Homeless turn house into “hostel”
Residents having a time of their lives at “hostel”.
A GROUP of residents has turned number 43 9th Street, La Rochelle, into a “hostel”.
“We as the residents of house number 43 don’t have a place to stay so we opted to stay here, and we enjoy living in the house. The councillor of Ward 57, Faeeza Chame, knows about our situation. She promised us she will come back and help with sanitation,” said one of the residents.
The house has about 40 residents, including adults and children. The house has no proper sanitation and they don’t mind living this way, as long as they have a roof over their heads. Residents of La Rochelle call the house “hostel”. Most of the residents are jobless and some survive on piece jobs.
“All the residents here are South African citizens. All we want is get a place where we can get water and proper electricity but if that is not possible it’s fine. If the councillor says we must vacate the house it’s fine, but then she can at least get us a place to stay,” added another resident.
The councillor’s response:
“There are two such double storey homes in La Rochelle the owners have abandoned 12 years ago. Vagrants started moving in, and have caused a nuisance to the surrounding bond paying law-abiding residents – these are complaints I receive from surrounding neighbours.
“People who occupy these two buildings are selling furniture etc in front of the building in the street. It looks unsightly. Some weekends it is unbearable for the neighbours with the noise and drinking that is happening there. I instructed Pikitup to supply them refuse bags to keep the place clean.
“Because it is a private property I am unable to supply them ablution facilities. This matter is been handled by the environmental inspectors and the Cities Crum Team for investigation. Although I must admit it is really taking a long time for them to come up with a solution that will benefit everyone. In the meantime, I would like to urge the residents occupying these buildings to keep the place neat and tidy.”
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