Amid urgent calls from all over Johannesburg for better service delivery from municipal departments, Linden seems to be one community that gets their problems fixed.
Described by Ward 99 Councillor Bruce Herbert as “the jewel of Johannesburg”, what is today known as Linden was originally farmland bought in 1896 by Afrikaners Louw Geldenhuys and Johannes Jacobus Rabie van der Linde – who the suburb is named after.
It was incorporated into the municipality of Johannesburg in 1939.
Today, Linden has CCTV installed at key points, a heated pool the envy of other suburbs, proactive community policing initiatives and its electric cables are being replaced to single cables so that its signature trees do not need to be cut to accommodate them.
Herbert is adamant that good rapport with stakeholders has ensured action when the community is in need.
“Linden is a well-oiled machine because I’ve had a dedicated ward committee for the past 19 years so they understand the community and we work well with the city council. I have coffee with officials in my ‘office’ instead of throwing bricks if we have a problem.”
Herbert’s ‘office’ is the Argentinian café and bakery on the corner of Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street. He has most of his meetings here in Linden.
“I’m not scared to go to the Regional Director if I need to but the relationships you build up are more important to me so when I do go to officials they know that I need help.”
“It’s more than votes to me; I work closely with the ward and city council and show my appreciation to keep Linden moving forward.”
