Msunduzi cannot say how much it spent on this vandalised community centre

This community centre in Edendale was never finished. Msunduzi Municipality has failed to provide details on how much was spent. Photos: Joseph Bracken

• A community centre in Edendale that was nearly complete by 2019 was never finished after construction unexpectedly stopped.

• The abandoned building has since been vandalised, stripped of infrastructure, and turned into a dumping site.

• The municipality wants to repurpose the facility, but some community members argue the site should be handed over to the community.
• Asked how much has been spent, the municipality said it is “consolidating and verifying historical project records”. But “repurposing” the building will cost R12-million.

A large community centre remains incomplete in Edendale, a township just outside of Pietermaritzburg. The double-storey structure appeared to be almost completed in 2019, but was never finished.

The centre, located in ward 22, has now become a dumping site following years of neglect.,

Community members first heard about the idea to construct a community centre in 2011, with construction starting around 2017, said Ikhwezilokusa Development Programme chairperson Madoda Hlophe.

Around 2019, a roof was placed on the building, and construction seemed near completion, said Hlophe. However, work on the project abruptly stopped and never restarted.

In the following years, the building began to fall into disrepair, with vandalism and illegal dumping frequently taking place, he said.

When GroundUp visited the site in May, refuse was piled up both inside and outside of the structure, and the interior had been stripped of wiring and plumbing. The roof was also missing and puddles of water pooled on the floor.

Msundizi spokesperson Ntobeko Mkhize said the project was originally intended to accommodate youth empowerment programmes, skills development, and community support services.

However, the project was derailed due to vandalism and destruction of infrastructure, said Mkhize. “These criminal acts resulted in significant damage to the facility and undermined progress towards completion.”

In answer to questions on how much had already been spent on the project, Mkhize stated that the Municipality was “consolidating and verifying historical project records”. When asked how long this would take, Mkhize suggested GroundUp submit a Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) request for the information, as the person who used to run the project had retired.

Mkhize did not answer several other questions, including when the project began and what the original budget was.

Municipal reports on the project are also vague, only referencing a “youth centre” in ward 22 needing to be completed. No budgets or timelines for the project seem to be publicly available.

The first mention of a centre in Edendale is in the 2017/18 annual report, announcing the submission of a report to a Bid Specification Committee for the appointment of a contractor and consulting engineer for the development of a centre.

The Integrated Development Plan (IDP) for the 2018/19 Financial Year also mentions the “completion of the youth centre” in ward 22 under the Municipal Needs section.

The municipality is now exploring interventions to repurpose the facility and ensure it does not remain underutilised, said Mkhize.

The repurposing of the facility into a skills development and community training centre targeting persons living with disabilities, youth and women, at a cost of approximately R12-million, has since been proposed, said Mkhize.

But Hlophe says the project stands as a reminder of wasted money.

“Funding of that magnitude could have served projects for housing and sewerage lines. Those are things that we still don’t have in parts of our communities, which are basic.”

Hlophe said the project should be handed over to the community, who he thinks would do a better job at restoring and maintaining the facility.

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