Simon’s Town Civic We Care

Join the Chapman’s Peak Rally

In the 80-odd years of operation Chapmans Peak road has been closed only for brief periods of time - until it was given to private operators to manage. It has now been closed since June last year, not only to cars but also to foot and cycle traffic. There appear to be huge financial benefits to the road remaining closed as the lessee of the road receives a payment from the Western Province government (you and me) for every day that we are prohibited from using it.

The Far South community and Hout Bay residents are taking the initiative to claim back Chapmans Peak on Sunday 19 April. We plan to exercise our right of access to Chapmans Peak Drive and encourage people as possible to join in a People Power action to physically express our collective right of freedom of movement. Concerned citizens should assemble at 11h00 on the Sunday 19 April on both the Hout Bay and Noordhoek sides of Chapmans Peak Drive, and from there make their way along the Drive, toward the middle to meet.

Cyclists, hikers, strollers, families, picnickers, and dog walkers will be demonstrating a non-destructive, non-violent expression of their collective disgust at the way that the Chapmans Peak Drive saga has been so arrogantly dealt with. National and other flags plus other visible expressions could also be displayed. A toll-free road is a road for all.

Public meeting on the Baboon issue

The STCA is extremely concerned at the complete lack of acceptance of responsibility shown by the South African National Parks and Cape Nature with respect to baboon / human interactions beyond their boundaries. We understand that both organisations have obtained legal opinion to say that baboons outside their specific areas are not their responsibility. It would be interesting if SAN Parks operated in this way when an elephant or lion strayed out of Kruger Park into adjacent residential areas! We also understand that the City, Cape Nature and SAN Parks plan to hold a “summit” on the issue later in May. In order to provide an impetus to this summit the STCA has arranged a public meeting on the Baboon issue in Simon’s Town on Wednesday, 6 May, in the Simon’s Town Town Hall at 19h30. At this meeting we will provide our residents and ratepayers with all the information we have accumulated on the baboon issue and we will report back on measures which we suggest residents might take in the interim whilst the authorities are getting their act together. We also hope that publicity around this meeting will send a strong message to the relevant authorities about how seriously we view their lack of funding and action to address the baboon issue. All are welcome.

Assistance needed:

The STCA is looking for assistance from our members:

• Safe Cycle Track in the South Peninsula: We have not had any response to our request for assistance in identifying possible routes for a safe recreational cycle track in the South Peninsula. In many areas use of the major roads would be dangerous, so local knowledge of paths and quiet roads is required to provide innovative input to this Far South initiative. If you are interested in working with the STCA to explore this possibility in the greater Simon’s Town area please contact Lesley Shackleton 021-786-2308.
• The Bromley’s who manage the Environment and Amenities portfolio for the STCA are still looking for assistance from a resident of Simon’s Town central, or Froggy Farm or Murdock Valley to assist with this portfolio.
• We are looking at setting up a system of STCA volunteer “Peace Officers” – people who will note and report infringement of municipal by-laws (as distinct from criminal activities).. Essentially these are observers who would be eyes and ears of the community and provide background and direction for law enforcement officials (eg illegal dumping, speeding taxies, blocking pavements, etc). Anyone interested in assisting in this way should contact Arne Soderlund at 021 786 3283.

The City’s 2009/10 Budget

The following (which impacts us all) is extracted from a recent City of Cape Town press release:

• An inflation related 8,5% increase is proposed for residential property rates. All homeowners will continue to enjoy a R88 000 rebate on properties whilst agricultural properties could qualify for rebates of up to 80%. “The proposed new charge for residential properties is 0,535 c/R and 1,07 c/R for commercial properties,” says Ald Neilson.
• A 33% increase has been proposed for the electricity tariff, which is subject to an assumed 35,9% increase in Eskom tariffs.
• The proposed tariff increases of other utility services are in line with the current inflation rate. A 10% increase is proposed for water and solid waste fees and a 7% increase for sanitation tariffs.
• “To assist people on fixed incomes, we have increased the threshold of rates rebates for senior citizens and disabled people. For a 100% rebate, the City has proposed that the threshold of household income be increased from R2 880 to R3 000 per month. The upper limit on this rebate in being increased from R7000 to R8000 per month.
• “A 100% subsidy up to 6kl of water per household per month will apply for all domestic tariff categories. Households which do not use more than 400 kWh of electricity per month will receive a free basic allocation of up to 50 kWh.
• “Properties valued at R100 000 will continue to receive free refuse removal services. There is a sliding scale of refuse rebates for properties up to R300 000. The first 4,2 kl of water for sewerage disposal is free for all households.
• “We urge residents who cannot pay their monthly municipal accounts to register for the City’s comprehensive indigent grant,’ Ald Neilson says.

The draft budget can be viewed at all public libraries and is open for public comment up to April 30. The final budget will be approved by Council at the end of May 2009.

The Mega City

Our Councillor and members of the STCA Executive Committee spend an enormous amount of energy and effort trying to work through the labyrinthine bureaucracies in the Mega City that the ANC created. The Mega City stretches from the Helderberg up past Melkbosstrand and down to Scarborough, encompassing Khayelitsha, Kuilsrivier, Clifton and many, many other diverse suburbs. It is huge and unwieldy, and the bureaucracy that has been developed to run City is also huge and unwieldy resulting in many Marx Brothers-like comedies as one department fails to talk to another, or even communication within departments is bedevilled when they are split in different geographical sites. One such comedy was noted by one of our members.

“Road Re-surfacing of the Glencairn Expressway — this was put out to contractors who:

1. marooned Spar and the Garage by closing off their road

2. painted the lines

3. then sprayed tar over them

4. necessitating a second painting

5. installed the Sun Valley cats eyes first

6. then the Glencairn side

7. and then, theoretically masked them, and sprayed over the top of all of them

8. consequently they required cleaning

9. they then chucked the empty tubes and waste matter into the verges

10. and left un-sanded tar surfaces exposed all through the long weekend — tar everywhere.

Not a good example of methodology, planning or workmanship but the end appearance is good.”

Snippets of interesting/useful information

• For several years filming on Windmill Beach has not been allowed as this is recognised as an environmentally sensitive area. The City’s Film Permit office requests that should anyone notice any film shoots on this beach, these are reported as soon as possible to: The Film Permit Office - Tel: 021 483 9060 email: film.permit@capetown.gov.za ,(office hours), or the City’s Service Delivery and Complaints Centre Tel: 0860 103089 email: contactus@capetown.gov.za. After hours and on weekends illegal filming should be reported to the City’s Operations Centre at 021 596 1999 who will log the call and direct the complaint for action by the City’s Law Enforcement Departments.
• This year to date, R760 of donations made into the Just Nuisance coin collection box on Jubliee Square have been donated to TEARS.
• One of the most beautiful places from which to soak up the atmosphere of Simon’s Town is the veranda of the Simon’s Town Museum. Those visiting the Simon’s Town Tourism office or the Museum will have seen that enterprising ladies have now set up a tea/coffee/scones facility on the veranda – well worth a visit.
• Environment

The GEESE 2009 AGM will take place at 17h00 on Sunday 19 April – all are welcome. Councillor Holderness will officially open the new Stepping stones across the berm at 16h30.

Planning

The STCA has been working with the Far South Peninsula Community Forum (FSPCF) in an effort to ensure that the City’s spatial planning initiatives include input and expertise from our area. A FSPCF workshop was held recently to catalogue all existing relevant data and to highlight the issues that are particular to our area. These have been communicated to the City officials and consultants as we believe that our considerable local knowledge and expertise should be integrated into the City’s plans at the earliest possible stage, well before releasing any first drafts.

Among the issues we have raised with them are:

• The Peninsula is recognised as a unique region both within the greater city of Cape Town and in the wider world, and thus presents very specific planning and development constraints and opportunities.
• We are concerned by the lack of engagement to-date between the project and key stakeholders like ourselves. It is 21 months since we started offering our help, when we were told the public would play a key role at all stages. We have yet to be invited to contribute to any draft product of the project.
• Our organizations are extremely concerned that constraints unique to our area around infrastructure, carrying capacity and land use (including the urban and coastal edges), road and rail access, as well as geophysical and other natural hazards (landslip, fire, flooding, coastal erosion), are taken seriously. Also extremely relevant to our economic (tourism) and social well-being are the constraints imposed by the need to protect our natural and heritage environments.
• In addition, the majority of land in the Far South is either in the National Park, the buffer zone (CPPNE managed by Cape Nature), Railway land (managed by InterSite), City owned or Navy/ State owned. This gives rise to complex interactions around land use management.
• Our area is under intense developmental pressure and rights exist or are being applied for which could result in around 10 000 new housing units representing a conservative population increase of around 40 000 in this land-and sea-locked area.
• It is this conflict between the need to preserve that which has intrinsic value and the need to provide for the legitimate desire for development which we believe must be properly and fully addressed by a Strategic Environmental Assessment and its subsequent derivatives in order that we can create a long term planning vision that is sustainable from both economic and ecological perspectives.

We hope that all our residents share FSPCF’s vision:

“Our vision is that those who live and work in the Far South Peninsula form a community of people from all backgrounds, races and creeds who respect and care for each other and their environment, and who recognize their responsibility both to share its unique beauty with visitors from across South Africa and beyond and to protect it for the pleasure and health of future generations.”

Red Hill

Materials and furniture are urgently required for both the Resource Centre in the middle camp and the new 3-Container Unit in the Lower Camp. If you are able to assist, Liz Danks can collect on Tuesdays or Thursdays. Phone 021 786 4620. The wish list includes:

Flooring – preferably linoleum as sandy area a problem with carpets. 25m2 minimum.

Shelving – for both buildings. Library planned for middle Resource Centre.

Tables, cupboards and chairs

Noticeboards - for both centres

Computers – with Windows 98, XP or later as mostly used by young adults seeking work.

On Saturday 28 March forty Red Hill youngsters danced, sang and made music at the Gigs for Kids workshop at the Cape Town International Convention Centre as part of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival. The group included kids from the Red Hill and Children of Hope Pre-Schools, and younger primary school children and was sponsored by one of our residents, Angela Schuller, through funds donated to the Simon’s Town Civic Association for Red Hill young people. This was a wonderful opportunity for the youngsters to explore the magical world of music in a fun environment. They were introduced to the sounds of a variety of instruments and the different rhythms they produced, and they also helped to compose simple melodies. Teachers and parents also accompanied this group, including Vuyiseka Lombo (principal of Red Hill Pre-School), Sophia Dick (Principal of Children of Hope Creche and Pre-School), Lynsey Allen (African Impact Volunteer worker from Canada) and Liz Danks (STCA Exco member and organizer for this event for Red Hill). Amanda Conradie of African Impact works with both Pre-Schools and made this event possible.

Subscriptions

STCA membership fees (R50 per annum per household) become due on 1 January 2009. Please pay membership fees at the STADCO office on Jubilee Square during office hours. You may also post a cheque made out to ‘STCA’, clearly stating who it is from, to P O Box 47, Simon’s Town, 7995.

For internet banking : BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS:

Bank: Standard Bank, Branch: Fish Hoek

Branch code: 036009 Account number: 073815209

Account name: Simons Town Civic Association (Market link savings account)

Please say "Subs and your name" as the sender. Please also notify the STCA that you have paid.

New members must let the STCA have contact details so as to be put onto the Newsletter mailing list.

Emergency numbers:

· Simon’s Town Police: 021 786-8646 or 8647

· Fish Hoek Emergency Control Centre: 021 782 0333, 782-0444

· Fire and Emergency: 107 from Telkom phones

· Roads, potholes and stormwater: 0860 103 054 (24 Hours)

· Water/Sewage Emergencies: 0860 103 054 (24 hours)

· To report people tossing burning cigarette butts into vegetation: 021 424 7715

STCA Web Page: http://www.stcivic.info/

Anyone interested in taking part in, or monitoring, ongoing informal “chats” about Simon’s Town

should take a look at: http://friendfeed.com/rooms/simonstown