Brooklyn residents seem to be taking Communicare’s grand schemes of regeneration with a pinch of salt.
The history between Communicare and its tenants has been on shaky ground of late and only a few months ago Communicare tenants across Cape Town marched to court to voice grievances they had against the social housing non-profit company.
Earlier this year, Communicare also offered tenants a payout if they chose to move out of their flats. They received a lot of flak for that and were accused of preying on the poor.
So they shouldn’t be surprised that their bright-eyed, bushy-tailed approach, calling for everyone to hold hands to make Brooklyn great again, is being met with some scepticism and mistrust.
Yes, they want the area to be upgraded but at what cost? Too many people at the meeting had deep furrows in their foreheads and the same question on their lips: “Where does this leave us?”
Residents’ questions were met with rosy answers of working together for a secure future for the aged and poor, but it was obvious they were not buying it and won’t be holding their breaths for the make-over to materialise.
