dyton mupawaenda
Blessings Chidakwa-Herald Reporter
Harare City Council plans to allow its parking subsidiary, City Parking, to extend its services to popular joints in the city including, Mereki, Zindoga, KwaFatso, Kuwadzana 6, and other areas.
The city said most joints lacked proper parking facilities which often leads to chaos hence the need to step in and help secure parked vehicles, at a price of course.
Speaking during City Parking’s handover of two patrol vehicles to Harare Traffic department at Rufaro Stadium this week, Mayor Councillor Jacob Mafume said City Parking services will soon be expanded to popular joints.
“We have a lot of parking in various suburbs where people come to dine and wine which are in a bad state including KwaFarai area.
“We are going to take those car parks and renovate them, and charge US$1 per hour parking because there are no free things in town. Everything beautiful is costly,” he said.
Clr Mafume said council had deliberately left the joints in their present state hoping property owners and occupants would maintain them on their own, but nothing is moving.
“We simply pass a resolution and maintain those parking lots. Maybe we say a vehicle pays US$0,50 per entry then they enjoy parking in a good space,” he said.
A motorist at Zindoga in Waterfalls yesterday said the move was a step in the right direction if implemented correctly.
“Parking is always a challenge here especially considering that haulage trucks also compete for parking space. If City Parking comes on board, it will be a good initiative but they should avoid being exorbitant in terms of fares as they may scare away patrons,” he said.
Another motorist, Trevor Ngoma said council should allow the property owners to spruce up their places.
“We cannot have City Parking here. Imagine coming out of the joint and seeing your car clamped. Property owners should just maintain their areas and upgrade them to entice customers. The idea of City Parking for me is a no, no,” he said.
A patron at KwaFatso in Glen Norah said City Parking should be given the nod in areas where there is chaos.
Online Reporter