30-day ultimatum for Gweru building owners

ELIAS MAGINYA IN GWERU

The Gweru City Council (GCC) has given owners of dilapidated buildings in the central business district up to the end of this month to fix them or they will be demolished, Business Times can report.

City of Gweru s p o k e s p e r s o n , V i m b a i Chingwaramusee said the dilapidated buildings pose a threat to public safety and notices of notices of demolition have been issued.

“After the meeting (this week), we are now waiting for the expiry date of the advert that we flighted. Its expiring at the end of January and some are even coming through to ask how best they can improve their buildings. For us to be a prosperous and sustainable city of choice by 2030 we need to have beautiful buildings. We hope for the best,” she said.

GCC town planner Tapiwa Marerwa said: “We have been approached by various stakeholders pertaining to the state of our buildings in the city. They are very bad. Most of them are generally not being maintained.”

He said some of the buildings have been abandoned and are accommodating vagrants.

Business Times can report that the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act empowers the local authority to take action on structures in bad condition, which the council sees as a danger to the citizens.

Marerwa said owners of the properties targeted for demolition have been notified.

“We issued notices to the owner or property agent which clearly specifies the observation and recommendations as well as a time frame to fix the properties. If there is no action taken, according to the law, we will then approach the court to force compliance. And buildings that are no longer safe, we require them to be demolished,” Marerwa said.