Phoenix, KwaZulu-Natal
Phoenix is an Indian township about 25 kilometres northwest of Durban Central, in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was established as a township by the apartheid government in 1976, but it has a long history of Indian occupation. It is associated with the Phoenix Settlement, built by Mahatma Gandhi.[2]
Phoenix | |
|---|---|
  Phoenix  Phoenix | |
| Coordinates: 29.701°S 31.004°E | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Province | KwaZulu-Natal |
| Municipality | eThekwini |
| Area | |
| • Total | 30.16 km2 (11.64 sq mi) |
| Population (2011)[1] | |
| • Total | 176,989 |
| • Density | 5,900/km2 (15,000/sq mi) |
| Racial makeup (2011) | |
| • Black African | 12.1% |
| • Coloured | 1.8% |
| • Indian/Asian | 85.0% |
| • White | 0.2% |
| • Other | 0.9% |
| First languages (2011) | |
| • English | 87.4% |
| • Zulu | 8.1% |
| • Other | 4.5% |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (SAST) |
| Postal code (street) | 4068 |
| PO box | 4080 |
| Area code | 031 |
History
The township was founded initially as a sugarcane estate.After the passing of the Group Areas Act, a law which designated specific regions for occupation by specific races, Phoenix became an Indian township. Sections were initially labelled as precincts or units, and then later renamed with proper street addresses. [3]
Places in Phoenix
Until the early 1990s, Phoenix was divided into 'units' by the local government. These units have since been given street and area names, such as:
- Grove End (Unit 17)
- Stanmore (Unit 18)
- Eastbury (Unit 7)
- Southgate
- Greenbury (Unit 2)
- Rainham (Unit 3)
- Stonebridge (Unit 4)
- Centenary Park
- Campbell's Town
- Centenary Heights
- Rockford
- Clayfield (Unit 5)
- Longcroft (Unit 8)
- Rydalvale (Unit 9)
- Brookdale
- Trenance Manor
- Sastripark
- Palmview
- Caneside (Unit 20)
- Foresthaven (Unit 21)
- Woodview
- Sunford (Unit 15)
- Redfern (Unit 10)
- Whetstone (Unit 11)
- Westham (Unit 12)
- Lenham (Unit 13)
However, many local people still refer to areas by their unit numbers.
There are many religious establishments such as musjids, temples and churches present in Phoenix.
Media and communication
Local news is distributed via regional newspapers such as the Rising Sun, the Post and Phoenix Tabloid. In terms of telecommunications and Internet access, 99% of Phoenix is covered by either wireless Internet connections such as LTE, UMTS, EDGE, and HSDPA, or have access to a landline/ADSL. The majority of ADSL users in Phoenix use Telkomsa as their Internet service provider.
There are also many local Facebook pages that are used to relay news and crime related incidents.
Health and education
Public education in the Phoenix area is provided by various primary and secondary schools, one technikon and various FET colleges. There is one major government hospital (Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital), and one private hospital (Mount Edgecombe Hospital). Various clinics are also to be found, e. g. Grove End Clinic.
List of schools in Phoenix:
- Mahathma Primary School
- Sunford Primary School
- Avonford Secondary School
- Solvista Secondary School
- Rustic Manor Primary School
- Stanmore Secondary & Primary School
- Grove End Secondary School
- Woodview Primary & Secondary School
- Highstone Primary School (Unit 11)
- Grandmore Primary School
- Palmview Primary School
- Riverview Primary School
- Olimpia Primary School
- Palmview Secondary School
- Sastripark Secondary School
- Northmead Secondary School (Unit 10)
- Phoenix Secondary School (Unit 5)
- Stonebridge Primary School (Unit 4)
- Pioneer Primary School (Unit 4)
- Daleview Secondary School (Unit 2)
- Greenbury Primary School(Unit 2)
- Greenbury Secondary School(Unit 2)
- Clayhaven Primary School(Unit 5)
- Hopeville Primary School (Unit 3)
- Northlen Primary School(Unit 13)
- Crystal Point Secondary School(Unit 13)
- Brookdale Secondary School (Unit 12)
- Trenance Manor Secondary School
- Millview Primary School (Unit 7)
- Eastbury Secondary School (Unit 7)
- Rydalvale Primary School (Unit 9)
- Rydalpark Secondary School (Unit 9)
- HAVENPARK SECONDARY SCHOOLhttp://myafricanschool.com/HAVENPARKSECONDARYSCHOOL
- Foresthaven Secondary school
- Earlington Secondary School
Brailsford Primary School
Shopping centres
Phoenix Plaza, Gem City, Starwood Mall and The Acropolis are some of the few shopping centres that can be found in Phoenix's CBD. These centres cater for various needs from top brand shops to local products.
Phoenix Plaza
Phoenix Plaza owned by Vukile Property Fund is a shopping centre situated north of Durban. The centre is home to more than 105 independent and national retailers with Shoprite as its anchor tenant.
The shopping centre totalling a gross lettable area of 24,341 m² was built in 1993.
Transport
Three main means of public transport are available: private owned buses, taxis and the rail system including Uber & Taxify , Phoenix has its own railway station which connects to many towns in Durban. The King Shaka International Airport is a few minutes drive which provides various outlets. Totaling at 175 at its peak in the mid-90s, Phoenix had one of the largest number of private owned buses in South Africa. The two bus services that contributed to the transport landscape of the area were Mayville Coach Lines and Springfield Safari Tours (SOS).
Industrial sector
Phoenix also hosts a huge industrial area with big companies such as SAB Africa Miller, which produces beverages in the Coca-Cola family.
References
- "Main Place Phoenix". Census 2011.
- Makhatini, Mack; Moodley, Samantha. "Phoenix". City of Durban, South Africa. Archived from the original on 16 September 2009.
- "Phoenix". www.durban.gov.za. Retrieved 2019-02-18.