Action demanded for a cleaner and safer Mulbarton

A dead dassie was spotted by a Mulbarton resident, in the far right corner of Little Loop Park off True North Road on October 30.

“A dead animal that carries rabies and other rodent diseases would have to be removed urgently as it poses major health threats to children, the public and other animals, giving off an awful odour as it starts to decompose,” said the resident.

Additionally, there is a major broken glass problem and litter situation in the Dalbini Park which is located opposite Mulbarton Primary School.

“I have addressed the issue with the school board about the possibility that the learners might be contributing to the litter,” said the resident.

Mulbarton Primary School principal and SGB stated: “On behalf of Mulbarton Primary School, we would like to acknowledge that our learners do contribute to some of the litter in the park. However, we would also like to state that we do our best to educate our learners and we will continue to do so regarding the litter. We also communicate this to our parents via our school newsletters.

”We have even engaged the assistance of the transport drivers in the park, who park their vehicles there, to help with the traffic control and in keeping the park clean – we issue the drivers with bin bags regularly so that they also help pick up the litter.

“However, we must emphasise this point that we find that there are beer and alcohol bottles left in the park after late afternoon/evening/weekend drinking parties by outside adults. This cannot be attributed to our primary school children. There are also insufficient concrete bins in the park and the ones already there often overflow – more concrete bins are desperately needed as well as the regular emptying of these bins.”

Concerns raised

The school also raises concerns about the hazard caused to the school children by the broken, damaged or fallen concrete drain covers on the pavements around the school. It is reported that the school recently had one incident of a child falling over a broken slab and getting injured.

“These concrete covers need to be urgently replaced/repaired,” said the school board. Mulbarton Primary would also like to sincerely apologise to their surrounding neighbours and will continue to endeavour to play their part as best as possible.

The resident’s main concern is the broken glass scattered across the park which presents an immediate danger to the public and school children and makes it very hard for the neighbourhood residents to walk there, for kids to play there and for people to enjoy the park. This also poses a danger to animals and makes it rather impossible for dogs to exercise.

“The sign in the park has been spray-painted over with ‘SOUTH PARK’ obscuring important safety information and adding to the already bad state and overall shoddy appearance of the park,” emphasised the concerned resident.
The community and councillor have offered to collectively address the constant litter problem to make the area healthier and safer.

Ward 23 Clr Tyrell Meyers expressed his efforts to address the issue, saying: “This issue was sent numerous times to City Parks and Pikitup to address. They acknowledge the email, but have failed to remove the dead dassie or broken glass and litter.

“I would appreciate it if City Parks and the community could look into this and do their best to keep the parks clean so that children, the public and pets can enjoy it safely,” said the Mulbarton resident.

On November 8, the dead dassie was still not removed and was in an advanced stage of decomposition. Another dead baby dassie was seen near the play area. The park remains filled with broken glass, litter and cough syrup bottles.