City halls remain in sorry state

Blessings Chidakwa
Municipal Reporter
Harare City Council community halls in different parts of the city are in a sorry state as the MDC-led council continues to drag its feet despite having budgeted for their refurbishment over a year ago.

Some of the community halls, which are important historically having been used as meeting places for communities, are now a pale shadow of  themselves.

This is despite the fact that they have potential to generate income through hosting various activities like weddings and being used as hubs for small businesses like cottage industries.

When The Herald news crew went round to some of the halls they were in a worse state that they were almost a year ago when the same crew visited them.

This is despite Harare spokesperson Mr Michael Chideme having said then that the council had earmarked funds for the revamping of some of the halls in this year’s budget.

“There are halls that we captured in the 2020 budget as part of our urban renewal programme.

“Some of the halls are open for partnerships with takers set to ride on advertising,” he said at the time.

Not much has changed at Dzivaresekwa 2 hall, which remains in a sorry state with a maize field acting as the new “fence’”.

Swings and slides that used to bring joy children are no longer functional and are rusting away.

The situation at the other halls is almost the same, peeling walls, shattered windowpanes and grounds with overgrown grass.

Rusty gates and fences on the verge of collapse are still evident at most council-owned halls that were constructed in the pre-independence era.

The deterioration has been worsened by the destruction of security fences and perimeter walls.

Harare City Council owns Magamba Hall in Warren Park, Mt Pleasant Hall, Rutendo Hall in Mufakose, Tafara Hall, Dzivaresekwa Hall, Glen View New Hall and Sophie Hall in Glen View.

Others include Waterfalls, Hatfield, Sunningdale, Mabvuku, Lusaka and Old Highfield, Zimbabwe Hall and Cyril Jennings in Highfield and Chembira halls in Glen Norah, Stodart Hall, Mbare Gymnastics’, Mbare Flats, Mbare Netball Complex and Mai Musodzi halls, all in Mbare.