Zoo Lake to get zootier

Johannesburg's Zoo Lake might reveal some of its mysteries when the 110-year-old landmark is dredged for the first time in about 20 years.

On December 17 1964, two boys fishing at the lake hooked a plastic bag containing a woman's toothless head.

Her torso was found in Boksburg Lake; her legs were found drifting in a plastic bag in Wemmer Pan, south of Johannesburg.

The police worked on the case for years before confirming the identity of the victim - Catherine Burch, who, it transpired had been murdered by her husband, Ronald .

Only last year Zoo Lake claimed another victim when a cellphone thief drowned while trying to flee.

The dredging is scheduled to start on September 2, right after the park hosts the annual Jazz on the Lake festival.

DA councillor Tim Truluck said it was part of a plan to integrate the park with the Johannesburg Zoo into what would become known as the Zoo Lake Precinct.

Zoo Lake consists of three dams, of which two serve as water filters to clean the polluted water coming from the zoo before it runs into the main "lake".

The plan is to dredge and clear the two small lakes and so rid the main lake of pollution. Both the filtration dams have filled up with silt and mud.

A long-term plan has been drawn up to revitalise the park and create interlinked running trails, and even an aerial walkway largely made of rope through the trees.

The dredging of the lakes - and the first phase of the landscaping, which would include using the silt from the dams to build a small amphitheatre - is expected to cost about R10-million.

A further R35-million has been budgeted for next year, with most of the money going towards building a two-storey parking area for the zoo.

Visitors and local residents might have to pinch their nostrils closed when the dredging gets under way.

"For about a month it's going to be pretty smelly," said Truluck.