RESIDENTS in Humansdorp have been left frustrated by the lack of maintenance at various recreational parks in their communities and are hoping that the facilities will be refurbished soon to provide a safe place for children to play.
Gavin Seffier, from Johnsons Ridge Street in Kruisfontein, said the overall condition of the park in his area was poor and had been in this state for the past 20 years.
“There is no fencing at the park. The grass is long and was last cut approximately two years ago for the funeral of one of the residents,” said Seffier.
“The facilities at the park are minimal; there are no jungle gyms, and the swings are out of order.”
Seffier said he was unhappy about the condition of the park, as the children in his neighbourhood deserved better facilities.
He said he would like the open space at the park to be used more effectively.
“It would be good if there were better facilities for the children at the park with a Wendy house for someone to supervise the children while they are playing at the playground,” said Seffier.
In addition, he said, fencing should be placed around the park with a gate to be locked at night when the park was not being utilised.
Similar to the park in Johnsons Ridge Street, Steven Kees from Arcadia said the park in his area was in a bad condition with a non–functional swing and one floodlight at the centre of the park which provided the nearby homes with much needed light, since none of the street lights close by were working.
“When I moved to Arcadia 13 years ago, the park was already in such a bad condition and not much has changed. The park was previously vandalised, the grass is overgrown and there is no cement in the park,” said Kees.
He said the park remained empty all day and he often felt sad for the children in the area who did not have any facilities to use to play and enjoy themselves.
“There is not much for the kids to do in this area and they often use the nearby bushes to play which is not safe,” said Kees.
As a member of the local dance group, The Flame Crew, Kees hopes the park will be refurbished soon, so that it could be used as a dance rehearsal space for his crew and used as a facility for them to provide dance classes to young people in the community.
According to Community Services Councillor, Daniel Benson, the municipality was aware of the condition of the two parks in Kruisfontein and Arcadia.
He said council was in the process of rolling out play parks through the Ward Development Fund.
“Play parks will be installed in Wards 4 and 5,” said Benson.
