Oh dear, when I take my dogs for a walk every morning before I go to work, I am more and more distressed and appalled by the filth in the suburb. No matter where we walk, all we see is garbage, litter, piles of rotting rubbish – it’s so ugly.
Many unemployed men station themselves near the bottom of Louis Road, just off Louis Botha Avenue, hoping for an honest day’s work and enough money to buy themselves and their families at least one good meal. One can understand when they resort to crime – sheer desperation and the need for food.
Would it not be possible to employ them to clean the streets, the parks, Paterson Park (I’m too afraid to take my dogs there again because they sniff out so much rotten food and as dogs will, love to eat it and then get sick!), the sidewalk in front of the police station, Grant Avenue, the side roads? Norwood itself is not that big, and a once-a-week clean-up would make such a difference.
The once-a year clean-up of the park opposite the garage which has been organised by Brett and Nora is a great help, but I walked there this morning and the litter is now starting to pile up again. Like all Norwood residents, I despair.
I was recently in downtown Johannesburg near Main and Simmonds streets – it was spotless! Parkhurst streets are spotless. Melville, where my daughter lives, is not spotless but also not nearly as dirty as Norwood – and Norwood could be such a lovely suburb if it were cleaner.
I hope something can be done!
