Problems continue to persist in the east of Pretoria in 2024, with illegal dumping, crime, Eskom debt, vagrants, water woes and informal settlements continuing to fester as they have for over a decade.
However modest strides in infrastructure development such as old pipe replacement, road upgrades, reopening of a taxi rank at a giant mall have also been made.
Here are some of the stories that rocked and shocked communities in the east of Pretoria this year:
Tshwane electricity debt lands in court
READ MORE: https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2024/10/08/tshwane-electricity-debt-lands-them-in-court/
The Tshwane metro continues to be at loggerheads with power utility Eskom over a staggering R6.6-billion debt.
According to the metro, it owed Eskom R6.6-billion on August 31 and the debt consisted of R4.5-billion historical and R2.1-billion current debt.
This matter between Tshwane and Eskom has been in litigation and the next hearing is set for late November.
Eskom spokesperson Amanda Qithi said the bill for September was not settled by the due date and the city has been making irregular payments.
Qithi said Tshwane had accumulated arrears of R5.2-billion as of the end of August, and the two parties are currently in litigation.
“The power utility could not reach a payment agreement with Tshwane,” she said.
Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said the litigation started in the Gauteng North High Court on July 17.
“Due to the lengthy period that had to be allocated for a full hearing, the presiding judge ordered a postponement to October.”
He said however, at the request of the North Gauteng High Court Deputy Judge President (DJP), counsel for Eskom and the city were instructed to prepare for a full hearing set down for November 26 and 27.
Mashigo said the metro is committed to fulfilling its financial obligations and maintaining a good standing with Eskom.
“The Tshwane metro plans to comply with the Gauteng North High Court ruling, due to be announced following the hearing,” he said.
Mashigo added that the metro is doing its best to adhere to an Eskom demand to pay its current account in full and on time.
“Hence, Tshwane paid in full Eskom’s May and June invoices and remains with only R521-million from the July invoice, which amounted to R2.2-billion.”
Plastic View growth frustrates ratepayers
Read more : https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2024/05/14/plastic-view-growth-frustrates-ratepayers/
Ratepayers in Moreleta Park, Woodhill, Mooikloof and surroundings have reached boiling point regarding the over-a-decade-old Plastic View informal settlement.
Residents neighbouring Plastic View have raised concerns about the persistent growth of the settlement, crime and pollution.
The residents said their blood and sweat as well as property investments are going down the drain as value decreases and crime has been peddled into the community.
Plastic View is prone to fire outbreaks because dwellers use flammable materials to build shelter.
Fires have broken out multiple times in Plastic View and Cemetery View informal settlements, displacing some, yet others have been injured or killed.
Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said the metro’s five-year-old plan to provide improved living conditions for the hundreds of South African inhabitants of Plastic View and its companion Cemetery View, was in its developmental stage.
“The city appointed a service provider to establish a mixed-use residential township to be known as Pretorius Park Ext 40. This is on a portion of the remainder of Portion 284 of the Farm Garsfontein 374-JR, measuring 6.4 hectares and is located to the east of the Woodlands shopping mall,” Mashigo said.
He said Tshwane owned the property 900m away from Plastic View and Cemetery View.
Menlyn Mall formal taxi rank officially opened following years of chaos
Read more: https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2024/05/28/menlyn-mall-formal-taxi-rank-officially-opened/
Shoppers and motorists in Pretoria finally face fewer obstructions on Atterbury Road and Louis Avenue following the official opening of the Menlyn Mall taxi rank in May.
For decades public transport operations at the intersection have been characterised by chaos and safety concerns as commuters had to stand in long queues on the side of the road whether it was raining or late at night.
The Pretoria east giant shopping mall now boasts two taxi facilities that will accommodate around 135 mini-bus taxis and 18 larger long-distance buses.
Then [former] Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink during the opening said following months of extensive negotiations with the Menlyn Park Shopping Centre and the leadership of the two taxi associations, the centre has finally completed the construction of an additional taxi holding area inside the mall.
Brink said this is a milestone as a safety and crime concern has been addressed.
“This facility will make the centre pleasant. This means the shopping centre is no longer [just] convenient for motorists only but also people using public transport can now shop and find their transport easily at the rank inside Parking 1.”
Then MMC for Roads and Transport Katlego Mathebe said, “There will be no street taxi-ranking and holding on the sidewalk as the Tshwane metro police (TMPD) will continue to monitor the area.”
She said the taxi rank at the mall would build up to a long-term and permanent intermodal public transport facility in the area.
7.8m kl down the drain every month in Tshwane
Read more: https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2024/11/12/7-8m-kl-down-the-drain-every-month-in-tshwane/
As Tshwane pleads for residents and businesses to conserve water usage, the continued pipe bursts in the metro have reignited discussions about the need for long-term solutions to Tshwane’s ageing water infrastructure.
Tshwane has been facing ageing water infrastructure, unabated water theft and leaks, and millions of litres of water being wasted.
The metro said this devastating wastage caused about 7.8 million kl to be lost monthly, compounding the city’s water woes.
The losses come at a time when water has become precious in Tshwane. The metro, along with all other municipalities in Gauteng, has been placed under Level 1 water restrictions in response to the dire straits facing Rand Water.
The restrictions are also a bid to avert a potential water crisis that could plunge the city into a Day Zero.
Tshwane acknowledged these challenges and blamed the ageing infrastructure for these persistent leaks and bursts.
Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said the common causes of water leaks or pipe bursts are ageing infrastructure, illegal connections, water theft from fire hydrants, theft and vandalism to the water infrastructure.
Mashigo said the biggest problem however lay with decaying infrastructure.
“This includes water storage, water supply and treatment and stringent budget issues have contributed to this.”
Megacity construction brings affordable housing and jobs to Pretoria east
Read more: https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2024/09/24/megacity-construction-brings-affordable-housing-jobs-to-pretoria-east/
The Mooikloof Green Mega City has begun its transformation in the east of Pretoria with the first phase of housing well underway and upgrades to the K50 Garsfontein Road in the pipeline.
With this big development in the area, road infrastructure to accommodate the increasing population in the area is a paramount need.
Balwin Properties, the developer, said discussions are being held to secure government funding for the enhancement of the K50 Garstfontein Road, and at the same time funding has been made available to double the Garstfontein Road carriageway from the N1 to Solomon Mahlangu Drive.
The developer also said the Garsfontein double carriage upgrade is now out on tender. Mooikloof Mega City is located off Garstfontein Road a few kilometres from De Ville Bois Mareuil Drive, where Woodlands Boulevard Mall is located.
It is also not far from Solomon Mahlangu Drive, which gives access to the N4 and other main arterial routes.
The R80-billion development could potentially be South Africa’s largest sectional title development.
CEO of Balwin Properties, Steve Brookes said the first phase of the infrastructure project invested R21-million in road upgrades with a further R31-million earmarked for more road infrastructure upgrades for Pretoria east.
“Funding already received has been channelled to double the Garsfontein carriageway from the N1 to Solomon Mahlangu, which is out on tender at the moment.”
Thami Mchunu spokesperson for the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) said the construction of Greenkloof at Mooikloof Smart City is progressing in line with expectations, and over 160 apartments have been completed and 112 handed to homeowners.
He said the development of more apartments will continue. Mchunu stated that the project is a predominantly residential, mixed land-use development that will be implemented over 10 to 15 years.
Mchunu said this project also has created an estimated 63 000 jobs during construction.
Outcry as land earmarked for school field hijacked
Read more: https://www.citizen.co.za/rekord/news-headlines/2024/10/15/outcry-as-land-earmarked-for-school-field-hijacked/
Land earmarked for Laerskool Elarduspark sports field has been hijacked and turned into an illegal waste sorting site by waste pickers.
The land lies behind the Pretoria east “ghost” mall adjacent to the closed-down Garstkloof landfill site and is owned by the metro.
The number of waste sorters continues to swell by the week, with the illegal recycling activity posing not only a threat to residents’ safety and security but also to the environment.
Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) said the land was leased to the school.
The department confirmed that it advised the school to secure the land with a fence to avoid it being used by intruders.
Steve Mabona, the GDE spokesperson, said the school intended to use the land as a sports field, however, the maintenance thereof was outrageously expensive since the field still needs serious groundwork.
The metro confirmed it has a lease agreement with the school.
Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said though the lease agreement was concluded on January 1, the property is still under the management of the lessee (Laerskool Elarduspark).
Mashigo said the city will issue a 30-day contravention notice to the lessee as a result of the illegal occupation.
He said failure to comply with the notice would leave the city no option but to terminate the lease agreement and take over the property’s management.
The city is giving the school an ultimatum to sort out its affairs and ensure the land is secured or it will reclaim it.
Do you have more information about the story?
Please send us an email to bennittb@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.
For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East
For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram or TikTok.
At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!