R3m project to revamp Scribante Haven a welcome relief

Senior citizens at the centre excited to see their centre finally undergoing a R3m facelift.

September 4, 2023

Fanie Mthupha 2 minutes read

The faces of the elderly living at Andries Scribante Haven are aglow with joy and excitement since the metro has finally started renovating some of the flats at the Cason Road facility.

Boksburg Advertiser visited the centre on August 30 and found repairs well underway.
The project’s community liaison officer, Anthea Eksteen, said the estimated R3m project, which is projected to be completed by end of September, will see the renovation of about 50 units at the centre.

Seen inside one of the renovated units in Block B are the project’s community liaison officer, Anthea Eksteen and Ward 32 councillor Marius de Vos.

“We started with those that are currently unoccupied, and the renovation comprises painting, tiling, plumbing, electrical maintenance, and attending to other general wear and tear. The residents are obviously very excited to see us busy uplifting their facility,” said Eksteen.

They are almost done with the renovations in Block A, and will soon move to Block C.
One of the residents, Bekkie Pienaar, who lives in Block C, said the ongoing renovations give her an incredible sense of relief that her home will return back to its former glory.

Pienaar, who pointed out the broken tiles on the wall of her bathroom, said she is hoping that when the crews move to Block C, her unit will also be considered for the renovation.

The contractor, Molook’s Civils, which was reportedly previously awarded the tender to repair the crumbling structure of the facility last year, was again appointed to carry out the renovations of the units.

While the facility has a backup power generator, lack of fuel renders the equipment worthless when the residents need it the most during load-shedding.

EMPY: lack of fuel renders the equipment worthless when the residents need it the most during load-shedding.

Ward 32 Clr Marius de Vos, who is one of the driving force for the better living conditions of the residents, said while he is still looking forward to a project that will have enough budget to renovate all the units, he is delighted that the metro has at least finally come to the rescue of the facility.
“In my view this refurbishment changes the mood of the residents as they can see that there is renovations taking place and is no more just talk shows. At least the people in retirement can find some peace in the later years of living in this planet.”

De Vos pointed out that the money used in the project is the funds that were not spent during the previous financial year budget.
“The city needs to conduct itself in a way that will ensure budgets are spent within the financial year, because failure to do so may see money being diverted to other projects or forfeited.”