MINUTES FOR THE MEETING OF THE 17th AUGUST 2016

MINUTES FOR THE MONTHLY PUBLIC MEETING OF THE
NEW KILLARNEY-RIVIERA ASSOCIATION
HELD AT THE MALL MANAGEMENT OFFICES (1ST FLOOR OFFICE TOWER)
ON WEDNESDAY 17 AUGUST 2016 AT 17H00

PRESENT: Wayne Ford (chairman); Raphael Ndlovu; Ruth Kuper; David Kramer; Harry Rutenburg; Clr Mia Snyman; Captain Moonsamy (SAPS); Trish Terry; Elena Joaquim; Faye Susser-Sher; Rochester Shen; Gisela Seidel; Christa Roller; Mike Kalk, Deon Pelser; Estelle Jacobs; Lenti Morison; Jonathan Hooijer.

1. WELCOME
The chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

2. APOLOGIES
Dean Dada; Dalien Rutenburg; George Kymdell; Julie Wilson; Vivian Cobbett; Charles Whyte; Paulo Joaquim; Katia Lodder; Valentino Gerber.

3. DISCUSSION OF TIME CONSTRAINT
• We will strive to keep the discussions short and relevant, so as to finish by 6pm.

4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING
• The Minutes of the previous meeting were taken as read, and were approved.

5. SECURITY FEEDBACK / SECTOR CRIME FORUM
• Captain Moonsamy presented the crime statistics for the last month. These were: 1 common assault; 2 common robbery; 3 theft of vehicles; 5 theft out of vehicles; 2 malicious damage to property. The car thefts were in a range of locations and on a range of different dates and times – there seems to be no clear pattern.
• 1st Street seems to be a bit quieter this month, although we need to continue to be vigilant – the trouble could flare up again at any time. The problematic blue Polo is still around. Please could all the neighbouring buildings try to get us a photo of that blue Polo in action, so that we can get the licence plate number and the police can trace the owner?
• Vision Tactical security have encouraged all residents to call their control centre if you note a problem in the area – 084 222 2222.
• A meeting was held of representatives of various buildings in 1st Street, to create a private-sector security solution to support the police. The meeting was also attended by the NKRA, the ward councillor, Captain Moonsamy and the JMPD, and we received professional input from two security companies. It was agreed that this project will be implemented. Wayne has had discussions with the Mall centre manager on the possibility of the Mall participating in this project, and the centre manager has undertaken to raise this with the Mall owners at their next meeting.
• It was reported that the Upper Houghton residents association has been researching a similar project, with an organisation called Excellerate. Wayne will contact the Upper Houghton leadership to get the details.
• It was suggested that the informal drinking parties in 1st street might be reduced if alternative social venues could be found for the people concerned.
• If you call the SAPS patrol van and get no response, please call the Hillbrow Joint Operations Command Centre on 011 488 6712 or call 10111.

6. FEEDBACK FROM COUNCILLORS
• Councillor Mia Snyman was congratulated on her re-election, and her resounding mandate. We look forward to continued excellent service from her, and we hope that the newly-elected Council will deliver the improved service delivery which they promised us before the election.
• The new excavations in the Riviera Road pavements have not yet been fixed. However we have identified the company responsible – called Link Africa – and they have undertaken to resolve the problem.
• The dangerous pavement trees in 2nd Street (between 2nd Ave and 4th Ave) have now been attended to by City Parks. Two trees were being hit repeatedly by tall vehicles because they were growing at a serious angle across the road toward the sun. The one tree was corrected by having the dangerous trunk removed, and it is now healthy and safe. The other tree however could not be resolved, because the dangerous trunk is the main trunk of the tree, and neither the residents nor City Parks were prepared to sacrifice the tree. The tree was substantially rebalanced by the removal of some of the most over-balanced branches, and is now less dangerous than before, but the core problem remains. The key issue is cars parking opposite the tree and forcing vehicles to squeeze past, or cars driving the wrong way along that one-way road. If these issues could be addressed, the safety issues would be resolved.
• Councillor Snyman committed to pursuing the JMPD ward commander to allocate more resources to Killarney-Riviera, and to the 1st Street area in particular.
• Clr Snyman has arranged for a city official to inspect the backyard shacks which are being built in the back yard of Martindale Mews. They have issued a formal notice that these shacks must be demolished. The owner has not yet taken action to comply, so now a second notice will be issued. If he again fails to comply he will be taken to court by the municipality.
• The ward committee has not been effective of late, as many members stopped attending and meetings were consistently unable to form a quorum. However new ward committee elections will now be held to reconstitute the ward committees. We will inform the community once the dates and venues have been decided.
• Election posters are being taken down by teams that need to attend to the entire city. They will get around to Killarney as soon as they can.
• There is still a serious hole in the road at the corner of Oxford Road and Riviera Road, which is a safety hazard. There is another serious hole in Oxford Road further south, about one block before the St Andrews intersection.
• The traffic lights at the intersection of Oxford Road and Riviera Road have been out of service for quite a while already.

7. ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
• We are delighted to announce that the security company RCS will be sponsoring the street-cleaning project going forward. The project cleans the streets and pavements in 1st Street and 2nd Street where the taxis and shoppers park, as well as 4th Ave all the way down. This includes clearing away the overflow of the dustbins. This sponsorship will allow us to extend and improve the project, and Dean was thanked for this generous contribution.
• The planning for the October Community Event in the park is gathering momentum. The event will be held on the last weekend of October. A jumping castle and a face painter will be present for the children. The local Youth Group which meets in the park will also undertake a variety of activities for the children. We will again have a netball/basketball competition, and some other games. Katia is arranging a variety of licensed food vendors. Dean of RCS has committed to provide us with security guards and a cleaning-up service. Vered will provide an ice-cream van. We are looking for sponsors for prizes for competitions please, and for the printing and distribution of marketing flyers. Stalls will be available to all who want them, free of charge, provided they bring their own furniture. If anybody else would like to join the project team, please let us know.
• The request to build a traffic circle at the intersection of 7th Street and Anerley Road will require a petition, so as to ensure the views of the affected residents are properly identified. The process will begin shortly.

10. FINANCE AND MEMBERSHIP
• We have had some resignations from the NKRA ExCo – Kayte, Laurence, Edna and Alexandra have resigned. Wayne, Charles and Jo remain. The constitution requires a minimum of four office-bearers, so we need to find a new treasurer. We will also need to find a volunteer to represent us at the Community Policing Forum.
• Wayne is presently acting as Treasurer, with Charles as the second bank signatory.
• We currently have 23 member buildings, and Wayne is talking to a few other buildings that have not yet renewed their membership for 2016.
• With the new sponsorship of the street-cleaning project by RCS Security, we again have enough funds to attempt further projects. Suggestions are welcome.

11. GENERAL
• The renovation of the Lhenveolan building in 1st Street is proceeding slowly. The underground parking has been waterproofed, the lobby has been renovated, the lawn has been replanted and now they are busy renovating the interiors of the apartments. They are using high-quality finishes, and when it’s completed that building will be a flagship of the area. The exterior will be repainted as the final step, so it won’t be finished for a while still.
• If any member building would like to get NKRA membership plaques, Kayte probably has some left over – please contact her directly.
• The Killarney Park residents raised the concern that the playground generates a lot of noise on a regular basis, which impacts negatively on their quality of life. In particular some individuals have been banging on the new metal “car”. This behaviour not only causes serious disturbance, in contravention of the by-laws, but it will also cause the car to wear out faster than it should. While children cannot be expected to play silently, there are reasonable limits. It was agreed that the park ambassador and the gardener will be asked to intervene whenever somebody is banging on the car – or on any other piece of equipment.

The meeting was closed, with thanks to the Killarney Mall for the use of their boardroom.

Our next meeting will be held on
WEDNESDAY 21 September 2016 at 5pm

PLEASE PASS ON THESE MINUTES TO OTHER RESIDENTS IN YOUR BUILDINGS