The company residents of Rondebosch Belmont Zone believed was behind the proposed Tannery Park redevelopment has confirmed it is not involved, while the site’s actual owner has yet to speak publicly about its plans.

People’s Post reported last week on residents’ concerns. Large-scale demolition was underway at Tannery Park in Belmont Road. The City of Cape Town confirmed it approved a 505-unit mixed-use development for the site in August 2023.

ALSO READ: Rondebosch residents left in the dark over Tannery Park plans

Not Rawson

“Neither Rawson Developers nor any of its related entities are involved in the proposed redevelopment of Tannery Park,” said Tracey Ward, general manager of Rawson Developers.

A related entity owned the property until last year. It investigated redeveloping the site at one stage, but sold it to Putivista (Pty) Ltd before pursuing any development scheme. Rawson occupied office space at the site for several years. It vacated in February this year after the new owner issued a notice to leave.

People’s Post sent a media enquiry to Putivista, directed to registered director Jason Kombo. Putivista had not responded at the time of publication.

‘A box-ticking exercise’

Residents have since responded to the City’s account of the public-participation process detailed in last week’s report.

Kas Chandramohan is the founder and coordinator of the Rondebosch Belmont Zone. She said neither she nor any neighbours knew about the original 2022 application. She also had no knowledge of the 2026 re-advertisement of the amended application.

“To the best of our knowledge, neither I nor any of my neighbours received any notification regarding this development proposal. No publicly displayed notice existed that ordinary residents could have seen daily.”

Chandramohan said the City received only three responses during the 2022 process. She said this pointed to a failure of meaningful engagement. “Three responses for a development of this magnitude strongly suggests the public-participation process was inadequate and ineffective.

“It appears to have been little more than a box-ticking exercise. It was not a genuine effort to engage meaningfully with the affected community.”

Residents push back

Chandramohan said a pending application to convert the approved flats to a students’ residence had deepened residents’ concerns. “There is a pending application to change the development from residential flats to a high-density boarding house. This raises serious transparency concerns. The nature and scale of the development appear to have shifted significantly from what the community understood.”

Residents want full and visible public participation before the City decides on the amendment application.

City approves amendment

The City already decided. It approved the boarding house amendment on Friday 26 June this year.

Mayco member for Spatial Planning and Environment Eddie Andrews addressed the process. He said the City sent the re-advertisement to the ward councillor and civic association as required. It received no objections.

“In terms of Section 82(2) of the Municipal Planning By-Law, additional advertising was not necessary. The changes to the development are not significant. They will not impact the character of the area. The traffic impact will also decrease compared to the previous proposal,” Andrews said.

Andrews also addressed the original 2022 application. He said the City advertised it in the media and via an on-site notice. It also notified affected neighbours, the civic association and the ward councillor.

Councillor: Rondebosch is ready

Ward 59 councillor Mikhail Manuel confirmed the City undertook full public participation for the original 2022 application. The City re-advertised the amended application, with the comment period closing on 3 February. Manuel said only three residents had contacted him about the demolition in the past month. He responded to each.

“The Tannery Park development will be a welcome addition to Rondebosch, as it continues to grow as a bustling student-centred node.”

On residents’ water pressure concerns, Manuel said the problems in the Belmont area were unrelated to infrastructure capacity. “City law, since 2010, requires blocks of flats to install pressure pump systems to ensure adequate supply to their units.”

He cited a R4 billion expansion of the Athlone Wastewater Treatment Plant. He also noted a R2 million upgrade to the Newlands Reservoir in 2023. Major upgrades to high-voltage substations in Newlands and Mowbray followed in 2023 and 2024.

“The Southern Suburbs is primed for densification in response to the rapid growth of Cape Town’s population. People want to live in Rondebosch and we are ready to welcome them with open arms.”

Questions remain

Several questions remain at the time of publication. Putivista has not confirmed whether it submitted the amendment application. It has not said what it intends to build or how it plans to engage with affected residents.