Hawkers want to rebuild CBD

The Springs Hawkers Association is calling on the community to help restore the Springs CBD to its former glory.
On Wednesday the organisation invited stakeholders to help them come up with a possible resolution.
“Our town is in a very bad state. Coming to town used to be an exciting experience for people, but now they don’t even enjoy coming here anymore,” said Fanie Phala, the organisation’s secretary.
Their concerns include crime, litter and unpermitted hawkers.

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“We cannot sell anything if no one is here. We cannot sell our goods in a filthy environment, but we also don’t know who to approach to help solve the problem.
“When we ask for assistance from the EMPD, sometimes we are told it is not their job. We call the SAPS and get the same response.

“This is not about blame. If we all want to see the city prosper, we must work together,” he added.
Sgt Frank Modise from Springs SAPS emphasised the well-being of the Springs CBD is everybody’s business.
“Who is littering on the streets? Who is selling where they are not supposed to? No one is coming from outside to deface the CBD.
“It is the people who live, work and use the services within the city that are doing all of these things,” he said.

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Phala said the organisation is unsettled by the presence of drug users and the homeless.
After considering all the concerns brought forward, representatives from the different stakeholders agreed the task would involve multiple departments and the full participation of the community.

Prince Molepo, the senior health inspector for the City of Ekurhuleni’s environmental health department asserted that ‘what needs to be done overlaps through multiple departments within the metro’.
The group now plans to invite the metro to facilitate and direct campaigns that will restore the CBD’s beauty.

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