Halloween picnic

Sunday, 30 October 

Living Link

1, 17th Street

10am to 2pm

Come dressed for halloween. There will be prizes for the best dressed.  Bring your picnic, relax and enjoy the music and good company.

Boerewors rolls and cool drinks will be on sale.

Solar powered geyser - group buying option.

Heidi has worked with a service provider to arrange a discount for Parkhurst residents. Please email business@parkhurst.org.za for more details.  There will be a live demo of the system at the Halloween picnic on Sunday, 30 October.

Domestic Watch meetings

St Paul's Church, 12th Street, Parkhurst.

2012 meetings will take place on the last Tuesday of the month at 2pm. 

NEXT MEETING: 17 November 2011, 2pm

This initiative is supported by Pam Golding. 

Domestic Watch end of year certificate ceremony

There is an end of year certificate ceremony taking place on 17 November. Participants will need to pay R100 for a ticket towards this. The event will take place for most of the morning and the association will arrange taxi's and food for the event for the participants. Email safety@parkhurst.org.za for more information.

Join the Facebook Group: I Love Parkhurst   

City of Johannesburg - Sorry, giant billboard objection IGNORED

A number of objectors to the proposed billboard on ERF1173 received a letter from the council yesterday to advise them that their objection had been unsuccessful and the proposed Billboard has been approved.

The proposed billboard is to be 9.1mx6.5m, 59m2 at ERF1173 which belongs to Hollyberry properties. This company was also the applicant for permission to erect a billboard.

Cheryl Labuschagne, previous Chairman of the Parkhurst Village Residents Association who highlighted the issue and raised the movement for objections says the following:

“This issue needs to be escalated immediately. I will ask for comment from the people standing in our ward in the upcoming local elections and will contact the Gazette to make this public. The arrogance of the City decision makers is just staggering and everyone who has heard the news is livid. We have 21 days from today to submit an appeal, which will cost R3,352.00.

I would be most appreciative of any ideas on how to address this issue. Every single residential community is now seriously threatened with excessive and abhorrent visual pollution.”

If we are forced to look at a giant billboard every time you drive to your home, what is the point in beautifying pavements? We need to work to beautify the whole suburb, and advertising billboards do not fit the Parkhurst Village feel.

Your active participation in seeking to achieve the look and feel of the Village we all want would be appreciated. Please engage with Cheryl with your support, objection or contribution towards the action.  chair@parkhurst.org.za
 

Urgent Objection to Huge Parkhurst Billboard

Application has been made to the City for the erection of a 6,5 metre x 9,1metre billboard in Parkhurst. This is 59.1 square metres! The proposed billboard is to be erected on erf 1173, at the corner of Twelfth Street and Fourth Avenue, in the very heart of Parkhurst village. This the building that houses Antigone, Nan Roberts Estates and the Chemist.

As an example, AdReach (this is not the applicant) describes their 9 x 6 (54 m2) billboards as the “freeway spectacular concept” billboard. Last time I drove down Fourth Avenue in Parkhurst it had not been changed into a freeway or motorway. 

The deadline for objections is tomorrow, 25 January 2011. Should you wish to make a personal objection, please feel free to use this link to the objection as a template, or word your own. Objections must be e-mailed to the two addresses on the letter and also faxed to the office of the City Manager at 011-339-1244. Please be sure to insert your personal details in the highlighted areas. The Parkhurst Village Residents’ Association will also put in a general objection on behalf of the community.

Feel free to forward this mail to anyone you feel may wish to strengthen our voice. Apologies for the last minute notice, but the PVRA has been waiting for information on the application from the applicant - without any joy. We have done the best we can under the circumstances.

Cheryl Labuschagne, PVRA Chair.
 

BP Garage development site does NOT get go ahead!..... yet.

You may have seen the article in the recent Rosebank and Killarney gazette, 10 December 2010, with regards the development at the old BP Garage site. We are concerned that the PVRA’s view (as representative of the residents) was misconstrued. Please see the details below of the current position as noted in a letter to the journalist, Heather Walker.

If you have any questions on the state of the discussions surrounding the development, please email Cheryl - chair@parkhurst.org.za or Bridget - action12@parkhurst.org.za Letter to Heather Walker – RKG.“Thank you for your coverage of developments in Parkhurst. I fear, however, that the message that the PVRA has “given the green light” is premature. The PVRA, as stated in my earlier mail, “feels that the BP Development will, on balance, enhance Parkhurst as a neighbourhood” and we do indeed hope that the issues will be formalised shortly.
The PVRA has engaged with the developer to negotiate a position that benefits all parties and these terms are noted on the PVRA website. There remain, however, a number of outstanding issues. The final objections and decisions will be taken to a Tribunal and therefore the developer has in no way been “given the go ahead”. Amongst the issues to be resolved include a number of Town Planning related issues. Having taken advice on the matter, it is in the best interest of residents that certain conditions be included in the zoning conditions for the erven in question. For that to happen, the matter must go to Tribunal. The PVRA is certainly not attempting to stymie the process of development. Rather, we are looking to entrench principles of good neighbourliness in the zoning conditions where possible. The PVRA has not “approved” the building. Rather is has entered into negotiations to facilitate a structure which we hope will work well as a commercial space without compromising the residential amenity of Parkhurst.We have been most encouraged by Mr Bakos’ willingness to engage with the community and appreciate all the effort taken to meet the needs of the community.”

BP Garage Development in 4th Ave

The PVRA has been involved in ongoing discussions with Sheldon Bakos regarding the proposed developments at the site of the old BP garage on Fourth Avenue. Amongst the issues discussed were:

• Parking – on site parking will be provided. Boomed access will enhance security whilst the planting of trees will serve to reduce the impact on neighbouring properties
• Refuse – the refuse area will be under roof to contain noise and other pollution. No bottle discards will be made after 22:30
• Structure – all extraction systems will be internal, i.e. channelled within the building. Lattice work will be incorporated into the design to enhance the privacy of adjacent properties
• Landscaping – the inclusion of trees on the site will be included in the zoning conditions. Planter boxes will be used along Fourth Avenue to ensure that pedestrian traffic is not compromised
• Lease conditions – no bars or places of entertainment will be allowed in the development. A nuisance clause will be included in all lease agreements signed by tenants. Should a tenant cause repeated nuisances their lease may be terminated. The contravention of any law or by-law (or any other local, provincial or national regulation) will constitute having created a nuisance. Noise regulations are of particular importance in this regard
   

The PVRA feels that the BP Development will enhance Parkhurst as a neighbourhood. It is now imperative that as a community we remain vigilant to ensure that the development criteria continue to be respected. The PVRA trusts that the issues discussed and agreed upon will be formalised very shortly.

Below is an image that shows the proposed building from the cnr of 4th Ave and 13th St.

This image that shows the proposed building plan.

Trees are to be planted around the customer parking spaces to improve the aesthetic of the site.

New Meter Readers

The new meter reader company in Parkhurst is now Rubby Tad. People can call 011-494-2917 for info. They can fax their readings to 011-494-2926 or email rubby-tad@mweb.co.za around the 20-25th of each month. They will need to include their name, acc # and meter #. 
 

About Parkhurst

Parkhurst is located in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg. While it is quite small, it is densely developed with over 2,200 plots each typically occupying an area of about 500m2.

Parkhurst is an eclectic neighbourhood, that has the best of the best. A vibrant European sidewalk cafe culture with some of the best restaurants in Joburg. We are neighbours who know each other's names and greet each other while having breakfast at the local coffee shop on Saturday morning. Our children play in the streets and local park and we LOVE our dogs. Anything up to 100 dogs are being walked at Verity each evening, while the owners chat and enjoy the real Village community.

The Parkhurst Village Resident Association (PVRA) is the volunteer elected representative body of the residents of Parkhurst. The PVRA also represents the 4th tier of government - acting as the link between the residents and the various authorities who run the city and the country.

Residents are encouraged to participate in the community by participating in topical discussions at meetings and contributing by paying a small annual fee to play an active role in moulding the suburb and managing changes that affect our lives.