Function and History of B-Section Community Hall

The B-Section community hall fulfills many needs in the community.  It is one of two community halls in Monwabisi Park, it is open to all residents.  It currently serves as a place for church services, a soup kitchen, activities for children, community meetings, committee meetings, Safe Node Area Committee (SNAC) meetings, ANC meetings, Youth League ANC meetings, and more.  A typical weekly schedule is as follows:

Due to its high use, there was a desire to improve and expand upon the building.  The roof was leaking, the back wall was not complete, the floor had a gap and damaged area, the door did not fit to the door frame, the door lock did not function properly, the burglar gate was not on sturdy, the lighting was not satisfying, and the benches did not provide adequate seating.  By making these improvements and expanding the space the hall provides, even more members of the community could benefit from the hall’s existence.

It is hard to expand the hall because of its close proximity to people’s neighboring shacks.  Key informants told us that it would be important to talk with the shack owners to come to an agreement about the land if the desire was to expand horizontally.  In order to expand vertically, one would need to analyze the strength of the current structure.  Also, there is little experience with building multiple storey buildings in Monwabisi Park, which would present a major challenge.  Due to the limited space in the settlement, developing new community space is often difficult.  Building a new community center would require moving shacks and relocating residents.  Because it is extremely difficult to create new spaces, it is crucial to maintain and improve the current community halls.

Building Materials in Monwabisi Park:

Building materials are not as readily available in Monwabisi Park, but it is possible to buy lumber, nails, and zinc at shops located along Mew Way. Materials available in different sizes vary in price, for example lumber prices increase with length and nail  cost increases with size.  These costs are slightly higher than those at hardware stores; however, costs are incurred to hire transport to these stores.  One resident said that it costs him 200 Rand to hire private transport to travel to Black Heath, a common location to purchase supplies. Approximate costs for materials available on Mew Wey are shown below.