Page 14 - KZN Business Sense - KZN Chamber
P. 14

Making a difference
The official handover of
        a new media centre to         the resources required to            Project Build Trust                  After three years as a fund raiser  of Technology students the
        Menzi High School in          continue this trend. The media        Project Build Trust is a non-      and ten years at the helm of the     opportunity to work in their
                                      centre will be named in memory                                           Project Build Trust, CEO Suzanne     offices and at building sites in
Umlazi took place on the 19           of Felix Mshololo, the school’s      profit organisation that has        Edmunds is very passionate about     order to obtain work experience,
August 2016. The construction much loved principal who died                been constructing educational       the difference that the Trust        which is required to complete
of the media centre was enabled unexpectedly last year, and who            buildings in KwaZulu-Natal          can make to learners in poorly       their study programmes.
through a R1 million donation was instrumental in turning the              for 40 years. More recently         resourced schools and to the
from the state owned insurance school’s pass rate around.                  projects in Mpumalanga, the         communities in which they build.      Project Build is dependent on the
company Sasria and built by the                                            Free State and the Eastern          She said, “An important part of any  support of the donor community,
Project Build Trust.                   Muntu Ntombela, current             Cape have been undertaken.          project is ensuring that the buy in  which includes businesses and
                                      principal at Menzi High School       Project Build has been involved     from the key stakeholders in the     charitable trusts to carry out its
The south Durban school is            said, “The media centre will         in the construction of 6000         various communities we work is       important mandate of developing
among the top schools in the          continue to improve the quality      classrooms including libraries,     obtained and that the projects are   communities by building good
Umlazi District − one of the          of education at our school. The      laboratories, and computer          sustainable.”                        infrastructure.
best performers in KZN.  For          centre will also ensure that         rooms. Current projects include
the past five years the school has learners do not leave school            a house for disabled people, a       The Trust strives to empower         Consequently, the Trust is
obtained a 100% pass rate for the early to visit other media               transitional house for young        independent building contractors,    a vehicle for optimising socio
matric exams as well as a 95%         centres in the area. However,        people requiring mentoring,         while creating employment            economic development spend
bachelor’s degree pass rate. The there is still a need for more            a preschool classroom in            and passes skills on to the          as well as obtaining enterprise
new media centre will contribute funding to further equip                  Yellowwood Park, a medical          communities with which they          development points. n
greatly to ensuring that learners the centre with appropriate              clinic in Happy Valley and a        work. The Project Build Trust
at the school are able to access      resources.”                          library in Cato Crest.              also offers Durban University        www.sasria.co.za
                                                                                                                                                    www.projectbuild.org.za

Menzi High School Media Centre                                             Principal Muntu Ntombela and Sibongile Khumalo (CSI officer for Sasria)

PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARNERSHIP FOR EFFECTIVE URBAN

MANAGEMENT

Andrew Layman                         of attention which, at the same       In many countries of the world     of properties has increased from     Durban CBD and are themselves
                                      time, neglected the real CBD.        it has been shown that the best     R6 billion in 2006 to R21 billion    determined to promote urban
Whether one lives and                                                      management of public space is       in 2014, and some R35 billion        regeneration. Our beachfront
             works north across the    The effects of this neglect are     effected by partnerships between    just two years later. It is a most   must be managed so that its
             river, or retreats each  profound. Not only has the value     public entities and the private     attractive urban landscape, right    world-class potential is fulfilled,
day to the less frenetic western      of CBD properties declined to        sector’s property owners. They      in the heart of the city, close to   and we must resuscitate the
suburbs, the heart of Durban          the notable detriment of the city’s  have a vested interest in ensuring  just about every transport need.     fragile CBD heart, including the
is its central business district.     financial welfare, but the areas     that they yield satisfactory        There are high perceptions of        Warwick precinct with its great
Regrettably, it has become a          to the south of the city have also   returns in the form of higher       safety and commercial activity       tourism attraction.
part of the city which many           suffered; the effects of having the  rentals, higher market values and   flourishes. It is the home of many
seek to avoid, and its beat, at       back turned while the gaze to the    dynamic business activity. This     corporate offices. In 2015, the       The body which represents
least in a commercial sense, has      north is perpetuated. I’m told       has been shown in this country,     average occupancy rate across all    property owners, South African
weakened. But this is true only       that the suburban CBD of ‘Toti is    too, but, unfortunately, not in     commercial property categories       Property Owners Association
in the formal sense, for there        hardly recognisable such has been    our inner city, despite the best    was 90%, rising to 95% for those     (Sapoa), is in the vanguard
are thought to be at least ten        the extent of its decay.             efforts of the Urban Improvement    offering retail space.               of the private sector push for
thousand informal traders in the                                           Precincts which have been                                                constructive dialogue with the
Warwick Junction area alone,           The key to arresting urban decay    established in some areas there.     If it can be done there, it         Municipality in order to establish
where, incidentally, the number       – a phenomenon not unique to                                             can be done here. Cape Town          a formal strategic partnership
of people passing through each        South Africa, by any means – is       Our hope lies in a burgeoning      has thirty-five CIDs, and our        to tackle the issues of urban
day, approaches half a million.       the effective management of          public/private partnership          number of fewer than ten             management. Progress is being
Although plans to regenerate          public space. Buildings do not       involving the eThekwini             is paltry by comparison. It          made, but, as in so many things,
the central city go back to at        deteriorate first; their condition   Municipality and the business       requires strong political will and   it cannot be done overnight.
least 1997 when iTrump (Inner         follows the trend of the public      community, especially those         a determination not to shelve
Thekwini Renewal and Urban            space environment where              members of it who own property.     plans and recommendations, as         Andrew Layman has been
Management Programme)                 degeneration is promoted by lack     While we have model UIPs            has been done so frequently in       appointed by the KZN branch
was adopted by the city, the          of enforcement, and, very soon,      worth of emulation in Umhlanga      the past. At present, an urban       of the South African Property
heart has not been well cared         the lack of financial resources      Rocks, the one that we need to      generation plan is being crafted,    Owners Association to lead
for. Euphoria and pride in the        to attend to the problem.            learn from is the Cape Town         and will give excellent direction,   Urban Improvement projects in
exciting developments in the          This assumes the problem is          Central City Urban Improvement      but the real game-breaker will be    the city. n
north, where people spoke of a        recognised as such, of course,       District (Cape Town CCID)           action and delivery. We must
‘new CBD’, resulted in a focus        but recognition alone is clearly     which was established in 2000.      support large property investors     E-mail: layman.uip@gmail.com
                                      insufficient.                        Here, the municipal valuation       who have put their faith in the      Website: www.sapoa.org.za

14
   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16