Ward 56 Councillor responds to questions about problematic vacant stand in Rosettenville
This comes after residents complained about a vacant stand at Bouquet Street in Rosettenville which has become a rubbish dump and home to drug users and thugs.
IN the past week COURIER ran a story headlined ‘Disused stand posing a danger to Rosettenville residents‘.
This comes after residents complained about a vacant stand at Bouquet Street in Rosettenville which has become a rubbish dump and home to drug users and thugs.
Residents demanded an answer from the ward councillor who wasn’t available when COURIER contacted him at the time.
Ward 56 councillor Michael Crichton responded saying he is concerned and disappointed with the way things are in his ward regarding vacant stands.
Crichton said this stand in question is one of the 15 vacant stands which is causing unnecessary problems.
“The majority of these stands are in a neglected state largely due to the fact that the majority of them burnt down at some point and the owners seemingly don’t have the funds or resources to fix their stands, and as a result the stand remains empty, usually with a pile of rubble on it,” said Crichton.
He claimed these stands only attract people who want to smoke illegal substances and who want to dump rubbish waste. People passing by tend to use the stands as public toilets and conduct their criminal activities.
“These stands get inspected regularly by building control, EMS, Environmental Health, the Urban Inspectors and are under investigations by Gen Shadrack Sibiya’s Group Forensic and Investigation Service (GFIS) Unit as some of these properties can be deemed to be hijacked,” he added.
The councillor stated to the COURIER that most of the City’s entities are serving the stands with notices and the owners ignore them. Sometimes these owners say they will fix the stands and end up not fixing them.
“In light of this, these departments are now engaging with the City’s legal department about taking some of these stand owners to court. The newly-adopted problematic property by-law should also assist the city with dealing with these problematic stands,” he concluded.
ALSO READ:
Disused stand posing danger to Rosettenville residents
For free daily local news in the south, visit our sister newspapers Alberton Record, Comaro Chronicle, Southern Courier and Get it Joburg South Magazine.
Remember to visit our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. You can also email our offices on cvdwalt@caxton.co.za, juliem@caxton.co.za or luckyt@caxton.co.za
Get regular news updates sent directly to your inbox: Newsletter-Signup
