21 July 2010

Upper East Side: New Development, Same Old Problems

Upper East Side is a mixed development in Woodstock that was highly touted as a 'green building' and a leader in urban renewal. Reader GS sent us a link to a blog started by residents who chronicle it's slow descent into, as they describe it, 'An Urban Khayelitsha in the heart of Woodstock'. Here's a sample from their latest entry:

-The lift was in-operational last night and many of the tenants were yelling at each other banging on the steel doors to 'stop jamming the lift', it was kind of like a prison movie with people on several levels yelling and banging on the steel. I figured that it had to be construction workers, whom still bang on things past 5pm (despite the Body Corporate Rules), because it was on the 6th floor for over 15 minutes (this was the only operational lift) and the stairs were closed off. Then the lift zoomed down to the -1 floor without stopping anywhere else which I've discovered that you can only do with a builder key. It was strange though because it was at about 630pm and they should be cleared out the building each night at 5pm, but I think some of them live here now because they often are here way past hours.
-Though I'm all for getting along with all walks of life, it's kind of a nuisance when the construction workers try to pick you up in the mornings and in the evenings while they shower with the door open and strip down to their underwear in plain sight, and I'm really hoping the developer will perhaps tell them it's inappropriate to say 'Hey mommie' and 'hey girl' to residents, not to mention running around past my car while I'm unlocking the doors. So I've been parking in a different spot because it's actually quite scary as this is how I was hijacked once upon a time.
-Also, the lake that floods the parking lot every day is still a problem, but I have a SUV so I'm okay, but I'm surprised the developer hasn't sorted it out yet, it's kind of funny the residents here affectionately refer to as "Lake Victoria East", and then when it rains it's "Upper Victoria Falls", because it seriously comes down from the ceilings in the garage.


Follow the rest of the drama at Upper East Side Cape Town.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I went to look at an apartment in this building. It has to be the most depressing looking building in the dodgiest area of Cape Town. I can't believe sane people live there.

Anonymous said...

She only has herself to blame.
She should have purchased a small free standing instead.
Airhead.

Anonymous said...

Tikstock - I mean Woodstock sorry -is a down and out suburb,always has been,always will be, despite its' proximity to town.

Just look at the calibre of the VAST majority of its' residents.
If you want to lower your social status(and your life expectancy) just buy in Woodstock.

Zed Saldanha said...

As I happen to live in Lower Woodstock (near tik central around the metro station) I can assure Anons 1-3 that most Woodstock residents are just ordinary folks, of which a large minority are devout muslims- the type of people not exactly known for tikking. Tik heads are easy to spot, transient, and many of them are whitey imports from the burbs. (trust me- I can watch them q for their hits from my balcony). There are far more of course than you would find in Gardens or Tableview but the point is you don't need many to run an area down.
As for the other negative comments, established woodstock residents would prefer you to keep thinking that. The last thing they want is larnies lookingh at their area as the next frontier of designer urban living, "lifestyle developments" etc. etc.
The larnie, white version of development and urban regenertion always seems to involve a heavy dose of ethnic cleansing and displacement. They know it.

Whoops- Looks like I have now sacrificed my social status with anon 3 by admitting to live in a slum. Get a life wanker, your shit stinks as bad as any Bergie's.

bbflames said...

Actually Upper East Side is in Salt River and not even near the border of Woodstock.
Upper Woodstock house prices are well in excess of the national average, and the area has a very active residents association. The Woodstock police station is one of the better in Cape Town.
Generally a suburb with a great sense of community, and a reputation that is way out of date.
Anon 3 where do you live?

Unknown said...

Hi all

This tenant is probably one of my tenants and I am also a representative of the developer of Upper East Side, so I have both parties best interests at heart.

Yes, Woodstock is one of the oldest suburbs of Cape Town, but it has more history and charm than all of the other suburbs surrounding the CBD combined.
It’s colourful and vibrant and has recently been named one of the city’s top improvement districts.

As developers of Upper East Side we purchased the land at a fairly high value and wanted to come up with something innovative. So we thought: why not put a mixed-use development in the middle of Woodstock? And it made perfect sense... Major companies have set up shop here which boosted both the commercial and residential property markets. Upper East Side and Woodstock is abuzz with activity!

Almost all the apartments at Upper East Side have views of either the harbour to the north or Table Mountain, the Stellenbosch mountains and/or all of the above. They also have high ceilings, most with big windows and is very spacious comparing to other developments in and around Cape Town.
Since we worked with an existing building in Phase 1, we kept as much of the original infrastructure as possible and designed Phase 2 in such a way to protect the heritage of the building and of Woodstock.

Due to the economic downturn last year we were forced to slow down our progress dramatically, but we are working around the clock finish and perfect our product.
I am a young, white female and have been part of this project for almost two years. I have been in direct contact with many of the construction workers on a daily basis. At one point there where a thousand people working on site.

What worked for me was to greet everyone the same, treat them with some respect and that’ how they came to respect me.
If a person sees you are intimidated by them, they will intimidate you. EVERYONE does it; it’s human nature and it doesn’t matter from what walk of life you come from.

If you don’t like Woodstock that is very well, but often plain ignorance is expressed through anonymity.

Bean Counter said...

I'm afraid this thread was a tad misguided from the outset. This blog isn't about people's personal taste and preferred lifestyle, it's about why Cape Town property is grossly overvalued.

Once we start down the "Woodstock is for tikheads" road we lose any objectivity we might be claiming in our other observations about the property market.

Anon # 3, Victorian Britain phoned, they want their ideologies back. Seriously, if you're still using words like 'calibre' to refer to people's characters you're better off at Rorke's Drift re-enactments than wasting your and our time on the Interwebs.

Mariaan, I don't trust you any more than you know how to use apostrophes. You claim that as developers you wanted to "come up with something innovative". That's mealy-mouthed crud. You wanted to come up with a profit. Otherwise you would have given the money to charity or become artists.

Anonymous said...

Thanks, CT Property Bubble Blog, we seem to have struck a cord here. I also agree that the agent's comments are mis-directed. We started this blog to improve service delivery and to give the residents a forum on how to get their problems sorted because most of us are trying to wade through it all on our own which is very hard. This way if one person has a problem we can all join in and find the best solution. We recently had two break-ins here, so the building is not safe anymore either. In fact, most of the disproportionate expectations are rooted from the "Bill of Goods" the agents sold us on here. Another reason to work with an agent you trust with a proven track record!

This agent also tried to post things on the resident-only blog, more "mealy-mouthed crud" so upon discussion we deleted it due to inaccuracy and irrelevancy.

Thanks again, your content is objective, informative, and well-written. Wish I had consulted it before I signed up with Upper East Side. I've learned my lesson though. Can I post a Thank you link to your blog on ours?

Many Thanks,
UES Help Desk

Anonymous said...

Lower,lower,lowest East Side ha ha !!!