City Council approved the renaming of Belhar Main Road in Kuils River to John van de Rheede Drive on Thursday 20 August.

The decision follows a naming process initiated by local civic association, the Highbury Foundation (HF).

Van de Rheede, whose full name was Johan Jacobus Eli van de Rheede, was a teacher and community activist who moved to Highbury in 1986. He was elected as a proportional councillor for the ANC in the first local government election after 1994 for the then Kuils River Municipality. He co-founded the HF in 2009.

According to the foundation’s motivation for the renaming, Van de Rheede played a leading role in securing assistance for about 300 families left homeless by a fire at an informal settlement alongside the railway line in Kuils River in about 1990. He also championed the building of early childhood centres in Highbury and Kalkfontein, and helped establish the first neighbourhood watch in Highbury. Van de Rheede passed away in October 2023.

ALSO READ: John van de Rheede: Pillar of Highbury community, former chair of Highbury Foundation, passed away

From proposal to approval

The renaming was proposed by Winston Middleton, chair of Highbury Foundation, on behalf of the HF in 2024.

Ebrahim Sawant, Ward 19 councillor, noted that both the Highbury Ratepayers and Residents Association (Hirra) and the HF supported the proposal.

The City’s Naming Committee recommended on 23 January 2025 that the proposal be authorised for public participation. The process ran from 2 May to 2 June 2025. A total of 960 comments were received, with 857 in support and 103 against, representing 89% support.

The Section 80 Naming Committee recommended on 10 June that the objections not be upheld after which the Executive Mayor recommended on 19 June that Council approve the renaming.

Confusion

The “Naming Proposal Form” which Highbury Foundation submitted asked for the renaming of Belhar Road which it stated “joins the R300 from the eastside and Stellenbosch Arterial from the north and runs through/past the residential areas of Sarepta, Kalkfontein, Highbury and Stellendale in Kuils River” and is situated on the border of Wards 11 and 19.

Confusion arose when City officials documented the road as ”Belhar Drive”, which is in Belhar and falls under Subcouncil 5 and Ward 12, rather than the road in Kuils River (Belhar Main Road) which falls under Subcouncil 14 and Wards 11 and 19.

This led to some commotion during Thursday’s Council meeting, when PA councillor Ashley Addinall interrupted Sawant to point out that the photographs in the Council agenda showed Belhar Drive in Belhar and not Belhar (Main) Road in Kuils River.

ANC councillor Delmaine Cottee called for the report to be corrected to reflect that the road falls within Wards 11 and 19 in Kuils River.

Council tribute

Sawant paid tribute to Van de Rheede in council.

“This road is more than tar and stones; it is a path John paved for us long ago before it was built,” Sawant said. “Let this road be a reminder that true leadership is not about arriving first, but to ensure nobody stays behind.”

Sawant thanked the naming committee, the deputy mayor and the mayor for supporting the proposal, as well as the HF, Hirra and the residents of Kuils River. He also thanked Van de Rheede’s wife, Sandra, and her children for sharing John with the community. He noted that a formal event will be held later this year to mark the renaming.

Middleton said in reaction to the approval: “What a great day for the residents of Kuils River.”