Concerns linger on new mall development
ALEXANDRA - Limited consultations on mall irks some Alex land claimants.
Concerns of exclusion linger around the development process of the new Alex Mall soon to be opened for trading.
Located on a vacant piece of land said to be part of the unresolved land claims in the township, land claimants are said to be wondering how the land of the mall was acquired. This as many of them have been waiting for more than 20 years to receive title deeds to their properties and land, and claim no knowledge of a mall being one of the claimants.
Speaking guardedly, community representative Karel Monyapeo said despite limited consultations on its development, the process should have been protracted and thoroughly inclusive to allay all concerns among the claimants who, he said felt left behind.
Read: Councillors sing praises of the new Alex Mall which is set to launch at the end of March
“Some among us have age and others died, leaving their dependents, with some in child-headed households, wondering how and if they will ever get their land back. The inclusive consultation would have helped them to know of other alternatives to acquire their land. This is the saddest part about the mall [because it didn’t show claimants how to go about it],” Monyapeo said.
He added that the land in question, was also said not to be registered to anyone, yet a multi-million rand infrastructure investment was built and he wondered how issues of liability will be handled in case of problems arising.
He said, at one point, labourers came from elsewhere to clear the land and had to be stopped by incensed residents who hadn’t been informed of the development. He said some youth members demonstrated, seeking answers on how they would benefit from the development. “This led to limited consultations particularly with some sectors like businesses which have been promised trading spaces,” Monyapeo said.
Despite this initial snag, he said the mall was generally accepted by the public for the services it will render and hoped that its management will reciprocate to residents’ goodwill by engaging them in most of the jobs where they qualify. “They were asked to submit their CVs and it will be proper to engage them first and to give reasons to those who will not be successful.”
Read: The community of Alex stands to benefit immensely from the creation of the new Alex 100 Mall
He urged Spaza owners concerned about losing customers not to be too worried, as the competition was the main thrust of business. “The market area is still large and more malls are still to be built in the area to carter for the huge Riverpark, Tsutsumani, Ext 7, Kelvin and greater Alexandra population.”
Local ward 105 councillor Teffo Rapadu advised the concerned claimants that the land for the mall was developed as part of government promoting private and public partnerships to help create jobs and business opportunities, decentralise development and make services more accessible, particularly to formerly marginalised areas.
Mpho Motsumi, of Greater Alex Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the land in question was not part of the contested claims and was purchased by the mall owners, Alex properties, from the Joburg City Council.
Motsumi sympathised with them and urged the government to resolve the claims expeditiously and added that the claimants may also want to use their title deeds as collateral for other things.
Details: Teffo Rapadu 074 351 4843.
