Residents of Sandringham, Linksfield and surrounding areas are objecting to a proposed state-of-the-art residential development at the Royal Johannesburg Golf Course citing fear for their property values.
In a public meeting held at Jabula Recreation Centre on 13 July, residents met with the developers to discuss their objections. Ward 72 councillor Steven Kruger also attended the meeting. The residents said they are concerned because the development will cause the area to become a high density area and cause heavy traffic. They were also concerned about the fact that the proposed area is ‘wet’.
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Community members told the developers that a proper environmental assessment wasn’t done before they decided to develop the land which is currently used as a golf course. Residents also raised concerns about safety and security in the area as well as the electricity and water supply in the Joburg East suburbs.
“Currently we face a water supply challenge in the area and if you were to build on that land, you will change the water flow in the area. This will definitely disturb the ecosystem of the area,” said Marian Laserson, a retired professional architect and a citizen in the area.
Addressing residents’ concerns, project development manager Ricci Davidoff said all concerns have been noted and will be dealt with as they continue to engage on the matter.
Davidoff confirmed that an environmental assessment has not yet been done at the site. He added that the meeting at Jabula was to find the middle ground between the developers and the residents.
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He then gave residents time to re-consider their objections and said he is always available for further discussions with them.
“It serves our purpose to uplift the area with this proposed new development and we will commit to [that which] we will be agreeing on with the residents. We hope that we will find each other soon,” said Davidoff.
Both the residents and the developers agreed to have a site inspection on 24 July at 12 pm.
Details: Steven Kruger 0832254223
