As the year draws to a close, Tabletalk takes a look back on the stories that made headlines in 2022.
The year didn’t start well for the 14 people who lost all their belongings in a fire that swept through the Old Weltevreden Farm in Brooklyn on January 1 (“Fire leaves 14 people displaced,” Tabletalk, January 12).
In February, with the release of national crime statistics, Milnerton was ranked 17th in the country in the “other serious crimes” category and Table View was 20th in the country for commercial crimes (“Commercial crime flagged for Milnerton, Table View,” Tabletalk, February 23).
In March, those living near the Killarney International Raceway had mixed feelings about whether the City should renew its lease (“Killarney track seeks new lease,” Tabletalk, March 2), but five months later, the Western Province Motor Club signed a lease for a further 15 years (“Green light for new Killarney lease,” Tabletalk, August 24).
Hundreds of dead fish were found in Milnerton Lagoon and residents blamed ongoing sewage spills (“City to probe lagoon fish deaths,” Tabletalk, March 9).
The City installed a new grid to catch pollution at the stormwater outlet in Erica Road, Milnerton, but residents said it was not a solution to the pollution problems (“New grid won’t solve all the pollution problems, Milnerton residents say,” Tabletalk, March 23).
In April, an animal rescue organisation, Cheryl Lyn’s Rescue Organisation (CRO), which rehabilitates abused and neglected animals, was able to build a shelter near Klein Dassenberg, Atlantis (“Animal rescue set to build a safe haven for their animals,” Tabletalk, April 20).
Squatters in a settlement of some 400 shacks on the Diep River floodplain, in Rivergate, near Dunoon, were threatened with eviction in May, but they are still there today (“Floodplain squatters face eviction,” Tabletalk, May 4).
In June, Milnerton resident and tour guide Matt Weisse invited residents to a talk about the history of Milnerton and the lagoon, and he said Cape Town’s rivers were being polluted as early as 1655 (“Exploring Milnerton’s rich history,” Tabletalk, June 1).
In July, residents welcomed the R100-million revamp at Table View beachfront, after a decade of complaints about conditions there (“R100m beachfront revamp gets going,” Tabletalk, July 13).
Ward 5 councillor Helen Carstens resigned, saying she needed to spend more time with family (“Ward 5 up for grabs after councillor quits,” Tabletalk, July 27), and, in October, DA councillor Miquette Temlett won the by-election with 92.26% of the votes (“DA retains Ward 5 after by-election,” Tabletalk, October 19).
In August, Dunoon residents welcomed the City’s plans to install new pipes to reduce sewage spills in the township (“Dunoon pins hopes on plan to end sewage spills,” Tabletalk, August 3).
In September, Brooklyn Chest Hospital got a facelift after a Table View charity fixed up the children’s section (“Brooklyn Chest Hospital gets facelift,” Tabletalk, September 8).
Four civics joined forces and threatened to take the City and developers to court over the approval of development plans that they say are destroying their communities (“Civics threaten to take City, developers to court,” Tabletalk, October 26).
Edgemead, Richwood and Bothasig residents cleared bush along Sylvia Street near the De Zicht estate after 28-year-old Suritha Alting was stabbed to death and robbed of her cellphone there (“Residents fume after woman slain in bush,” Tabletalk, November 16).
The City held a public meeting in Table View last week where officials presented short- and long-term plans to clean up the polluted Milnerton Lagoon (“City outlines plans to restore lagoon,” Tabletalk, December 7).
