Residents and affiliates of the Strandfontein Sports Complex Facility Management Committee (FMC) are frustrated by the slow progress of upgrades, repairs, and restoration after the temporary homeless shelter was demolished last year.
On Wednesday, November 17, residents and sports groups gathered to protest “slow progress” and “empty promises.”
FMC Secretary Gerard Kemp said that certain promises had been made that part of the restoration work will be completed in March this year.
“We want to emphasize the lack of action by New York City in fulfilling its commitment to this community. Not only the FMC or the Brotherhood of Sports, but also the Strandfontein community,” he said.
“All we want is for them to deliver on the promises they made. That is to make our sports surfaces playable. Restore them and bring the needed improvements.”
Camp said that the irrigation system should be running on four football and cricket fields in March. The cricket ellipse has water channels.
At that time, when Zahid Badroodien was a member of Mayco Community Services and Health, he confirmed that the city government would implement this work in phases.
He told People’s Post that these developments included the installation of drilling holes, electrical maintenance work on all electrical infrastructure, installation of new drinking water lines, and new pressure relief valves (RPZ valves).
It also includes plans to upgrade the bathing area with brand-new sanitary ware, the installation of cricket visual screens-a new design piloted in the city’s facilities-and the facility’s comprehensive irrigation design.
“Recently in 2021, the first and second phases of the irrigation system were upgraded. There is a new main irrigation line running through the entire length of the facility. The cricket oval and the cricket table now have full coverage irrigation. With irrigation To improve, the regular maintenance cycle can be expanded to include fertilizing the fields,” Badrodine told the People’s Post at the time.
“Usually, after conducting a soil demand analysis, fertilization is required 3 times a year, which allows us to determine the appropriate fertilizer combination and quantity. In addition, measures have been taken to manage moles by installing owl boxes that control gerbils and moles.”
The city spokesperson Luthando Tyhalibongo reconfirmed this information. According to the list provided by Badroodien and the list provided by the city this week, no additional work has been completed.
“The department is currently undergoing a bidding process for drilling/irrigation to continue to upgrade irrigation in accordance with the irrigation master plan. With reliable irrigation facilities, large areas of field restoration and supervision can begin,” Tyhalibongo said.
“The facility was handed over to the Ministry of Urban Disaster and Risk Management during the lockdown in March 2020. The facility was officially handed over to Recreation and Parks in September 2020,” continued Tyhalibongo.
Residents who participated in the demonstration said that the field is very important to the rising stars in the community.
“My son plays for Bayview in the SAB league. They don’t have a home court. They have to play in Gugulethu and travel everywhere,” Janine Overmeyer said.
Igshaan Carstens, a member of the FMC and former Ward Committee representative, stated that they would like to see the venue ready in time for the new season of formal and informal sports rules using the facility s inception.
He added that this was also the first year that the stadium was unable to host two integrated football matches at the Bayview and Strandfontein clubs where the base camp is located.
Marlene Joseph said: “One of my grandsons has great potential, but they can’t get to the football field, so they can only play on the road. It’s too dangerous.”
Carstens said: “This is not for us. This is for the children. From a safety point of view, we need to check the venue to see if it is good for the game. If not, we need to notify the coach. This is the current situation. ”
Because they belong to the local football association, these venues are also used to host matches with clubs in other regions.
Tyhalibongo said: “Recreation and parks can confirm that over time, the maintenance and development progress of the Strandfontein stadium has been prioritized and implemented.
“The internal process has already begun to collect all the basic information. The development of the master plan requires the participation of the community and stakeholders, and this will take place in the next few months.
“As part of this process, a due diligence report is being drafted, which details some design considerations, including space, urban design, regional conceptual plans and architectural guidelines.”
Contact the public editor to provide feedback, complaints, inquiries, or suggestions for articles on News24 to our reporters.
Post time: Nov-29-2021
