, to apply for an eviction order from the court so that the eviction of the occupants can be affected.”
As for the issue of the uncut grass and other lack of service delivery at the grounds, the spokesperson blamed internal processes for the delays.
She said JPC must utilise internal department services in the first instance and if it could not, it would request for an external service provider to carry out the work.
“This caused the delays,” she claimed.
Manikam said they were looking at putting the facility out for public tender so that it could be used for community purposes.
Details: Johannesburg Property Company 010 219 9000.
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