The Bellrail Neighbourhood Watch is appealing to the residents living close by to help them in their efforts to clean up a wall that is frequented by where drug users hang out.
Gerda Gerber, a member of the watch, said the 250m long wall near the train tracks and taxi rank picked up a lot of soot and grime.
Ms Gerber said: “The wall, which is over 250 metres long is right by the train tracks and the nearby taxi rank so it picks up a lot of soot so it is dirty. Also, it has a big open field by it, and it is frequented by people who use drugs like tik and other things. The people also use the field as a toilet and do other things there so it is very unsafe and unsanitary.”
The group wanted to clean up the area and paint the wall but needed help, said Ms Gerber added that the group is hoping to clean up he area and repaint the wall, however they require some assistance from volunteers and donations.
“The Bellrail Neighbourhood Watch is a very small group. We are only eight people aged between 23 and 51 and only one member is a male. We try our best to keep the are safe and clean but we do everything out of our own pockets and we all have regular jobs that we go to on a daily basis. We would like to get some help in getting some paint to redo the wall, but we also need people to help us make the area clean by painting the wall and making it nice again.
We believe that if an area is looked after and is made to look nice then people will not come and mess it up again,” she said.
The group is hoping to host a massive clean up of the wall and the surrounding area on is planning a clean-up of the wall and surrounds on Saturday February 2, however, plans are being made to clean the grassy area in front of the wall so as to welcome people from nearby areas to come and help.
“We will have an event on the day, and we will want to have things like jumping castles for the children, selling hot dogs and also having the Pink Ladies also come to the event.”
As part of the neighbourhood watch, Ms Gerber has also met with the VRCID, who although cannot assist due to boundary issues have still given their full support to the group.
Derek Bock, the CEO of the Voortrekker Road Corridor Improvement District (VRCID), said the wall fell outside the special rating area’s precinct, but they were prepared to do what they could to help the neighbourhood watch.
Mr Bock said: “No CIDs are allowed to use resources outside their areas. However, if it is a simple issue of assisting with the removal of bags of litter collected by the neighbourhood watch, we will assist where we can. The VRCID applauds neighbourhood watches for being proactive; the days of not assisting the SAPS or City law enforcement agencies are long gone. Partnerships are very important and together we can defeat crime or make it safer for the community.”
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