5 days ago
Windsor East Courtyard remains a problem
The Courtyard building on Earls Avenue, Windsor East, remains standing, continuing to be a drug den, despite meeting all requirements to be classified as a problem property, as per the Problem Property By-Law Section 7.
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Ward 98 councillor Beverley Jacobs has been escalating the issue, but faces problems getting it addressed. Several city officials have visited the hazardous and dangerous property, yet with no resolution.
She explained that the property has been a significant source of concern since before 2016. Despite numerous attempts to address the matter, the situation remains unresolved. 'The legislation has to be looked at again. At the moment every entity is saying that it's not their problem, including the owners, and this is what we are left with. My concern, however, is not only the lack of action and accountability from the entities, but also that this is a problem property in terms of the problem property by-law. No entity, despite having been made aware of this matter years ago, has made any attempt to declare it a problem property, and taken the necessary action in terms of penalisation.'
She added that the city, and residents, spent a substantial amount of money in cleaning up around the property. She confirmed that the property has been abandoned by its owners, many of whom are traceable, but have refused to take responsibility. Some units remain bank-owned, with no intervention or accountability shown by the financial institutions involved.
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'No municipal services have been paid,' Jacobs said. 'Including rates and taxes. Water and electricity were disconnected years ago. The premises is being used for illegal activities, including the operation of a scrap yard and serving as a drug den. The property is a source of rat infestation and ongoing public dissatisfaction. City resources are being repeatedly deployed to clean up this property, at the expense of other service needs.'
The building was a focal point in the recent clean-up by the City of Johannesburg's Citizen Relationship and Urban Management (CRUM) Region B and other city departments, during the high impact service delivery initiative.
CRUM regional director Sello Lemao explained that, in terms of the building control and by-laws, the building was condemned. 'To be able to demolish the building, on our side, we have to actually obtain the demolition order. That process that is led by Group Forensics and Investigation Service (GFIS). When I came in as regional director, I found that there had been an order, but that order was not executed, simply because GFIS had to do other due diligence as the building belonged to people. They have done a lot and have gone deeper to actually find the owners.'
He added now that he is director, he is following up on the new order. 'The new information that I've got is that everything is in place, and that the building, at some point, will be demolished. I want to demolish the building. I'm going to follow up to ensure that this time around, the building is demolished.'
GFIS were sent questions about the demolition order, but had not replied by the time of print.
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