Cape Town - Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has offered the City’s support to evict the homeless people squatting outside the Castle of Good Hope.
He penned a letter to national Public Works Minister Sihle Zikalala telling him that they can resolve the issue.
If the department doesn’t answer by June 16, the City will seek a way to remove the homeless people through the courts. The homeless have been living near the national monument for more than two years.
“If need be, the City is prepared to launch an eviction application on behalf of Public Works with the necessary consent and power of attorney, so as to ensure the relocation of the occupants and restoration of public access to the site and surrounding moat.”
Hill-Lewis called for urgent confirmation of Public Works’ prior undertaking to launch an eviction application for the nationally owned land around the Castle.
“The Castle is one of the oldest buildings in Cape Town and is a Grade 1 national monument. It is also one of the first sites a person experiences when coming off the highway and entering the CBD. It is one of the top tourist destinations in Cape Town, and is visited annually by thousands of tourists and schoolchildren.
“Without an intervention to stop the further unlawful occupation, the Castle’s status as a top tourist destination and national landmark will be impacted, with a 90% drop in visitors already.
“The affected property is not fit for human habitation. The property is unsafe due to its proximity, in particular, to vehicular traffic. There is no access to water, sanitation services, or electricity,” the mayor wrote.
Hill-Lewis told Zikalala the City is prepared to launch the eviction application on behalf of Public Works, with the necessary consent and power of attorney.
“If no response is received by 16 June, the City will have to assume that the national government has neither the capacity nor the will to act in the public interest urgently in this matter or at all. Should Public Works fail to meet deadline, the City will have no option but to act in the public interest by seeking the appropriate relief from the courts to ensure the site is restored, on a just and equitable basis.”
The mayor said the City operates two Safe Spaces at Culemborg, in the east of the CBD, which offer 480 shelter beds across the facilities, and is helping shelters with resources to add more than 300 beds.
An attorney at Ndifuna Ukwazi, Dr Jonty Cogger, said they have grave misgivings about the suitability of Culemborg Safe Space as alternative accommodation.
“What we ultimately fear is that (with) homeless shelters, in the absence of viable long-term affordable housing alternatives, the City will add to a vicious cycle of homelessness …
“Is it not time that we review the rules at the City’s Safe Spaces so that we may create something that feels like ‘home’?”
The Cape Argus reached out to the Department of Public Works but there was no response.