Durban - A Durban High Court judge has ordered the developer of the stalled R60 million building at 317 Currie Road, to pay its contractor for the hiring of scaffolding and equipment for the building.
On Wednesday, representatives from the developer, Serengeti Rise Industries, and the subcontractor, Nela Kahle, met on site to measure the scaffolding and equipment, as part of a recent court order.
The Durban subcontractor had taken the developer to court again on Wednesday for ignoring a court order granted last month, to pay them for the hiring of the equipment.
The legal action came after Durban High Court Judge Esther Steyn ordered part of the building be demolished because a rezoning application process had not been properly followed.
The municipality then ordered the building be secured and that the scaffolding remain in place, with Serengeti to pay monthly hire rates to Nela Kahle.
In supplementary opposing papers submitted on Wednesday, Serengeti’s legal compliance officer, Solwazi Mbambo, said they had applied for leave to appeal against Steyn’s ruling that is to be heard in court later this month.
He argued that Nela Kahle was in the same position as many other subcontractors, as was Serengeti, in terms of its obligations to buyers of units in the development, and that all these obligations were on hold until the finalisation of the appeal.
“I therefore see no basis why the applicant should be treated any differently from other suppliers or subcontractors who, if they wish to remove anything from the building, they furnish security for the value thereof pending finalisation of the appeal,” his affidavit read.
However, following an order granted on Wednesday by Durban High Court Judge Fikile Mokgohloa, the developer and subcontractor had to be on site on Wednesday afternoon to measure the scaffolding and equipment.
This was to determine the amount to be paid per square metre for its hiring.
Should both parties not agree on these measurements, an independent quantity surveyor would be chosen by their legal representatives. If either one was not present, measurements from the complying party would have to be taken as the final measurement.
They now have to thrash out a settlement over funds owed, failing which they would go to arbitration.
Nela Kahle’s manager Antonio Mussane argued Serengeti’s conduct, in not making any payments, clearly showed it “had no intention of complying with the court order”.
Last month the company went to court arguing that Serengeti was in breach of their agreement by not paying for the scaffolding and equipment provided and that the developer owed them almost R790 000.
Mussane said the value of the scaffolding was R4.5m and was the company’s entire stock.
Daily News