The community of Oakgreen Gardens in Greenbury is breathing a sigh of relief following the trimming down of trees in the area which were blocking the streetlights and had become a cause for concern with rising crime giving residents sleepless nights.
Barbara Gounden, a resident of Oakgreen Gardens, said she was afraid after the trees overgrew and blocked out the street lights which increased the crime rate in the area. She said after contacting her ward councillor, on 25 August, she was delighted and relieved that by the following week, members of the relevant departments visited the area and started to trim down the trees.
“I have been dealing with the Parks and Gardens Department from 2020, however nothing was being done. After I contacted ward councillor, Michelle Lutchmen, within a week the issue was recognised and dealt with,” she said.
Gounden applauded all the people involved in escalating the matter and dealing with matter with the urgency that it deserved. “As a resident of Greenbury and having voiced many concerns to Lutchmen I was proud to call her my ward councillor. I want to also give thanks to Jay Chetty and Victor Chetty who came out, visited the area and trimmed down the tree,” said Gounden.
She added that Phoenix is known for having bad service delivery but was glad that this is slowly changing as the complaint was dealt with in a timely manner.
“With the tree being trimmed, there is light on the street during the night and it is not completely blocked off with darkness. I am hoping that through this, the vagrants and opportunists will no longer try and steal from the yards as the area will be well lit up,” said Gounden.
Ward 48 Councillor, Michelle Lutchmen, said the complaint was given by the resident and she thereafter reported it to parks department. “I had spoke to the area manager to attend a site visit. There were huge trees which were taller that the street lights and blocking the visibility in the area. Crime has also increased in the area due to lack off lighting. We are glad that the issues is resolved. I must thank the parks department officials for their swift response in getting those trees cut,” said Lutchmen.
She further encourages residents to bring service delivery issues to their attention so that they can be resolve and dealt with accordingly. To have your issue escalated contact the parks and gardens department on 031 322 1530, you will then be given a reference number. That number can then be given to your councillor, to follow up on the matter.
