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Spring cleaning and greening for Wynberg Improvement District

potted garden in Wynberg Improvement District

As we move into Spring, we review our initiatives to landscape, green and keep clean the Wynberg CBD to improve the urban environment for residents, businesses and visitors to the area.

We also remind you to save the date for our upcoming AGM on 16 October at 10am. Venue to be confirmed. Subscribe to our newsletter in the footer below for updates.

Greening the Wynberg area

The Wynberg Improvement District seeks to create an inviting urban environment for all of the people living, shopping, working and visiting the Wynberg CBD. For this reason, the WID explored different ways to improve the landscaping and greening of the Wynberg urban environment.

Over the last two years, the WID placed tree cages around all the newly planted trees close to the library and Magistrates Court. In addition, the area was made more user friendly with the addition of wooden benches for seating and more plants to beautify the urban environment.

As part of our latest project, we have placed large pots along the wider sidewalks in Main Road, planted with plants to further green and enhance the urban landscape. Fortunately the WID also acquired a water trailer this year to assist with the watering of plants in pots throughout the area.

Wynberg subways now reopened

The safe movement of pedestrians is very important to the WID management. The Wynberg CBD is a highly congested area where pedestrians, buses, taxis, commercial vehicles, and cars often compete to cross the same area.  In addition, the railway line dissects the greater Wynberg area even though people still need to move from one side of the line to the other. Until the COVID pandemic, this movement was facilitated in part by several subways facilitating movement underneath the railway line and linking both sides of Wynberg for pedestrian use.

After some months of planning, these subways are now once again being reopened in a partnership between the City of Cape Town and the WID.  After cleaning and repainting the subways, the WID will assist the City in monitoring these areas and will lock the subways at 19:00 each night and open the subways at 07:00 on weekdays.

The subways will remain closed on weekends.

Wynberg ID water trailer

The Wynberg ID is constantly exploring ways in which to improve the urban environment.  One of the most frustrating aspects is the tendency for people to use secluded corners and sheltered alleyways to urinate. This creates a very unhygienic and negative bad-smelling impression of our walkways and sidewalks.

Similarly, acts of illegal dumping often contain household waste with leaking content.

Both issues needed serious action from the WID. Although, in partnership with the City’s sanitation teams, they provide water spraying activities in the WID area, they cannot get to all the places needing this attention.

The WID commissioned the fabrication of a 1500-litre water trailer this year and equipped it with a high-pressure pump and hose system.  This new addition to our arsenal of tools allows the WID team to hose down and clean small areas and sidewalks with the high-pressure water.

In addition, the high-pressure water trailer provides the opportunity to clean some of the green public litter bins in the area.  The water trailer can also be deployed to water some of the potted plants that we have placed in the WID to beautify the area. 

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Illegal Dumping: What It Is and How to Stop It

Did you know? That annually over 180 000 tons of waste are cleared from illegal dumping hot spots! That costs the city, and you as the taxpayer, a staggering R350 million a year just in clean-up. In other words, cleaning illegal dumping costs 20 times more than collecting waste from wheelie bins. That is why to create a clean, healthy and safe community we take our work tackling illegal dumping very seriously. 

“Illegal dumping is a severe problem that puts our community at risk of injury and illness and pollutes our ecosystem. In addition, illegal dumpsites can serve as magnets for other criminal activities,” says Gene Lohrentz, CEO of the urban management company, Geocentric. 

Here is what we have learnt when it comes to illegal dumping. 

What is illegal dumping?

Illegal dumping is the disposal of unwanted materials in inappropriate places. Be it household rubbish, building waste or industrial debris, improper disposal has disastrous effects on the environment, economy and community.

Our teams are dedicated to cleaning our community and have cleaned thousands of cases of illegal dumping in the last year!

Protecting Property Values

Our daily work with the City of Cape Town’s (COCT) Solid Waste By-law Enforcement Unit protects our district from plummeting property values. By cleaning, we keep our community member’s properties safe by preventing pest issues, blocked storm drains and plastic pollution.  

Clean streets don’t just look great, they also improve the value of properties. The study ‘Value of cleaner neighbourhoods’ found that residents will pay up to 57% more to live in a clean neighbourhood. By being part of the solution business owners can help protect and even increase the market value of their property and make their establishments more inviting for customers. 

Protecting Public Health 

Vermin are attracted to dump sites making these sites sources of disease and infection. Anyone near a dump site risks getting sick both from the hazardous materials dumped and from the diseases spread by rats. These diseases aren’t only formidable – they’re often fatal. Rat urine is responsible for diseases like Leptospirosis ( causing kidney and liver damage) and Hantavirus, a debilitating viral bronchial disease. Rats also gnaw at cables, transformers and electrics causing expensive damage to businesses.

By cleaning up this waste before it attracts vermin, we put a stop to these health hazards before they happen. 

Preventing Floods 

Water sustains life, but it can also cause widespread destruction, as we saw during the recent flooding in KwaZulu-Natal. As our most precious and essential resource we must treasure it – for if we don’t, we will suffer. 

Illegal dumping is a terrifying threat to the water management of our district. When it rains, excess litter is swept into drains and sewers, blocking them and causing trash flash floods. Flooding, and the infrastructure damage it causes, puts immense pressure on emergency services when they are needed most.

To make sure our city can handle the rain we collect all dumping regularly and clean the stormwater drains as part of our winter preparedness programme. 

Pulverizing Plastic Pollution

A large percentage of waste illegally dumped is plastic. We are well aware that its consequences are far-reaching, but we are tackling this challenge too. When possible, we sort the waste and recycle what we can instead of sending it all to a landfill. By sorting recyclables, we help reduce the waste in our waterways and create employment opportunities. 

We understand it’s almost impossible to recycle all waste. However, we also know that big things have small beginnings. We all make small changes to bring about positive collective transformation.  Where possible, we must all take the opportunity to recycle.

How You Can Help Combat Illegal Dumping?

The COCT provides the tools necessary to crack down on illegal dumping and needs citizens to get involved. By reporting dumping you help the City make improvements and encourage others to do the same. Plus, it’s an easy way to beautify your neighbourhood and help keep it safe.

Although the issue is vast, if we all play our part together, we can create a greener, cleaner future for ourselves and future generations.

If you spot something, say something!

To report illegal dumping in your community:

  • Call 0860 103 089 or email solidwaste.bylaw@capetown.gov.za.  
  • If you have the culprit’s vehicle registration number and/or can identify him/her you can shortcut the process and call 021 400 6157 

Contact details: 

If you have any safety concerns to report, please contact one of the following numbers:

·       10111 – SAPS (South African Police Services)

·        107 – City of Cape Town Disaster Management

·        021 565 0900 – Geocentric Control Room 

 

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Welcoming a new year, new challenges and new triumphs

As we charge into 2022, there is undeniable trepidation surrounding the new challenges and triumphs the year will bring. This year we will continue to create an urban ecosystem that is safe, accessible and inviting to all the workers, visitors and community members of our district. As in years before, we are unwavering in our commitment to the property and business owners of our area and intend to consolidate and elevate our services based on the successes of last year.  

In 2022 we strive to:  

  • Create a safe and clean public environment by addressing issues of maintenance and by cleaning our streets, pavements and public spaces.  
  • Increase public safety through proactive visible patrolling and by supporting the efforts of the SAPS, City of Cape Town and private security providers.  
  • Manage existing and new public infrastructure for the future benefit of our community members.   
  • Decrease property-related crime to protect community members through our security-related partnerships and to protect property values to attract new investment to the area.  
  • Support the promotion of the businesses in our area by implementing urban greening, promoting energy efficiency initiatives, widening our recycling networks and bettering our risk and disaster management services.  
  • Support and promote social responsibility in the area and assist with the management and upliftment of people living on the streets.  
  • Encourage the maintenance and upgrading of private properties and public spaces in the area. 

We believe in the heart of our institution that the challenges we face are not insurmountable. 

Together with the City of Cape Town, our partners, outreach initiatives and local business owners, we will continue to strive towards reinvigorating our urban environment. Ultimately, together we can create a stable, safe, clean area that is prosperous for our community both economically and socially.  

Headlines from the City  

The City of Cape Town warns to be aware of scammers posing as electricity officials to gain access to your wallet and home. All officials will have an identification card with the City logo, with their name and surname and a photo. If you have any doubts call the COCT on 0860 103 089 to confirm their ID and work order number. 

The City of Cape Town urges their suppliers to be cautious of fake Request for Quotation (RFQ) emails sent to them, as if it is being sent from the City. Please report any suspicious emails to the City for further investigation.  

Struggling to pay your rates and taxes? The City of Cape Town has a wide range of financial relief options available. To learn more, click  here.   

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Our Facade Improvement Programme- Building a Better Future

Bestselling entrepreneurial author Jim Rohn once said, “The good things we build – end up building us”. In the Wynberg Improvement District (WID) district, our streets are no utopia, but at WID we are committed to collaboratively improving our community. We believe that improvement is contagious – which is why we have initiated our Facade Improvement Programme (FIP). The FIP is specifically designed to encourage businesses, like yours, to invest in the curb appeal of your premises. Knowing that we at the Wynberg Improvement District are working to protect your property from vandalism and malicious degradation.

The FIP is part of an investment journey that we as business owners, community members, municipal bodies and the WID walk. Ultimately, we work to repair urban decay and improve the socio-economic environment of the Wynberg Improvement District.

Our Facade Improvement Programme is a tool for inner-city revitalisation based on the formal processes successfully used in American cities. The protocol is well documented to restore citizens local pride, create a unique urban character, and repair the functionality of an urban area. Studies by the University of Wisconsin found that even small outlays have a positive impact on landlords, business owners and employees.

Wynberg Improvement District – Keeping the streets clean of litter to make sure that your facade improvement remains clean and attractive to your new visitors.

For Property Landlords Facade Improvement can:

  • Generate more revenue due to new occupancy in previously unoccupied commercial spaces.
  • Increase the economic return with existing renters due to facility and facade improvements.
  • Improve the resale value for landlords looking to sell their property.
  • Make interior improvements more cost-effective and efficient due to running the construction in conjunction.
  • Grow the number of first-time customers by up to 80%.
  • Improve sales by up to 90% for people with businesses in mixed-use areas.
  • Provide publicity and recognition to pique the interest of new, diverse customers thereby stabilizing businesses’ income stream in times of economic instability.
  • Create healthy competition by making other local businesses feel an urgency to improve their facades and facilities to maintain a competitive edge.

It’s clear that facade improvements are a catalyst for many positive changes. By attracting new customers and tenants they help inject more capital into our community thereby improving the financial microclimate of the Wynberg Improvement District. Not to mention, increasing the overall employee engagement and morale by creating a positive working environment.

Wynberg Improvement District (WID) – Keeping the area free from posters on bins, streetlights & road signs

At the Wynberg Improvement District, we are working alongside you to make a positive impact by:

  • Keeping the streets clean of litter to make sure that your facade improvement remains clean and attractive to your new visitors.
  • Removing all graffiti tags which aids in keeping your area safer by hindering criminal syndicates from targeting your business.
  • Keeping the area free from posters on streetlights, road signs and boundaries such as fences.

As part of our urban community, you can help us by:

  • Adding appropriate, well-designed custom signage to help employees and customers know where you are, where they should park and where they enter to stop them from passing your business by.
  • Improving the aesthetic of your facade by adding lighting, resurfacing with cladding and paint, and adapting details such as decorative awnings, trims, and cornices.
  • Rejuvenating architectural features on larger investments such as windows, entrances, and doorways.
  • Improving the accessibility of your property with ramps, rails, wider doors, and sanitation stations that do not obstruct the flow of foot traffic.

Through the Facade Improvement Programme, we work tirelessly to protect your investment from being damaged and pride ourselves on providing swift and efficient intervention should a challenge arise. Ultimately, we want to help our community become a clean, healthy and safe place to work, live and thrive.

We would love to see what you are working on so please share your #goodnews!

You can contact us and share your story about how you are improving our area via info@wynbergid.co.za

If you have any concerns to report, please contact one of the following numbers:

  • SAPS (South African Police Services) 10111
  • City of Cape Town Disaster Management- 107
  • Geocentric Control Room – 021 565 0900

  

 

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