Brooklyn gets the biggest slice of the pie when it comes to allocating the ward’s budget, the councillor told a meeting last week.
Fabian Ah-Sing was speaking at the Brooklyn, Ysterplaat and Rugby Residents’ and Ratepayers’ Association’s (BYRRA) community meeting on Thursday May 3.
Each financial year, running from July 1 to June 30 the following year, councillors get an R850 000 budget for ward-specific projects.
Mr Ah-Sing, of Ward 55, said more than R600 000 of his ward allocation would go to Brooklyn.
Ward 55 includes: Sanddrift, Tygerhof, Rugby, Ysterplaat, Brooklyn, Lagoon Beach, Metro, Marconi Beam (west of Omuramba Road and south of Computer Road, east of Koeberg Road and north of Bosmansdam Road), Century City, Paarden Eiland (north of the Salt River), Milnerton (west of Koeberg Road; south of Begonia Close, Graaff Avenue, Broad Way and Sunset Links Estate; east of the coastline and north of Lagoon Beach Estate, Island View Estate and Boundary Road).
“I’ve been getting a lot of flak spending so much of my budget in Brooklyn but that’s where it’s needed,” said Mr Ah-Sing.
He said the open field in Wemyss Street would be converted into a sports node for the youth, where they could play soccer, rugby and netball.
Another project, which is open to public participation, would convert the open piece of land on the corner of Church and Da Gama streets into a “family friendly gathering space”.
It would include an organic garden and be fenced off.
BYRRA chairman, Rudi Wolter, agreed that something needed to be done at that corner.
“That area has been a massive eyesore, and there has been problems with illegal dumping,” he said. Mr Ah-Sing also said that a lot of people had been asking for an outdoor gym and that was something he would be working on in the next financial year.
Captain André Fourie from Milnerton police station reported on the crime statistics in the area and said theft from vehicles was a concern in Brooklyn.
“Most people park their vehicles on the road because the properties are small and there are no parking spaces in flats. Please don’t leave belongings in your car,” said Captain Fourie.
He said there had been “significant” drug-related arrests in Da Gama, Justin, Sheridan and Curlew streets. Hot-spot streets for drugs in Rugby included Albow Gardens, Santos and Donegal streets.
He said the illegal selling of liquor was another big problem in Brooklyn and that police confiscated 290 000ml of liqour.
The next BYRRA meeting will be at Ysterplaat Primary School on Thursday June 7. Email pamela2006p@gmail.com for details.
