Chairperson Ald. Purchase welcomed members of the public, officials, fellow councillors and the media to the March Subcouncil (19) Meeting. Items on the agenda and issues of interest.
Argus Cycle Tour
Once again we had about 35 000 people riding bicycles around the city. It was a spectacular success with perfect weather conditions, and from the comments received from the many visitors it showed off the city magnificently. We look forward to the Two Oceans Road Race in the coming weeks.
Navy Festival - ends Sunday 18 March
We have again experienced the amazing popularity of the Naval Festival including the Freedom of the Town Parade and 3 days of events which enthralled the public, especially the kids; with marching, sail pasts, ships, submarines, aeroplanes and the works. (Ald Purchase reported after the Sub-council meeting that an estimated people attended a very successful Navy Festival. No negative incidents were reported and the traffic and law enforcement staff are to commended along with the Navy for an excellent event.)
Fish Hoek Beach – Exclusion net
Today we have on the agenda the report which has been the result of extensive negotiations with all interested and affected parties, specialists in their field and the National Department of Water Affairs responsible for MCM; and the culmination is a Report recommending the implementation of the Shark Exclusion Nets. (For information about the rationale behind the proposed net and its design go to:
| https://scenicsouth.co.za//2012/03/shark-net-barrier-for-fish-hoek-letter-from-lifesavers/ ) |
Kommetjie Road Public Hearing
Proposals around Kommetjie Road safety are open for comment and plans can be viewed in the Subcouncil Chambers – closing date is the 30 March 2012. There are some significant changes recommended, including the provision of the cycle lanes on both sides of the road. It is proposed to forfeit some of the existing parking bays. I encourage everybody to take the time to view the plans and comment. If we can deal with all the comments by the end of March, we can have the Riverside Road traffic lights installed by June, as well as most of the raised medians.
EPWP – Mayors Job Creation Project
This past quarter this Subcouncil gave 532 jobs to the unemployed in our wards with the solid waste department, alien clearing department and also the nature reserve upgrades section.
Sewerage Spill – Silvermine River
We have had two dramatic sewage spills in the Silvermine River over the past weeks and this has caused a bad reaction which has had to be attended to. We have an improvement in the notifications system which is planned to deal with the failure experienced on these occasions.
(The Silvermine River Rovers are dissatisfied with the clean-up actions after the spill as well as the faulty or ineffective alarm system. Spokesperson Evanne Rothwell tabled a set of questions at the Sub – council meeting for the attention of the responsible officials and a report back at the April meeting. )
Water pipe upgrade in Fish Hoek
I want to point out that we are preparing to upgrade the water pipe network to the Harrington Reservoirs and this is going to cause some inconvenience. It is part of the plan for making provision for sufficient water for the future needs for 2040. This involves an upgrade to the pump station at Clovelly as well.
Note: Workshop with businesses and civics of the far south and many who will be affected by parking policy.
We want to wish our lifesavers who are off to the SA Champs this coming weekend, the best of luck.
Thank you.
Alderman Felicity Purchase
Subcouncil Chairperson (19)
19 March 2012