Future plans for Newcastle were laid out on Tuesday evening at the Farmers Hall, as Mayor Afzul Rehman delivered the 2014/15 Budget and State of the Town address.
Viewed as an official council meeting, Cllr Rehman had the opportunity to table the third municipal budget to the current administration of Council and a handful of residents who attended the event to find out what was in store for the town during the next financial year.
Cllr Rehman made mention of the late Nelson Mandela, and the sacrifices he made for a democratic country.
“We find solace in the knowledge that Madiba will forever be in our hearts and that we have a duty to take his legacy forward. In just under two months, we will again exercise our most fundamental expression of freedom, our right to vote for a new government,” he said.
Cllr Rehman spoke about the challenges that were faced when the ANC-led Council came into power in 2009.
“We believed, as the ANC government, that the R68-m provided by the municipality for capital development was far too little to provide a better life for all,” he said.
“We increased that amount to R172-m immediately, then to R229-m in 2010, to R310-m in 2011, to R318-m in 2012 and to R418-m in this current financial year. The 2014/15 budget is no different. It will continue to tell the story of a government that listens to its people, trying very hard to make an impact on their lives by providing service delivery that you can touch and feel,” he continued.
The 2014/15 draft operating budget has grown by more than R100-m over the past four years, bringing the municipality to a total operating revenue of over R1.5-bn.
The draft capital budget also showed continued growth with a total of R441-m that will be spent on new infrastructure projects.
Below is a brief summary of the budget speech:
Roads:
– R75 300 000 to be spent on new tarred roads in township areas.
– R5.5-m for the second phase of the Kwamathukuza main road.
– R12.4-m for urban access roads in Madadeni.
– R29-m for urban access roads in oSizweni.
– R28-m for Phase 2 of the widening of Allen Street, from the Ncandu River bridge to intersection of Hardwick and Allen streets, with Phase 3 to be completed in 2015/16 financial year.
– R2-m for Phase 1 of the rehabilitation of Jenkyn Street.
– R1.5-m for the completion of the upgrade to Murchison Street.
– R600 000 for new speed bumps.
– R3.5-m for sidewalks and pavements to be made safer and more accessible for joggers, cyclists and people in wheelchairs.
– R20-m for resealing projects.
Water and sanitation:
– R9-m for toilets in rural areas
– R1.5-m for toilets in Charlestown, Ingogo and Normandien, for the first time
– R4.5-m for flushing sewerage system in oSizweni Sections E and F
– R11.1-m for a flushing sewerage system in Stafford Hill
– R5-m total for bulk sewer and sewer pump station at H39 settlement
– R14.6-m for Siyahlala-la for sewer reticulation and water pipes from Hilldrop Reservoir
– R12.7-m for refurbishment of waste water treatment plants in Madadeni, Ngagane and Kwamathukuza.
– R5-m to replace water pipes and equipment in critical areas of all suburbs.
– R11-m to repair leaking water pipes in Madadeni and oSizweni
– R2-m for the rehabilitation of dongas in townships
Electricity:
According to Cllr Rehman, the municipality is currently in negotiations within the Eskom licence area of our townships to take control of the street lights, as communities raised their concerns of the malfunctioning of street lights to their ward councillors.
– R2.7-m for the conversion of certain street lights to LED, for more cost efficient lighting.
– R5-m for refurbishment to current networks
– R2.5-m for further electricity supply to Siyahlala-la
– R1-m as counter funding to funds that will be obtained from the United Nations to provide energy efficient solar water heaters to high paying electricity consumers.
Rural development:
– R6.9-m for Phase 2 of the JBC community hall in Blaauwbosch
– R5.6-m for Phase 2 for the rebuilding of the community hall in Charlestown
Housing:
– Khatide Housing project in The rural areas of Wards 6 and 12 will start with 2 000 houses being built at a cost of R157-m.
– R290-m for 1200 houses in Siyahlala-la, 897 houses in Madadeni H39 and 1500 houses in Charlestown, which have all been approved and are in the final stages of planning.
Municipal Office Block:
The seven-storey office block, will see the final phase take place in the 2014/15 financial year, at a cost of R194-m.
Through the new building, residents will be able to pay their rates, apply for a new house, approve building plans and access all other municipal functions. “The long term benefits of building this block will be felt for generations to come,” said Cllr Rehman.
Parks:
“We continue to come up with new innovative ways to better the lives of our residents, including the little ones. Since 2010, we have built 10 new play parks and upgraded three. Seven of those parks have state-of- the-art, children friendly equipment, outdoor table tennis, volleyball courts as well as a first of its kind outdoor gym equipment,” said Cllr Rehman.
According to Cllr Rehman, it is the intention of the municipality to roll out these parks throughout the town and will be establishing a further seven parks.
Park upgrades could also be seen in Aviary hill, Hutten Heights and Barry Hertzog Park.
One of the highlights of the budget speech was when the mayor declared that there would not be a rates increase this year.
However, the rest of the services such as water and sanitation will be increased by 7 per cent and electricity will go up by 7,3 per cent.
“The 20 years of freedom has demonstrated that South Africa is a better place to live in now than in 1994, but these achievements articulate that Newcastle is a far better place to live in 2009,” concluded Cllr Rehman.
