DURBAN - The eThekwini Municipality has picked up where it left off last year, resuming monthly building inspection raids.
The municipality identified “problem” buildings that did not meet building regulations and municipal planning requirements and municipal health by-laws, and tried to get landlords to rehabilitate them.
These buildings are derelict in appearance or are showing signs of becoming unhealthy and unsanitary and appear to have been abandoned by the owners, regardless of whether or not rates or service charges are being paid.
The buildings are overcrowded some have been hijacked, with criminal activities being conducted in them.
More than 15 buildings were raided simultaneously in the Durban city centre and Point precinct by personnel from the eThekwini Fire and Emergency Department, eThekwini health, eThekwini building inspectorate and electricity and water units as well as the SAPS and Durban metro police.
The city has kept track of buildings that have transgressed several city by-laws and have issued warnings and fines to building owners to get them to clean up their act.
The Inner City Thekwini Regeneration and Urban Management Programme (iTrump) led by Hoosen Moolla spearheaded the monthly inspections in response to the urgent need to prioritise the regeneration of the inner city.
On Tuesday night, inspections were carried out in Percy Osborne Road, Maud Mfusi Street, Alexandra Street, Bertha Mkhize Street, Umgeni Road and Woodford Grove.
Most of the buildings inspected were warehouses or storerooms that had large floor-space areas partitioned to create rooms. Most did not have proper ventilation, had rat infestation problems, small rooms and poor ablution facilities.
A woman and her three children shared a room in Alexendra Road in the Durban CBD for a monthly rental of R2 300. The woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said the building was close to all amenities and she had no other option for accommodation.
“The toilets are in a terrible condition. We bath and use the loo in some of the makeshift cubicles. It becomes unbearably hot in these rooms and even a fan offers little comfort. We cannot keep the door open because of criminals, rats and cockroaches.”
One of the city’s worse buildings, Constantia, has 97 flats. The electricity supply had been disconnected years ago but officials said illegal connections were rife. The building had a water standpipe in the lobby.
Officials said this was dangerous because if a fire broke out there was no water on the floors above to contain it. Officials have taken the building owner to court. Officials said the building has a defunct body corporate and the court had appointed an administrator. The administrator told the court he needed money to fix the building.
Moolla said that the city needed more low-cost housing projects, to get rid of illegal accommodation facilities.
Environmental health officers ensured compliance in buildings while police dealt with the issues of crime, drugs and undocumented people.
A building in Bertha Mkhize (Victoria) Street had a biometric access control system.
Officials said this was an improvement but was also a mechanism to keep building inspectors out. Upstairs nothing had changed in the multi-storey building. Makeshift rooms were still cramped together and tenants complained about the value they were getting for the R1 800 they paid excluding prepaid electricity coupons.
One of the two-storey buildings in Woodford Grove, where rental was R2 800, had a fitted fire hose reel. Station Shelter in Umgeni Road still had terrible ablution facilities and makeshift rooms.
Police also raided two houses in which prostitution and drugs were rife in Percy Osborne Road. The well secured premises delayed police entry and possibly allowed occupants to escape via a back entrance. Both premises were empty when police entered. Items scatted on the floor and candles still burning were evidence that people had left in a hurry.
Police arrested several people for not having proper documentation to be in South Africa during the inspections.
The owners plastered notices at the entrance of the buildings warning of rental increases and rules and regulations. At Constantia building, a notice reminded residents to pay their rent and levies into the right account. Another notice read: one and a half bedroom - five persons only.
Daily News