If all goes ahead as planned, the installation of the fence at Potsdam is expected to take place within the coming weeks.
This information was shared with ward councillors and proportional representative (PR) councillors at the second subcouncil 3 meeting for the year, held on Thursday 24 March.
Councillors here were told that site visits with contractors had already been conducted, and that costing had also been secured for the fencing project.
Alastair Graham, the City of Cape Town’s head of the urban regeneration department, also indicated during the meeting that contractors will be on site within a month. The budget for the project was kept under R2 million, he said.
Joy Solomon, councillor for Ward 113, welcomed the news and thanked role-players at the meeting for their hard work and said she is delighted to see the first steps being taken.
She said that the plans to have a fence installed dates back to 2014. TygerBurger has also reported on this in the past.
Potsdam Road connects Blaauwberg Road in Milnerton Rural, with Malibongwe Drive near Dunoon. The area considered to be fenced is situated between Blaauwberg Road and the Killarney International Raceway, and Potsdam Road and the Diep River – an area which is part of the historic “Potsdam Outspan” site.
“The detailed design is currently being finalised, but the general alignment of the fence will be along the road edges, filling in where there are currently gaps, in order to secure the site,” Solomon said when asked where exactly the fence will be built.
She added: “The vision for how this site can unlock sustainable growth is slowly developing, but for now, we need to safeguard this site to re-establish its value as a very strategic site in the wider context of Cape Town.”
Liezel Kruger-Fountain who heads up the newly-formed urban sustainability unit in the urban planning and design department, was also thanked for her perseverance by Solomon during last week’s meeting.
“A visionary urban designer by profession, she and her small team of innovative forward thinkers look at areas within the city that have the potential of offering multiple, cumulative opportunities for a better future for our citizens as an enabling government.
“Potsdam is one such area. Over the last two years, she championed a visioning exercise of the next chapter of this Potsdam Outspan site. As a local resident of Flamingo Vlei, Liezel passionately believes in the sustainable growth of the area, while hoping to utilise the Blaauwberg district’s uniqueness to influence City-wide planning and policies, and inspire direction-setting programmes and projects,” Solomon said.
