Resident considers leaving Cyrildene

A once proud Cyrildene resident is now considering moving out because she believes the suburb is deteriorating.

Mrs Val Auckland recently questioned where residents’ rates are being spent, considering that Cyrildene is “going downhill”.

“What happened to our beautiful suburb? We have a ghetto on our doorstep. Drive around the area and you will see what were once lovely family homes are now turning into slums with raised walls, not plastered or painted, with ugly palisade and electrical fencing. Why? What are these people who have invaded our area hiding? I am sure the walls going up should never have been allowed. Rubbish is left on street corners. The grass is so overgrown that you cannot see the roads. There are potholes in most of the roads.

“I have spent another December holiday listening to the fireworks going off. It is like living in a war zone. My dogs were demented with the unearthly bangs that bounced off the ridge constantly,” she said.

Mrs Auckland added that there was no consideration for other Cyrildene residents throughout the holiday period. Police visits made no difference as once out of sight, people who were selling fireworks continued demonstrating what was for sale. Last week, Constable Mpho Mashakane, the Cleveland SAPS communications officer, said no complaints were received about fireworks in Cyrildene. However, there was high visibility and patrols were conducted in Cyrildene over the festive season.

Ms Auckland urged the councillor for the area, Clr Alison van der Molen, to stop the neglect and deterioration of the suburb. She also urged residents to take back what they are paying for.

“The area is going one-way and that is downhill. I used to be proud of where I lived, now I say unfortunately I live in Cyrildene.

The past few years has seen conflict between long-standing Cyrildene and the fast-growing Chinese population in the suburb. Some concerns from residents who have been living in the suburb for years include crime, overcrowding, illegal parking, building, businesses and dumping. They believe their constant pleading with council is either falling on deaf ears, that corruption is involved or that council does not have the capability to address the problems.

Numerous public meetings were held last year between residents and council officials. Member of the mayoral committee (MMC) for development planning and urban management, Clr Roslynn Greeff, met with community members a year ago to listen to their concerns. She acknowledged illegal activities in Cyrildene were not being addressed swiftly. She committed herself to addressing the lack of feedback by officials in her department to residents who complained about illegal activities. She stated that processes used by the department were being revised and people who disregard the bylaws would face harsher punishments. Residents decided that the implementation of a precinct plan was the way to go, but after listening to how council wanted to implement the plan, they backtracked.

They believed council was trying to legalise illegal activities following statements made by officials that accommodation catering for a number of people is needed.

Bylaw contraventions are also impacting on the SAPS.

Last week Const Mashakane said bad buildings should be addressed by council to improve the suburb and, at the same time, allow the SAPS to better address problems in Cyrildene. “Illegal buildings are a problem. Most of the time, these buildings are occupied by criminals,” she said. She added that Derrick Avenue is difficult to drive through because of bad parking.

The EXPRESS forwarded an enquiry to Clr Van der Molen and the City of Johannesburg. At the time of going to print, no comment had been received.