Residents weed out problem areas

Ms Belinda Brooks, from Kensington, said the grass is cut and the flower beds maintained in the area close to the offices of the park’s management.

“But when you go to the lake side, it is like you are in a different park. Around the lake, towards the bowling club’s side, the grass is as tall as I am. This is a safety hazard. Criminals hide in the grass while they are picking their victims. That is where I was attacked previously,” she said.

“There are also trenches which were dug six years ago. The trenches are still open with broken pipes lying next to them. The no fishing signs have long since been stolen or removed. There is someone who does not do his or her job here,” said Ms Brooks.

She added that the she has spoken to the management about her concerns but nothing has ever happened.

“They just brush you off. You can see the situation is getting worse. I was surprised in recent past weeks when I saw what looked like a dagga plant in one of the flower beds next to the tennis court. This says one of two things. There is no monitoring here, or the management does not care about what is done in the park,” said Ms Brooks.

Another frequent visitor to the park, Mr John Wilkinson, said he has seen the park deteriorate. He tried to use the opportunity to get a job in the park for himself.

“I asked the person in charge if I could remove the weeds as I thought they were understaffed. The woman I spoke to said they were not understaffed. I am surprised to see that even after that talk, there is no improvement. Where they cut the grass, it is not picked up. We still have the grass, which was cut last week, lying around. It has not been picked up,” said Mr Wilkinson.

He said the flowerbed could be put to better use.

“Plant food like vegetables so that people can get something to sustain them. I am not saying we should plant vegetables alone, but some people could benefit from it,” he said.

He added that there is work to be done in the park but no one is doing it.

“There is no need to create a job here. We need someone to do the work. Even the vagrants who come to the park can see that there is work to be done,” he said.

Another resident and regular visitor to the park, Mr Alberto da Mota, said the overgrown vegetation on the north of the lake is encouraging crime.

“Most of the attacks occur on the north side of the lake, where the tall reeds make for a perfect hiding place. The reeds should be cut down. The paving is so overgrown that in some places you cannot find the pathway,” said Mr Da Mota.

The ward 116 councillor, Clr Carlos de Rocha, said he will investigate the matter.

“We need to remember that we have experienced lots of rain in the past weeks. But based on what I have seen since I came back three days ago, it appear City Parks has shut down and is not working at all. I will investigate and see what can be done,” said Clr Da Rocha.

An inquiry was sent to Ms Jenny Moodley from Johannesburg Parks on Wednesday, February 25.

Comment was requested by Thursday, February 26 at 9am.

At the time of going to print, no comment had been received.