Two comments in your paper last week (15 February), made me think. These were about Weltevreden Park and the Pikitup garden tip.
Firstly, we moved to Weltevreden Park in 1984, and lived there for 23 years, and people asked why we were moving so far out of town (JHB) –17km! We moved into Extension 1. I think Weltevreden Park has more extensions than anywhere else in Gauteng. We had a farm-house behind us, and cattle grazed on the other side of our fence.
Weltevreden Park was originally a farm, with several buildings already in the area before it became built up. The farm area originally included Weltevreden Park and extended as far as Fairlands, Panorama, Allen’s Nek, Radiokop, and Rand Park, before the brothers split and sold the land.
The original farm-house, which has been renovated, is in the middle of an office block, on JG Strydom Road. Another farm house on John Vorster Road (where the Second Cup is) is also now in the middle of a growing urban area.
In 1984, there were very few ways to get into the area. I recall that we used to go through the Hyperama grounds to get into Weltevreden Park. Haak-en-Steek Street was another way in and out, as was Jim Fouché Road. In 2018, those are still the only roads in and out! The highway was not anything like it is today!
In the area was one school, one nursery school, one shopping centre. At Hillfox there was a drive-in, there was a municipal dump site (well out of the way of the residential area at the time!). For spare time there was a driving range, the entrance being on Christian de Wet Road at the time, as behind it, it was all land and no roads or houses.
So what am I saying to those who are now complaining about the Council tip and other established businesses? Did you not see it before you purchased your house? When new houses are built, do you look to see what is around you? There have been new schools, a hospital, and new shopping centres erected in the past few years – did you even check whether floods in the area might cause a problem for your new home?
The roads are indeed a mess, no new ones have been built, and no resurfacing has been done in years. Jim Fouché Road is a real mess at the moment. In fact, on the 4 to 5km from Beyers Naudé Drive to the new Chamberlains store, the grass seems to only be cut once or twice a year, and you cannot see the kerb along most of the way – and if branches are cut off trees, or shrubs are cut, they are not cleared away and the grass just grows over them.
Weltevreden Park … it was a lovely area … once. However, we still love it and the surrounding area, despite all the negatives.
