Vagrants make Melville pavement home
MELVILLE – Ward councillor says the CoJ does not care about the Displaced People and they don't care about the residents and businesses impacted by people living and sleeping on the streets outside their properties.
Walk along the corner of Beyers Naudé Drive and 4th and 5th Avenues in Melville, even on a cold winter’s night, so cold that one’s breath rises in visible puffs to join the darkened clouded night sky – you will see a group of people sleeping on the pavement, seeking some warmth away from the freezing chill in the air that brings crispness to the leaves.
According to resident Camel Coetzee, there are often about 10 or more people sleeping on the pavement in front of Roxy’s Club.
“This is a big problem, not just for us but for the people – the homeless. For us, it is unsightly and for them, it is uncomfortable and cold during winter,” said Coetzee.
However, sleeping on the street is not just unfortunate but may affect businesses and residents.
“This is an issue that social services have to take care of, we get involved when they break bylaws like obstructing traffic or urinating in public,” said JMPD’s Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar.
Ward 87 councillor Amanda Forsythe said she has reported the issue on numerous occasions to the Displaced People’s Unit.
According to Forsythe, the problem is threefold:
- Vagrants are attracted to spaces that seem unused and uncared for by property owners or the community. Those impacted by them need to consider what makes that space so accommodating and change the environment.
- Another attraction to the community is that it seems to be an endless source of money and donations.
- There is a unit in the Social Development Department (the DPU) that is supposed to be identifying, assessing and helping those living on the streets of Joburg, but they are severely understaffed and under-resourced.
She added that until the City of Joburg (CoJ) starts taking the problem seriously, residents are going to have to learn to live with the problem.
Forsythe added that NGOs dealing with displaced people need information, support and resources from the City.
“After four years of working on and researching the issue, I have come to the conclusion that the City of Joburg is not a caring city at all. They do not care about the displaced people and they don’t care about the residents and businesses impacted by people living and sleeping on the streets outside their properties.”
Displaced People’s Unit: 011 407 7131.
