Ben Smit, Melkbosstrand
The City of Cape Town and associated “environmental partners” scheduled a public meeting with interested parties in Melkbosstrand to debate the proposed building of a low-cost high-density development of Erf 1694 – approximately 17 hectares of a total surface area of about 55 hectares.
Three options were proffered: build approximately 1 400 units, build about 600 dwellings or leave it as it is.
Should option one pass, it might add 6 000 souls eventually to an already over-stressed infrastructure, hence there was intense interest in this meeting with a caveat that there would be a deadline for comments, February 28.
The meeting was scheduled for 6pm to 8pm on February 21 at the Country Club in Melkbosstrand, a week before the deadline for comments.
An hour before the scheduled time, the secretary of Environmental Partners sent out a notice by email and SMS to registered concerned parties that the meeting was cancelled.
Understandably the roughly 90 people who had not read the ultra-short notice had turned up and were hugely upset, angered and felt let down, cheated and insulted.
Somebody had some lined paper available and suggested that the people present sign in protest against this upsetting cancellation, which they all did.
There were other interested parties that independently indicated that they and their groups would submit signed protests as well.
Somebody present contacted the mayor, Dan Plato, who apparently was appalled and offered some remedial action.
* Tabletalk sent this letter to the City on February 25, requesting a response, but none was received by the time this edition went to print.