Bid to spruce up city

TSHWANE: POISED TO ACT ON OWNERS OF NEGLECTED BUILDINGS

- Marizka Coetzer

A possible new bylaw to take action against owners who neglect or abandon buildings in the City of Tshwane is on the cards, according to the Tshwane MMC for corporate and shared services, Kholofelo Morodi.

After an oversight visit to some of the biggest dilapidated buildings, Morodi said their biggest concern was the safety hazard they posed.

Morodi said the bad buildings committee had identified 32 buildings between Steve Biko and Es’kia Mphahlele Drive that were either hijacked or bad buildings.

"Apart from the safety, they are attracting drug addicts and have become crime hotspots. So we had to engage with the department of public works and provincial government to understand what their plans are, because you can’t be transferring a building for more than five years."

"We can use our buildings; we don’t have to rent because we are spending a lot on rentals, which the city is starting to move away from," she said.