South Africa’s first clear-water lagoon is Pretoria’s new ‘beach’

Landlocked Pretoria just got a new ‘beach’ thanks to South Africa’s first clear-water lagoon. It took Balwin Properties two years to make history in Sub-Saharan Africa, by constructing the first ‘beach’ of its kind. The Blyde, which officially opened on 8 September, is an exclusive housing estate in Pretoria East, which features 1.5-hectare The Blyde. Cost of construction While it’s unlikely to replace the seasonal exodus to coastal hotspots, Pretoria’s new ‘beach’ and residential complex provides an unusual oasis for residents of The Blyde. The project, which was spearheaded in partnership with Crystal Lagoons in 2016, cost an estimated R4.2 billion to construct and is only accessible to residents of The Blyde. While The Blyde’s lagoon is definitely the main attraction, other facilities include a restaurant, gym, spa, concierge, laundromat, and multi-purpose sports fields. Residents can enjoy swimming, kayaking, paddle boarding and sailing on the lagoon. Environme…
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Activist group threatens to shut down Pretoria east after a previous memorandum was not taken seriously

The group claims that a previous memorandum handed to the Tshwane metro in March was not taken seriously. A Mamelodi activist group, which recently shut down Mamelodi municipal office services for several weeks, said they will do so again – if their demands are not met, reports Pretoria East Rekord. Oupa Mashiane, chairperson of the Mamelodi Concerned Residents for Service Delivery, made the remarks while handing over a memorandum to the metro at the local municipal offices on Monday morning. It was the second such memorandum, he said, and “the last”. Mashiane gave the metro seven working days to respond to demands. “This is a serious matter – the city of Tshwane must take our demands very seriously,” said Mashiane. Utility services MMC Darryl Moss received the memorandum on behalf of the Tshwane mayor. He promised to meet with the mayor the same afternoon to “personally hand over the memorandum to him” Mashiane claimed the metro did not take the group’s…
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Illegal land grabbers in Faerie Glen, Pretoria East became very hostile and threatened the community that they will burn down their homes and kill them

Dear Residents, I just got back from an attempted land grab of Municipal Property in Faerie Glen, Plaston Str. I arrived on site this afternoon with the community who wanted to meet with the 'owners' of the property after they started building and even put in an illegal water connection to this property, probably to make the construction seem more legitimate. Unfortunately for the land grabbers, the community is very well organized and aware of the fact that this property is a Municipal Road Reserve. I immediately contacted the MMC as well as the Chairperson of Roads & Transport from the site, who confirmed my position that no Municipal Land was sold to these 'owners'. I proceeded to disrupt this meeting, saying that we cannot engage with thugs grabbing land and, unless they can prove the contrary, they should leave - this prompted the land grabbers, who were very diplomatic up until then, to show their true colors and intent. The land grabbers became very h…
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Beloning uitgereik om inligting te bekom oor plaasmoord te Donkerhoek, oos van Pretoria

Sedert die moord op ‘n hoewe op Donkerhoek, oos van Pretoria, in 2015, was daar geen vordering in die ondersoek nie, wat daartoe gelei het dat ‘n beloning nou uitgereik word in ‘n poging om meer inligting te bekom. Op 15 November 2015, nou twee jaar gelede, is die 32-jarige Gavin Wolfswinkel vermoor, en Lucky Sithome is ook in die aanval dood. Wolfswinkel sou ‘n maand later getrou het. Die Boschkop polisiekantoor, wat die gebied bedien waar die moord gepleeg is, was al voorheen dikwels in omstredenheid gedompel omdat lede nie hulle werk doen nie of selfs openlik rassisties teen blanke klaers optree. Chnay Coetzer, Wolfswinkelse suster, sê die gebrek aan vordering deur die polisie met die ondersoek, het hulle as familie laat besluit om ‘n private speurder aan te stel en ‘n beloning vir bruikbare inligting uit te loof. Lede van die publiek wat enige inligting het, kan dit deurstuur aan Chnay Coetzer by 079 522 1210. Mense is welkom om anoniem hulle inligting te deel e…
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Pretoria bus strike action leaves commuters stranded

Workshop personnel at the C de Wet Bus Depot in Tshwane have downed tools, preventing more than 100 buses from moving off and leaving commuters stranded on Thursday. Executive director of Tshwane Strategic Communication Selby Bokaba said the Tshwane Bus Service (TBS) was surprised by the move because they were not informed of the employees' intentions. Two trucks blocked the entrance to the depot. Only three of 105 buses managed to exit before the gate was blocked. "Bus commuters in Centurion, Olievenhoutbosch, Danville, Pretoria East and some in Lotus Gardens have been severely affected by the strike," said Bokaba in a statement. Bokaba added that the disgruntled personnel, which include artisans, senior operators and general workers, embarked on the strike because of overtime-related grievances and the apparent outsourcing of work to external companies. "The City of Tshwane profusely apologises to our loyal bus commuters who have been left stranded and incon…
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We’ll deal with criminals ourselves, threaten Faerie Glen residents

Pretoria - Residents of Faerie Glen in Pretoria East have threatened to take matters into their own hands to deal with an increase in crime in the area if police did not intervene. They said the community was being held hostage by criminals after a surge in housebreakings and muggings over the past few months. Reports of crime from the suburb and nearby Faerie Glen Nature Reserve have emerged, with the first crime inside the reserve taking place two weeks ago after a 10-year record of safety and security. A woman was attacked while running on the trail in the reserve and all her gear, including shoes, cellphone, hydration backpack and sunglasses were taken. Warnings began going up on social media, where trail runners were asked to be cautious and not to run on their own, as criminals, often wielding knives and wearing balaclavas, were on the prowl. The criminals are said to gain entry into the nature reserve through Atterbury Bridge and using the Manitoba Bridge …
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