COMMUNITY leaders and residents in Phoenix are protesting against housing developments on sports fields, demanding a moratorium until infrastructure issues are resolved.

Last Saturday, disgruntled residents, community and civic leaders, the Phoenix Local Football Association and politicians gathered at the Eastbury sports field where they handed over a memorandum to the eThekwini Municipality speaker, Thabani Nyawose, calling on the city to halt further development of sports fields, playlots or open spaces in Phoenix.

They said too many sports fields were being “grabbed by greedy developers”.

Residents said they noticed bulldozers clearing out land surrounding the Eastbury sports field last week, which prompted the protest.

They alleged the development was being authorised by “corrupt councillors and municipal officials”.

In 2018, seventeen sports fields, which were identified for the infill housing project, were set to be rezoned for recreational purposes and excluded from the housing development. 

This included sports fields in Sunford, Clayfield (3), Eastbury (2), Rainham (2), Stanmore, Grove End (2), Stonebridge (2), Northcroft, Rydalvale, Woodview and Bhambayi.

The memorandum called for a moratorium on all new developments in Phoenix until the infrastructure was fully functional and could accommodate more housing, and the water crisis was addressed.

“These public spaces are vital to our community’s health, youth development, social cohesion and wellbeing. The rezoning of sports fields for housing development is unacceptable, unsustainable, and counterproductive to the long-term growth and well-being of our area,” read the memorandum.

“Further to this, cognisance must be taken that the initial design and construction of Phoenix complied with the existing by-laws and regulations which compelled the city to provide a certain number of play-lots, sports fields and open spaces determined by the number of dwellings being erected. 

“Rezoning and developing these amenities fall foul of these by-laws and regulations, not to mention that such acts can be constituted as deliberate sidelining and degradation of our community,” it further read.

The memorandum also called for an investigation into the Department of Parks, Recreation and Culture.

“We demand that a commission of inquiry be established to investigate the role that the Department of Parks, Recreation and Culture together with other non-bona fide members of the community have played in past and present housing developments to determine the level of culpability to which parks and gardens was complicit in these housing developments without proper community participation. 

“The inquiry must include and make provision for members of our community to ensure transparency. We also demand that ward councillors take direct ownership and responsibility for the upkeep of all sports fields in their respective wards, including regular reporting and community engagement on issues related to these facilities.

“It is further suspected that ward councillors, past and present, have been engaging and colluding with housing developers without proper community and stakeholder consultation contrary to Section 152 (1) (e) of the Constitution of South Africa which clearly speaks to compulsory community participation in the objects and matters of local government. This alleged collusion by ward councillors must be included in the terms of reference of the afore-mentioned Commission of Inquiry for thorough investigation,” the memorandum read.

Moratorium on new developments

The memorandum further called for a moratorium on all new developments in Phoenix until the infrastructure and water reticulation systems were functional and could accommodate more housing.

“The municipality is fully aware of the inadequacies of the current infrastructure as they are constantly using that as an excuse for the lack of service delivery in Phoenix. Any further new developments in Phoenix will only serve to exacerbate the strain on an already overburdened infrastructure.

“Reservoirs do not have the necessary capacity to meet the demand of the township. Failing aged electrical reticulation and equipment that is constantly tripping out under strenuous overloads to an extent that the medium voltage reticulation is failing.

“Overflowing sewer reticulation and failing sewer treatment plants that were not designed to handle the excessively high volumes of waste,” the memorandum stated.

In a statement, eThekwini Mayor Cyril Xaba said the city had no intention of giving back playgrounds and sports grounds to property developers.

“The municipality wants to put it on record that all parcels of land earmarked for development under the Phoenix Infill Housing project are zoned special residential areas and fall under the Human Settlements Unit.

“However, some of these sites were used as parks, playgrounds and sport fields. Realising that, the Human Settlements Unit engaged its planners and the sites were reallocated back to the Park and Recreation Unit. To that effect, a council resolution was passed to keep them as open public spaces,” Xaba added.

He said this was done in consultation with relevant stakeholders like the South African Football Association in Phoenix. 

“The process entails subdividing and rezoning of the affected sites which will be carried out in the next financial year as it has financial implications. Therefore, the suggestion or allegations that these sites have been given back to Human Settlements developers are incorrect and misleading,” he added.

Xaba said he planned to visit Phoenix to assure the community that the municipality had not reneged on the council resolution to hand over some of these sites to the Department of Parks, Recreation and Culture as open public spaces and sport fields. 

Tino Reddy, councillor for ward 49, said the Phoenix Infill Housing project was a council driven initiative which sought to maximise the usage of vacant municipal-owned land and facilitate housing development for the affordable market population within the city. 

“The project for the 17 sports fields was halted in 2018. No member of the local football association made any contact with me to verify if there was any development taking place as the ward councillor.

“They were fast to catch aspersions of councillors being corrupt and working with developers. These executives of the football association have made a huge mountain out of a molehill and have now associated themselves with civic organisations who love to paint a negative narrative against the councillors of Phoenix without any evidence,” Pillay added.

He said the protest was uncalled for.

“This was purely a misguided protest march by individuals who failed to check with the relevant officials to confirm if there were developments or not. A private individual was clearing the vegetation alongside the sports field. This was on the basis of creating additional parking bays because he had applied for an informal trade permit at the grounds. We immediately informed them to cease all activities with immediate effect and refrain from trespassing on the property, failing which we will seek legal action. 

“People assumed that he was a developer and he was clearing the place for a development. Being a sports enthusiast myself, I will always work in the best interests of the sporting community, whether they believe the gossip or not,” he added.

Pillay said this financial year, the municipality was expected to transfer all Phoenix sports fields to the parks department and for them to be rezoned.

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