Rencken takes Junction expansion to court
Claims it will make access to his home and neighbouring residents very difficult.
Ballito Lifestyle Centre owner Bruce Rencken has accused KwaDukuza municipality of turning a blind eye to illegal building of the new R1.4 billion Ballito Junction redevelopment.
The new Ballito Junction will affect the value of his home and will make access to his home and residents of the neighbouring Wakenshaw Estate extremely difficult.
Rencken has made an urgent application to the Pietermaritzburg High Court to have construction halted because, he claims, they have not held public meetings to discuss significant changes to their access road off the Ballito entrance road (P445), nor do they have approved building plans for the new centre.
The respondents include Flanagan and Gerard, developers of the mall, the KwaDukuza municipality and the Department of Transport.
Access to his home and Wakenshaw Estate has been recently changed with the building of a new access road.
However, he argues, once the centre is completed he and other residents will have to use the new mall entrance which will be “akin to driving through the Pavilion shopping centre” to get home.
He does not believe that the Department of Transport has approved the new road.
“The link road has not been rezoned for it to be used as a public road and significant building is occurring without required approval.
“The inconvenience of sharing an access road with a major shopping centre will have an adverse effect on my property value,” he said.
He also said no public meeting had been arranged by the Department of Transport and Flanagan and Gerard to discuss the new road and other relevant issues.
Rencken had asked the developers, the municipality and the department of transport for proof that the necessary approvals had been given, but got “no joy”.
He accused the municipality and the Department of Transport of “turning a blind eye” to the unlawful building work going on.
The projected completion date is March 2017. Once completed, Ballito Junction will be six times larger than its present size.
“With each day that passes further building work is being completed and it makes it more difficult to wind back the clock,” Rencken claimed.
All parties have declined to comment. The matter has since been set down for hearing later this week.
