New civic group planned for Athlone
Three Athlone men are trying to get a new civic organisation off the ground to tackle community issues in the area.
The Central Athlone Ratepayers’ and Residents’ Association will cover Kromboom and Klipfontein roads and Jan Smuts Drive up until the railway line and other areas in Ward 49, according to Ebrahim Isaacs.
The organisation would address urban rehabilitation as well as crime, drugs, dumping, and vagrancy, he said.
“Our parks are not worthy of being called parks: there are rubbish and wine bottles everywhere. People don't work so they loiter and become a problem for residents. They end up dealing in drugs to get some money. I believe that everyone affected by this has a role to play in the eradication of this. The religious fraternity all have congregations which are all affected by the same things.”
Residents should unite to tackle the things they complained about, he said.
Vacant lots in the area were an invitation for dumping and criminal activities and should be developed, he said, adding that trees should be planted to improve the look of the area.
Mr Isaacs added that it was time for residents to do something about crime and dumping in the area and take back their streets.
“Some of the residents go to the merchants before they come to mosque. So how long will it take for the congregation to follow suit? A derelict environment has a psychological effect on people living there. In Hanover Park, there are so many involved in criminal activities because of the environment they live in. We hope to get community organisations involved. We hope to get government involved too.”
The organisation’s interim public relations officer, Sedick Dawood, said it would make it easier to access City services. Residents needed to know what their rights were and where to report issues.
“Often we are not sure why service delivery is often delayed and where the issue lies. There are still pockets in the community that are in dire need of attention.
“The issues that we hope to address as soon as possible are the Kromboom bridge and the scrapyard in Newton Avenue. There has been an increase in dumping and vagrancy in the area. We also need more visible policing, and traffic inspections in the CBD through the night because we have cars parking there through the night.”
Nigel Diedericks said the association would seek to work with neighbourhood watch members.
“Issues around the Kromboom Road Park, the Kromboom bridge, vagrancy, missing drain covers, electricity outages and more are all issues we want to address. Our older people need help because they don’t know how to use technology to report it.”
A community meeting about the organisation will be held at the St Mark’s Hall in Church Street, Athlone, on Thursday December 7, at 7pm. For more information, call Sedick on 078 845 0869.
