Around 2014, the sports facility and stadium at Alra Park, near Nigel, was left unguarded. Poorly maintained to begin with, it was then severely vandalised. It closed in 2018, according to community representatives.
In 2019, the City of Ekurhuleni budgeted R11.5-million and committed to rebuilding the stadium in eight months.
The project stopped during the Covid pandemic. But when work resumed, there were more delays and issues with various contractors.
According to sports facilitator Hugh van Greenen, “So far over R12.4-million has been spent with little to show.”
He said the community has more than 18 senior and 16 junior soccer teams, who now struggle to train or host tournaments. They get ad hoc access to Mackenzieville Stadium, but it is insufficient.
Deacon Mthimkhulu, a 23-year-old player for the Alra Park soccer team, said players have been left demoralised.
Municipal spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said the restoration project includes a new pavilion, ablution and storage facilities, clear view fencing, floodlights, a gatehouse, and a parking area. But the sports field, turf and irrigation-related works will require finding additional funding.
Currently, roof sheeting and electrical works are still outstanding.
“The current phase is expected to be completed by the end of December 2025. Once this phase is finalised, the completed structure can be opened for use. However, phase 2, which encompasses the development of the sporting field and other outstanding components, will still require further budget allocation,” Dlamini said.
Swimming pool closed
Residents told GroundUp that problems with the Alra Park swimming pool, located near the stadium, started about five years ago when the circulation pump broke. It is still not working. The only other pool is in Nigel town and it is also closed. Children are now swimming in nearby dams, often without the knowledge of their parents.
Resident Janison Trevor Muller said that every year they are told that a budget has been allocated for the pool, and yet nothing is done.
The grass around the pool has not been cut for months and water in both the baby and main pools is stagnant and green.
Dlamini confirmed that the pump had failed. He said, “The City has been exploring all possible solutions, including attempts to repurpose old equipment.”
“The City will provide updates as soon as more information becomes available,” he said.
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Lack of schools: Shortage of schools and classrooms, leading to overcrowding.
Nacho
A British man on safari walks into a bar far out in the reaches of a game reserve in Southern Africa, he stays at the bar for a while shooting the shit with the bartender and drinking like a fish, he offer to buy the barkeep a round and since no one else is within 2km of their small oasis of liquor the barkeep obliges. The englishman goes off to the bathroom to have a good old go at the porcelain, he\’s back and ready for a few more whiskeys. He\’s just sat down when suddenly in the distance he hears a scream. He looks over his shoulder and dismisses it as nothing, he turns to the barkeep and orders a drink, takes a sip and hears the scream again. He looks at the barkeep who just shrugs it off. A minute or two later he and the barman hear it again and go outside to take a look. They see a lone figure running towards them screaming, he spots them and lets out a cry, RUN!!!!! HE\”S COMING!!!!!
The barkeep and the Englishman both look at the terrified bedraggled sight before them, and try to calm him down, but he\’s completely inconsolable. They give him water and finally manage to get a word out of him but he struggles free from their grasp and run away screaming.
A few minutes later the same thing happens with a whole group of men running in and screaming, he\’s coming, he\’s coming the barkeep grabs hold of one of the men as he tries to sprint past the bar and tries to get information out of him, again no response other than terrified gibberish.
The barkeep and his customer are starting to get worried, they start to pack up before another group of horrified natives run up to the bar most of them flee but one tries to hide behind the bar, the barkeep pulls out a shotgun and points it at the terrified man\’s face, finally managing to coax some words out of him. \”He\’s coming for us, Vernon Koekemoer is coming for us, we have to hide!!! We have to get out of here.\” He gets up and tries to run but the barkeep grabs him, feeling trapped in a panic he grabs the barkeeps shotgun and blows his own head off. The Englishman and the barkeep look at each other starting to really panic now.
They look out of the window and off in the distance they see a tornado coming towards the bar, at the bottom of the tornado they see the hugest beast of a man they have ever seen, as he gets closer they spot that he is riding a rhinocerous and using a crocodile as a riding whip, with each smack of the crocodile across the back of the rhino the louder is screams and the faster it runs, the tornado following it getting ever larger.
The 2 look at each other and start to fortify their position, they\’ve got a gun and they\’re waaay to drunk to run, so they start piling bar stool and tables and anything they can get their hands on to make sure they\’ll be safe when he arrives. They\’re not gonna make it, they can see the man slowing down his rhino, by now the crocodile is nothing but reptile paste on the bruised rump of the half dead rhino, the rhino drops down dead from exhaustion and crashes to the ground right outside the bar the tornado loses it\’s last breath in a cloud of dust as the huge man crashes his way through the make shift barricade and charges up towards the bar where the 2 men have taken shelter, he grabs a bottle of the hardest liquor on the shelf and down the entire litre in 1 gulp, he peers over the bar sobbing and sees the 2 defenders cowering down behind the crates of beer, they look up at the mans\’ face and he stares at them with a look of complete and utter hopelessness, he stares at them for a half second and half screams, half sobs, \”Oh my god what are you still doing here!!! WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE NOW!!!! Vernon Koekemoer is coming!!!!\”
Clover Rabbit
The quickest means of communication is to trust a girl with a rumor and then make her vow not to tell