Sub-council 3 in Goodwood has approved 12 designated sites for fireworks, including Table View beachfront – a venue that has drawn fierce criticism in the past.
The decision was made at the sub-council meeting on Thursday May 18 and other designated sites include beaches, parking areas and sports complexes in Atlantis, Bishop Lavis, Bonteheuwel, Mitchell’s Plain, Delft, Athlone, Camps Bay, Strandfontein, Sarepta, Blue Downs and Macassar.
Last year’s Guy Fawkes saw scores of people protesting against fireworks on Table View beachfront.
Two months earlier, the Table View Ratepayers’ Association ran a Facebook survey on whether fireworks were welcome in Table View and the result was a resounding no.
Ward 107 councillor Nicky Rheeder, posted a statement on Facebook on Monday May 22, saying she had been unable to find an alternative to Table View beachfront.
“Since August 2016, I have been seeking an alternative site to which we can guide the visitors instead of the Table View site but have not been able to find a venue that can cope with the amount of visitors we receive.
“Every suggestion that was put forward to me as well as all the sites I put forward were investigated by the fire department to ascertain suitability. We have exhausted every alternative and are left with no choice but to keep the Table View site,” said Ms Rheeder.
She said considerable resources deployed to the site last year had helped them to “minimise risk of incident”.
She said there were usually more than 60 members “of some kind of enforcement” helping out on the night, including the neighbourhood watch, the community police forum, Metro and law enforcement, SAPS, Fire and Rescue and ambulance services.
“Should the site be removed, there will be no resources on scene on the night and SAPS will be left on their own to manage whomever arrives to detonate fireworks along the beachfront as well as to manage traffic and parking. All resources that would’ve been used at this site would then be divided among the 11 other sites,” she said.
Councillor Cheryl Visser supported the application for the renewal of the extension of liquor trading hours at Tony’s liquor store in Richwood.
Councillor Nicky Rheeder supported five applications for the renewal of extensions of liquor trading hours in ward 107 and also supported one extension of liquor trading hours.
In Ward 113, councillor Joy McCarthy supported three applications for the renewal of the extension of liquor trading hours.
The next sub-council meeting takes place on Thursday June 22.
