Woodstock Improvement District 2022 roundup & safety tips for the holiday season

2022 has been a year for celebrating successes for Woodstock Improvement District and tackling new and ongoing challenges. With our new five-year business plan term commencing in July 2022 we renew our commitment to providing top-up services to the City of Cape Town with a special focus on public safety, urban cleaning and management, continuing to lead the charge in the continual improvement of Woodstock as a residential and business area.

As we round up 2022 following our recent AGM held in November, we recap on the year’s work, successes and statistics.

Woodstock Improvement District 2022

Woodstock Improvement District’s achievements of the last year are a testament to the team’s commitment, experience and increased on-the-ground presence  –  led by the capable hands of Geocentric, who have been working with city improvement district initiatives since 2001 and responsible for a total of thirteen of Cape Town’s improvement districts from Salt River through to Strand, Tyger Valley and Wynberg.

“The rollercoasting aftermath of Covid lockdowns steadily calmed down in 2022, yet conditions remained difficult as significant increases in the cost of living and the continuous challenges of load-shedding remained at the forefront,” says Gene Lohrentz, director of Geocentric.

“In the face of these new challenges, the WID board and management team have remained steadfast in our commitment to providing high-quality top-up services in Woodstock. Embracing and implementing adaptability into our vision now seems entrenched in our day-to-day operations as well as our strategic thinking.”

2022 Woodstock Improvement District stats

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Spring update: upgrade to Woodstock Town Hall Park and spring cleaning our community

What better focus for Spring than cleaning and greening? Our Woodstock community has recently benefited from an upgrade to the Woodstock Town Hall Park, which was ceremoniously opened along with the new Woodstock Town Hall by Cape Town Mayor Geordin Gwyn Hill-Lewis.

The WID cleaning team has had its hands full – and we had a special visit from learners from the Holy Cross High School, working towards a cleaner environment.

And while we battle with illegal dumping on a daily basis, you can join us in the fight to crack down by reporting any illegal activity through the correct channels.

Woodstock Town Hall Park upgrade - Image credit: City of Cape Town
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Gwyn Hill-Lewis opens the new Woodstock Town Hall and park at the Woodstock Community Open Day. Image credit: City of Cape Town
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Woodstock 2022 – results update from WID

Rounding up the financial year, Woodstock 2022 has seen some great results from WID, our city improvement district.

The Woodstock Improvement District works together with residents, local businesses and urban management specialists to create a rich urban environment where the Woodstock community can thrive.

Together with the City’s Cleansing Department and the SAPS, we provide public safety and urban cleansing services to boost the sanitation and safety of the Woodstock area. View Woodstock 2022 Map

Working towards our most important goals – public safety, cleaning and urban management – here are some of our achievements for the last quarter of 2022.

Visit our Contact page for more details and our About page for more information about WID.

Visit capetown.gov.za for more City of Cape Town Emergency Numbers.

 Illegal Dumping: What It Is and How to Stop It

Did you know? Annually, over 180 000 tons of waste are cleared from illegal dumping hot spots! That costs the city, and you as the taxpayer, a staggering R350 million a year just in clean-up. In other words, cleaning illegal dumping costs 20 times more than collecting waste from wheelie bins. That is why to create a clean, healthy and safe community we take our work tackling illegal dumping very seriously. 

“Illegal dumping is a severe problem that puts our community at risk of injury and illness and pollutes our ecosystem. In addition, illegal dumpsites can serve as magnets for other criminal activities,” says Gene Lohrentz, CEO of urban management company Geocentric

Image: Tracey Adams/African News Agency(ANA)

Here is what we have learnt when it comes to illegal dumping. 

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Blown Away – How we are preparing to weather the Cape of Storms

The saying goes that ‘Great floods flow from simple sources’. As we prepare for the harshness of the howling gales and pelting rain that make up Cape Town storms, we couldn’t agree more. Many of us are even more conscious now of the pivotal role that winter preparation plays in city management – and what the lack of it can look like – in the aftermath of the 2022 KZN floods

“A combination of terrain challenges, insufficient or ill-maintained infrastructure and increased population density are the main contributors to flooding problems,” says Gene Lohrentz, CEO of urban management company Geocentric, and current management team of the Woodstock Improvement District.

rain Cape Town weather winter preparedness

Here is how we at WID are making sure we are ready to weather the storm: 

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Request for Proposal – Woodstock Improvement District (WID) CCTV Extension Project

The Board of the WID has taken the initiative to extend the CCTV camera network of the WID.  The proposed intervention will focus on supporting the current public safety and urban management activities thereby contributing to securing the area and driving incidents of crime down.

The project will focus on the implementation of additional Static and PTZ cameras.

The detailed Request for Proposal document can be found here.

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Helping the homeless to build a sustainable future

Mahatma Gandhi famously said, “The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members.” As South Africans, we are sometimes desensitised to the poverty that permeates our ordinary lives. We become used to the sight of the radical impact our ever-expanding gap between the haves and have-nots creates. While most of us would like to help, many people are uneducated on the extraordinarily complex issues that create and sustain homelessness. 

Due to our own basic understanding of these ever-evolving issues, it makes a greater difference when we partner with and give back to organisations equipped with the infrastructure, skill and experience to combat homelessness and help in a sustainable way.

“Handouts of cash given to desperate – often mentally ill people – add fuel to the same addictions that put them on the streets. Institutions such as our partners at MES have spent decades building, perfecting and maintaining the social infrastructure to efficiently maximise the impact of our donations, and the results are inarguable,” says Jaco Wessels, COO of our appointed urban management company, Geocentric.  

Here are our top recommendations of non-profit organisations active in 2022 and how to  contribute to their vision responsibly

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How to Prepare Your Property for the Festive Season

After a challenging 2021, filled with great uncertainty and change globally, many of us are looking forward to wrapping things up for a well deserved holiday with family and friends. Ensuring that your property is secure and your business protected is the best Christmas gift you can give yourself and will give you the peace of mind that will allow you to relax and recuperate. 

Here are our top security tips to keep your property safe so you can enjoy the merry season: 

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Year-end update 2021 – 5-year term extension for WID & 2021 stats

Good news for Woodstock and the Woodstock Improvement District. The recent AGM, held on 3 November 2021 at the WID offices, has seen the approval of the new 5-year term extension of the Woodstock Improvement District from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2027.

Providing top-up cleaning and security services to one of Cape Town’s oldest residential and business nodes since May 2005, the Woodstock Improvement District has been under new management since September 2020. Led by Geocentric, who have been working with city improvement district initiatives since 2001 and responsible for a total of eleven of Cape Town’s improvement districts including WID and the nearby Salt River, Maitland and Wynberg, the WID’s successes of the last year are a tribute to this team’s experience and increased on-the-ground presence with more security personnel than ever before.

2021 Woodstock Improvement District stats

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Climate action, Cape Town and you – living a more sustainable life

While Spring makes us think “green”, it’s not all spring flowers and baby birds that are in the air. Climate change and its proactive counterpart, Climate Action, is on the world’s collective consciousness with COP26 beginning on 31 October in Glasgow, culminating in this year’s Climate Action Day on 4 November and millions of people across the world who will be out marching for climate justice on Saturday 6 November. Last month Global Day of Climate Action on 25 September, held by Fridays for Future, saw 3500 towns and cities get involved, and this month is also Youth Climate Action Day on 23 October.

But let’s take a step back…

What is Climate Change?

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