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Tuesday 1 March 2011
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Little Glen fencing forges ahead VERNA VAN DIEMEN
N
EIGHBOURS from six streets in Camps Bay have come together and plan to reduce crime in their area by putting up about 100 metres of fencing and gates at the four footpaths leading to the bottom end of the Little Glen Nature Reserve. According to resident, Arthur Shephard, “a substantial number” of the 60 households have agreed to contribute towards paying for the fence and gates. They believe controlled access between dusk and dawn will contribute towards reducing the possibility of criminals escaping and narrow down the many escape routes. Residents who wish to use the natural park during this period can request their own key. The residents started the initiative 18 months ago and have now reached the public participation stage. They have placed an advert in a newspaper. The advertisement calls for comments for the proposed erection of “city-approved fencing and gates at various positions adjoining the Little Glen. The reasons are to increase the safety and security of residents without prohibiting enjoyment of access …” It says “it has been discovered that it is being used both as an escape route and hiding place for criminals and vagrants.” The roads which will be affected by the access are the end of the cul-de-sac at 1st Crescent, Blinkwater Road, Ronald Avenue, the end of Strathearn Avenue, Woodfard Avenue and the Medburn and Crammond Road Servitude. But even though the arrangements started almost two years ago, a number of key roleplayers were surprised when People’s Post called them for comment about the proposed fencing. Both Marga Haywood, ward councillor for the area, and John Powell, chairperson of the Camps Bay Ratepayers’ Organisation, said this was the first that they have heard about the project. Haywood said: “I don’t recall anything about such a project but the city may have
been in contact with JP Smith, who is due to take over the ward in July. Some of the officials are already contacting JP about things happening in Camps Bay,” she said. Powell said: “I cannot comment because we will raise the issue at the association’s monthly meeting.” The meeting was set to be held last night (Monday). It is proposed that the 1.2m high palisade fence will run around the circumference at the bottom end of the Little Glen, with a gate at each of the four foot-paths leading into the natural park. Bernard Schafer vice chairperson of the Camps Bay Community Policing Forum, who has been “fairly involved” with the project, emphasised that “they are not fencing off the Little Glen”. “The moment you say fence off or enclosure it will conjure images in people’s minds of elitism. No residents will be denied access. We are purely managing the flow of people so that they can walk onto designated pathways,” he said. Mr Schafer said yesterday (Monday) that the decision to lock the gates will be put on hold for a while. “In the beginning the gates will stay open and in time to come, we might lock the gates at night,” said Schafer. The general public can still walk through the Little Glen at night but they will just not be able to access it from one of the four pathways which will be fenced off. “There are hundreds of other entrances which people can use but these four will be closed at night,” he said. It will also prevent people from dumping. “Because this part of the Little Glen is at a cul-de-sac, some people just reverse their bakkies up and dump their building material and dirt. This is just a preventative measure,” he said. Schafer said the community has followed all the correct processes and has now reached the second last phase of the project. “Residents have worked closely with the Camps Bay Neighbourhood Watch, which consists of more than 1 200 residents. They have called a meeting with residents and consulted with all the neighbours involved, in-
PATHWAY TO GLEN: Four of the pathways leading into the Little Glen will have gates which will be locked at night. Photo: Verna van Diemen cluding schools, the scouts, the neighbourhood watch, the police and the city. They then discussed it with the council and they have given us the specifications for a fence which will blend into the surrounding area. “It is now at the stage where an advertisement has been placed calling for comment from residents. We will then handle those comments in the correct manner. Then it is onto quotations followed by the erection, of the fence,” he said. But Taki Amira, the subcouncil chairperson, said residents will have to still go through an official public participation process which is advertised through the city. “They should still do a city public participation but nothing stops them from doing their own one. Many organisations do this just to get a feel of the community’s stance on the issue,” he said. Even though the advert states crime as the reason for constructing the fence, both Shephard and Schafer insist that there are other
more important reasons why the fence is being put up. Shephard said: “We want to keep the area clean and pretty.” To this end, a number of organisations in the community clean the park regularly. “We are restoring the Blinkwater river bank which runs through the Little Glen, before the winter by clearing out all the logs and everything that could block the flow of water before the winter comes,” he said. Schafer said: “There is no one incident that spurred this decision. There are other reasons why the fence will enhance residents’ enjoyment of the park.” He said the part which is being fenced-off is not the traditional route which people take to walk into the reserve. “The fence will protect ecologically sensitive plants. We also hope that it will prevent illegal dumping, curb the litter problem and deter vagrants from sleeping in the park,” he said.
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