By Correspondent
Granary Park is more than 15 years old but aside from the houses there is nothing that states that fact on the ground.
There are no tarred roads and the most that residents can get is gravel.
Along the streets where gravel has not been put by the developer, JS Omar Holdings operating through its subsidiary Granary Investments, it’s a nightmare to walk or drive.
Tramping Through Mud
“During the rain season its now normal to see people walking wearing plastic bags on top of their shoes.
“For those with vehicles as soon as rain starts they know they have to leave their cars at the car parks near the main road.
“Its a depressing situation which has been normalised,” says one resident, Fanuel Mavengano (55).
Mavengano has been staying in Granary Park for over 10 years.
“While its still bad, its actually better than in the early days when we first came.
“Its a wet area with portions actually wetlands which require special foundations when building.“
A Missing Developer
However, the situation could have been better if the developer had fulfilled his mandate and tarred the roads.
Besides the absence of roads there is no potable water or sewage systems with residents employing septic tanks.
That makes the use of well water for household use very risky.
Chipo Masanganiso (43) says they have to find substitutes for potable water from those who have drilled boreholes.
“Its very dangerous to use water from the wells for household use because of the many septic tanks.
“Besides the bad taste the water may actually be contaminated.
Due to the developer not having completed the requisite processes of development Granary is yet to be handed over to Zvimba Rural District Council under which it falls.
That means the thousands of residents in the area receive no services from Council.
A Dumping Ground For All
“There is no refuse collection so we simply carry the garbage and dump it at the various open spaces in the area.
“Its hazardous and environmentally wrong but we have no option because we are not yet under Council,” says Masanganiso.
Some enterprising youths have actually capitalized on this situation and carry out refuse collection projects under which residents pay them US$3 per month for weekly refuse collection.
However, with no legal dumpsite available they still dump the garbage in the open spaces.
To their credit they burn then garbage and in some instances they actually dig pits to dump the garbage in.
“Its a free for all suburb which requires that everyone lives and conducts themselves with order otherwise it will be mayhem.
“Council still has no jurisdiction while the developer is only concerned with selling land.
“The onus then falls on residents to bring order and civility to the location,” says Admire Kombayi (48) another resident of Phase 4.
“The pressure for residential stands means people no longer expect much in terms of services.
“As long as one gets their stand everything else they can manage on their own.
“Its unfortunate, but that’s the reality of many new urban locations,” he added.
With a developer exhibiting no urgency to fulfill his obligations Granary appears abandoned and set for a long time as a responsibility for residents.
