March 26, 2004
By Chandrea Gerber
IN the past few years Yeoville has been trapped in a cycle of neglect and dilapidation. But now the residents and council are on a mission to restore the suburb to its former charm.
And central to this turnaround is the ongoing process of trying to get new strategies in place to tackle problems common to any inner city area: crime; a transient population; a lack of development; and the management of litter.
One of the strategies being implemented by the City of Johannesburg is the swooping on illegal traders and liquor houses.
In February, the Inner City Task Force targeted liquor outlets in Yeoville during a special operation in which almost R23 000 in fines were issued. Three outlets were discovered operating without a liquor licence and five outlets were closed for not complying with their licences.
This is the first step toward reclaiming the suburb. This operation, according to mayoral committee member Sol Cowan, is the beginning of many such operations in Yeoville intended to bring order back to the area. "We want to ensure that the various bars and nightclubs comply with the law and that they do not infringe on the rights of others."
Martin New, inner city regeneration regional manager, said the operation was a great success and that many legitimate businesses and shoppers cheered the action - residents who envision a Yeoville that is clean, safe and legal.
Spazas, small stalls that operate from houses, are also being targeted as part of the inner city regeneration programme and as part of the clean up Yeoville campaign.
Since early last year the Johannesburg Metro Police Department and the South African Police Services have swooped on a number of local spazas that have ignored prohibition notices handed out in 2002.
Although the City initially welcomed the swoop on spazas as aiding the rejuvenation of the inner city as an economic node, the council is now developing a different strategy that will deal with the problem of illegal traders, so that residents can still find ways to earn a living.
"This year the city council has developed draft regulations which would allow a limited number of spazas in residential areas, if the property owner and neighbours agree," says Karl von Holdt of the Community Policing Forum.
This approach looks to modify the town-planning scheme to include the possibility of applying for council approval to operate a retail outlet from home, which would allow the council to consider applications from spaza owners to trade legally, while still continuing to act against illegal spazas. Officials from the City of Johannesburg, in conjunction with the Yeoville Spaza Association, are currently in negotiations over drafting new proposals.
Through inner city community forums and representatives, it became obvious there was a need to address this issue differently, in a way that would enable people to start operating in a legal way, said Gina Zanti, deputy director of land use management in Joburg's Town Planning Department.
This new approach, said Zanti, while opening up the previously disallowed possibility of operating a retail outlet from a private residence, still has restrictive criteria, and must be done within certain parameters.
She stressed that under the new proposal there would still be a process of control, where one would still have to make an application and comply with certain criteria.
The community
This is imperative, as community meetings have urged that measures be put in place that "will not allow Yeoville to go down the drain, like Hillbrow".
By-laws should be in place to prevent illegal trading, but at the same time entrepreneurship also needs to be encouraged, Von Holdt said. "There are high levels of poverty and unemployment in our community, and many people start businesses as a way to survive and feed their families. We need to find a way of accommodating their needs," he added.
Rumours that the council has declared a suspension on further action against spazas while discussions on the draft regulations are underway have led to the number of spazas in Yeoville increasing by 33 percent since last year, says Von Holdt. Yet no such moratorium exists, says both the council and Von Holdt.
A number of concerns were raised during a report-back meeting held by the ward councillors. Von Holdt, on behalf of the CPF, raised questions about the capacity of the council to implement the proposed regulations and educate spaza owners, and about impact such spazas would have on pedestrian traffic, litter and on the formal shopping nodes.
Spaza owners themselves expressed their apprehension at the community meeting about the number of spazas that will be allowed to trade.
The strategy
Although the strategy under discussion has been implemented in other areas including Lenasia and Eldorado Park, Zanti acknowledged that the Yeoville project is different. In Lenasia and Eldorado Park, for example, there are fewer formal businesses, whereas Yeoville is part of the inner city.
The City's Economic Development Unit will look at Yeoville as a pilot programme that could be extended to the larger metropolitan area. The unit will look at how it proceeds in relation to formal business nodes; how well it is monitored; and where this might be successful. Then the unit will evaluate the viability of this for other inner city areas.
Discussions are nearing completion and the next step is for the Town Planning Department to evaluate existing policies and businesses, and the responses of an even more intensive community dialogue.
Zanti hopes that the proposal will be finalised by the end of May. "It will be interesting to see how it goes," she said.
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