Glenwood votes yes for Pigeon Valley UIP
Pigeon Valley UIP co-founder Nick Alcock says the UIP have already been working with community volunteers and collaborating with the city and Expanded Public Works Programme to improve the public spaces to clean and green the neighbourhood of Glenwood.
AFTER months of working to get the Pigeon Valley Urban Improvement Precinct (PVUIP) established by the PVUIP founders and residents, the Council approved the establishment of the Special Rated Area (SRA) on Tuesday, February 28. An SRA refers to a specific geographical area approved by the City Council in terms of the Municipal Property Rates Act, Section 22 (Special Rates Area).
A co-founder of the PVUIP, Nick Alcock, said the beginning stages of the PVUIP started in 2021 when concerned residents Graham Muller and Jonathan Edkins were debating how to change the future of Glenwood regarding the crime and grime of the neighbourhood, as well as the plummeting property prices. “The year 2021 saw the initial discussions and engagement with community members and research with other established UIPs. Then in early 2022, it was decided to start the process for a Special Rated Area and the establishment of the Pigeon Valley UIP. The first meeting was held in March 2022, then another in August 2022. The community voting process was completed by the end of November 2022,” said Alcock.
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Alcock said the founding members and residents faced a few challenges during the course of the UIP’s establishment. “One of our main challenges was to ensure inclusive community communication to engage all residents, which was the most challenging task – we needed to ensure everyone was informed in order to explain the value of the UIP to the residents as an option for the revival of the precinct. This was achieved through numerous channels from public meetings, the street networks, the body corporate network, volunteer ambassadors, pop-up voting spaces, press releases, as well as street door-to-door meet-and-greet campaigns.”
Alcock says the UIP have already been working with community volunteers and collaborating with the city and Expanded Public Works Programme to improve the public spaces to clean and green the neighbourhood of Glenwood.
“Some of our short-term goals are: Planning of the collaborative security integration plan to address a faster response to incidents within the zone through AI cameras, monitoring and communication platforms; building relationships with existing municipal departments and City officials so we can collaborate with them to get things done and then communicate these plans well to the community,” said Alcock.
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“Our long-term goal is to get the PVUIP up and running as an entity with offices for administration and to store equipment, so that the key focus areas of cleaning, greening and security can get up and running,” he said. Alcock says that if you would like to be a proactive community citizen you can get involved by with the PVUIP. “Join the PVUIP WhatsApp group (083 777 5633) to get news updates and find out about community volunteer initiatives to support. Go to the website, www.pigeonvalleyuip.durban, to read blogs and communication updates,” concluded Alcock.
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