6
13 - 26 February 2018
THE
NEWS
Let’s Talk Send your letters to dewaal@thevillagenews.co.za
Provincial and local authority not on the same page Some years ago the Western Cape government and the esteemed local authority were hell-bent on building a by-pass from the Gateway intersection, through the Fernkloof Nature Reserve and up on the mountain side above Voëlklip to rejoin the existing R43 beyond the Vodacom tower. Minister Carlisle, reading the public feeling, put a stop to this and said that an upgrade of the R43 between Hermanus and Stanford, which is becoming a dormitory town for Hermanus, should actually be prioritised, which was an astute insight taking into account the growing traffic between these towns and, as we now know, the almost daily traffic accidents on this overcrowded stretch of road. Sadly there is no sign so far of
that upgrade and instead, the 'experts' calmly set about trying to circumvent the minister's veto by planning the mini bypass which, at the cost of millions so far in fees, in effect only by-passes the town centre. Now the question arises: Are the provincial government and the local authority still on the same page regarding the bypass? On the one hand, (at what cost in fees?), province continues to plan the by-pass, going through all the motions, so-called scoping reports, environmental impact studies etc. whilst on the other hand the local authority is passing building plans left, right and centre for projects which are directly in conflict with the proposed route of the by-pass. These include, for example, the
extensions to the Generation School, the mansion / building complex where the traffic circle is supposed to be built for the by-pass to join up with Main Road east of the Eastcliff Village (Kwikspar), and now there is a proposed development named Fairways Close which entails a string of multi-million rand homes, which will straddle the route of the proposed bypass. So, is that particular effort to foist a by-pass on Hermanus dead, or is province going to expropriate at additional millions? Or is the original bypass, vetoed by Minister Carlisle, going to come back onto the table, with additional millions in fees for the consultants? Gert Cloete
Observations at the “water” front Within approximately two hours, while sitting at the waterfront watching the “world go round” – overseas tourists, up-country visitors, locals, employers and employees, and street car cleaners – I noticed that this small-scale industry consumed more than 1 500 litres of water for car cleaning in the various parking areas from Gearing’s Point to The Marine Hotel. And some of the cars are local? It is easy to do the maths – they all use supermarket trolleys and
they all use plastic 25 litre containers, and each trolley can carry 4 – 5 of these containers for each fill, of which there are several during the day. And they all get their water from the whale tail fountain on the waterfront. I have always been under the impression that the cleaning of a car in a public area is an offence? Please enlighten me! Municipal traffic wardens on patrol ignored the “theft”of water. Should they not be
briefed on water conservation / restrictions? Any suggestions as to what to do? Cape Town is in crisis. Hermanus has serious water restrictions. Absentee home owners are coming to live in Hermanus and/or filling water containers to take back over the mountain. How safe are our scarce water resources from theft? Let’s all give it some thought and have a suggestions forum. Arne Pitlo
A swallow’s bird’s-eye view of Hermanus My wife and I first came to South Africa for our holidays in 1993. We have returned every year since for a two or three month stay. For the past five years we have based ourselves in Hermanus and for the past two years we have not even hired a car. We stay in a delightful self-catering establishment in Church Street and engage with all the cleaners, gardeners and staff who welcome us back each year. Being without a car, we walk everywhere, putting our daily shopping in our rucksacks, preparing and cooking our meals in our own kitchen and on the barbeque (sorry, braai) provided and cleaned by our wonderful hosts. We walk to and from the Gateway shopping centre twice a week and have walked to and from the Whale Coast Mall twice. My wife bought a dress from one of the very few independent shops. We will not visit the mall again. Although it is cleaner, brighter, and smarter than Hermanus, it has nothing to offer us that we cannot eat, drink or buy in Hermanus. Provided the businesses in Hermanus keep abreast of our needs, the needs of the tourists and the needs of the growing (elderly) population moving to Hermanus, the town will survive and prosper. We were delighted to read in The Village NEWS of 30 Jan – 12 Feb about the plans to renovate the town centre (Renewed energy for renewal of Old Town). Please don't
forget the pavements; some of them are in a terrible state and I'm not sure we want any more eating places. I hope we are still alive and able to visit when the vision becomes a reality. Our one disappointment is that we no longer feel safe walking the length of the Cliff Path. We have seen this remarkable walkway being created over the years. Now we stick to the eastern stretch beyond The Marine Hotel till it comes out on the open road and back to the western side just by Swallow Park. Without being disrespectful to the wardens, we feel we no longer have the confidence in them to run to our aid if we are attacked or deal with an attacker at close range. Similarly we no longer walk in any of the nature reserves; we stick to the pavements. The prof's letter Ignore the people at your own peril points out some legal references which could be used to prevent the IMP development of Fernkloof Nature Reserve. But doesn't The DEMOCRACY he speaks of mean that the OM, with the majority vote, have a mandate to act on their behalf even though the voters themselves may have little interest in the reserve? Is it possible that the “massive” change in voting which the prof refers to can only come about when and if all the organisations who are currently up in arms begin a programme of engaging with “the people” and meeting their needs? I appre-
ciate I am only a visitor to your beautiful country and must remember my manners. I must be careful not to put my foot in it as I did when a couple of years ago I commented on the ubiquitous carrot cake being offered whenever I asked for a pastry. One of your correspondents wrote to say that carrot cake was as traditional in South Africa as sausage and mash was in England. I don't know when that person was last in England but S & M is now as rare as free, hot running water in Cape Town. It can only be found in cult restaurants where the sausage is made with beluga or sweet meats and with a choice of kosher, halal or vegan, served with aromatic spices and the mash a mixture of fine exotic vegetables, three Asian herbs and the obligatory balsamic vinegar. There would be no potatoes as these would be considered unsuitable for your diet. Gone are the days of 75 years ago when my mother would hold my hand and walk me to Chapel Market at the Angel, Islington to Manzes and treat me to pie and jellied eels. Excuse me, I must go now; cross the road from this lovely guest house and sit on a bench under my Tilley hat and be mindful (sometimes with my eyes closed) that no one takes the waves away for “development”. Hope to see you next year. Richard Brown
The truth about parking for the disabled Is the Disabled Parking disc only for wheelchairs and walking aids? I have chronic lung disease and cannot walk far, and therefore applied for a disc. I received a Temporary disc for one year.
Upon querying this, the Traffic Chief, Rudi Frazer, said that I was lucky to get it and should not have, as the bays were for wheelchairs and walking aids. The question is: Should a Traffic Chief make medical decisions that override a
doctors decisions? Can we have a response from doctors on this? Another question is: Who is disabled, and has our Bill or Rights, with regard to disability access, been violated? K. Williams, Fisherhaven