Gallery Update

KNYSNA NEWS - Residents of Curlew Court in Meeu Street, Lower Old Place, Knysna are living in fear after a series of burglaries in the municipal complex they claim is a direct result of neglect by Knysna Municipality. The say they have been struggling for years to have the municipality maintain the deteriorating health and safety standards of the building.

The block of 24 residential flats – occupied mainly by elderly people – is owned by the municipality, who has to maintain the building.

Resident Venona Young (80) said there is no security at the flats and they are exposed to crime. According to her there have been robberies and break-ins at the flats with no response from the police. In one incident, cellphones were stolen from one of the flats, she said. 

“Recently one of the tenants had his expensive takkies stolen from the line. This shows anyone can get access to the flats and do what they want without being noticed,” said Young.

Photo gallery: Curlew Court needs maintenance

She claims the residents are long-standing victims of neglect and the landlady does not care about their plight. “The building is deteriorating, there is no overall safety for us tenants. The health and safety standards have been deteriorating over the years,” she said.

Curlew Court is in need of maintenance, as these cracks and leaking pipes demonstrate. Photo: Tembile Sgqolana

Young also pointed out that there have been dripping taps in her flat which she reported to the municipality, but that nothing has been done to address the matter. “When we ask the person in charge of the flats, she tells us the municipality does not have money to fix the taps and we must wait until the next financial year,” she said. 

“I waited until July when the flats were going to be allocated a budget and see if they would fix the taps. I am still waiting. Now I have a leaking toilet, I have to put newspapers at the toilet to try and stop the water.”

Young said the flats are hardly ever maintained and when the municipality does arrive to fix a problem after years of complaining, the workmanship is shoddy.

Another long-time resident Valerie Bouwer, who has lived there since the 1980s, said they have been complaining about the safety of the flats and asking for a fence for 19 years. “The municipality promised to build a fence in 2011 – nine years later they have not done that. We have a lot of issues here … but the most important thing is safety and security,” Bouwer said.

“Everyone trespasses as cars have been broken into and we had our things stolen. We are at a risk of being killed or raped by the criminals but the municipality does not care about us,” Bouwer told Knysna-Plett Herald this week.

A Curlew Court resident has to put newspapers down to stop the leaking toilet from damaging her appliances. Photos: Tembile Sgqolana

The landlady, known by tenants as Daleen but who declined to give her name, said as an employee of the municipality, she is not allowed to speak to the media and referred KPH to their communications department.

“With regards to the security issue, none of the municipal rented stock is supplied with security services," said municipal spokesperson Christopher Bezuidenhout. "A need for such services will result in council charging market related rental, which is not the case in Curlew Court,” he said. He had not responded to questions relating to maintenance by the time of going to print.

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