Conyngham Park needs a revamp, says community
In the past 'unsavoury characters' have been spotted in the park, and the community hopes that a revamp of the facility will make is safer and more enjoyable.
THE Parkhill community say they are at their wits’ end when it comes to the general maintenance and upkeep of the Conyngham Park. The residents say the duty to maintain the park lies with the municipality’s parks department. Residents have also called for an upgrade of the tiny park.
According to Paul Khan, the former chairman and active member of the Clarendon Road Neighbourhood Watch (CRNHW), the community had begun to see some progress last year after Mbali Khoza, a parks employee, began forging an alliance with residents in the area.
“Recently we heard unconfirmed reports that Mbali has been transferred. We had been promised that our park, and its subsequent upgrade, would be included in this year’s budget, but we have not received any conformation. As a matter of fact, we have received no communication from the department in the last few months. We are growing concerned, as we don’t want to wait for another year to pass before anything gets done,” said Khan.
Fellow CRNHW member, Brian High, echoed Khan’s sentiments, saying, “The department needs to pull its weight. The requested task is not outside of their jurisdiction, and what we are asking is not outrageous.”
Khan explained that the community had been struggling to rally the support of the department to upgrade the park into a safe, secure and family-orientated park – especially since it is the only park in the area.
In 2013 the facility was found to be in an extremely dilapidated condition. The parameter fence had been broken and vandalised, the facility had been vastly overgrown with vegetation and the lights, which should have been illuminating the park, were not working.
“Through liaising with Mbali all of these issues were tended to. We are grateful for these positive steps, but in order for the park to be safe and enjoyable more needs to be done,” said Khan.
The residents have proposed that the rusty swings be serviced and repainted, bollards be placed at the entrance to prevent vehicles from entering the facility, additional playground equipment (such as a round-about or seesaw) be erected in the park as well as additional lights and benches.
Khan mentioned that some dead branches in some of the trees also posed a risk and needed to be cleared. Additionally, the park’s bin has been stolen and needs to be replaced.
In the past ‘unsavoury characters’ were spotted in the park, and there have been allegations of alcohol consumption and drug usage.
“Until the free access has been attended to, everyone using the park is at risk. As a community we have stepped in to deal with issues in the park, but the department needs to step up,” said Khan.
