This is the fifth video in the series to promote responsible tourism in South Africa. From our first destination, Cape Town. We continue our walking tour with a local friend and tour guide (Siviwe Mbinda) for walking tour around Langa – the first black township in Cape Town. We get to see how the resourceful locals have coped with the effects of climate change in thier communities, we visit a local sheep’s head restaurant, Siwive explains how the community is benefiting from the influx of tourism in the township and we witness the kids from the Happy Feet Dance Group perform their spectacular version of the Gumboot Dance! Along the journey, we will also provide our message and discovery, including some useful tips and advice for tourists who are planning on traveling to South Africa, and how they may become more responsible on the road in reducing their impact. Follow the Mynatour team on their exciting trip around South Africa – 6000kms in 28 days. mynatour.org/diary Visiting places such as Cape Town, Albertinia, Lions Head, Langa, Durban, Johannesburg, Soweto, Fair Trade Tourism South Africa, Saint Lucia, Port Elizabeth, Kruger National Park, Table Mountain National Park, Wild Coast, Port St. Johns, Panorama Route, Garden Route, Guineafowl, Timbavati, Graskop, Western Cape, Zululand, Swaziland, Manzini, East London, Cintsa, Cintsa West, Cape St. Lucia, St. Lucia Marine Sanctuary, St. Lucia, St. Lucia Wetland Park, Cape Vidal, Blyde Ricer In collaboration with Fair Trade …
Video Rating: 5 / 5

This 39 minute documentary gives an overview of the Lausanne Movement’s Cape Town 2010 Congress held in October 2010. A short version (14 minutes) is also available at www.youtube.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Windsurfing in Cape Town, South Africa… all footage is from the last couple of weeks in feb/march 2010. I was injured for most of jan/feb so it was good to finally get back on the water before going home. Try not to laugh at the lowest double attempt ever!! haha..

Even though tickets for all eight World Cup™ games to be played at the city’s new 68 000 seat stadium have been reserved, FIFA said that a few tickets may still be released for sale to the public.

“Tickets for these games might still come back (in small quantities) to the public sales in the future,” FIFA said in a statement.

For updates on the availability of World Cup™ matches, click here.

The final phase of ticket sales on Thursday 15 April 2010 saw huge demand across the country, with just over 100 000 tickets sold within the first day. The last remaining tickets for Cape Town matches were snapped up on a first-come, first-served basis within a day.

The opening of the 11 FIFA Ticketing Centres across the country also means that fans can now collect tickets reserved and paid for during previous ticket sales phases.

Fans will need to produce their ID/passport, FIFA Original Ticket Confirmation, and proof of residence (such as telephone/ utility account) for Category four tickets, which are reserved for South Africans only.

Cape Town’s official FIFA Ticketing Centre is at The Spearhead, 42 Hans Strijdom Avenue, Foreshore, and is open from 09:00 to 18:00 seven days a week.

A FIFA Ticket Terminal will also be located at Cape Town International Airport from 7 June to 11 July 2010.

Tickets are not issued by the host city, and all queries relating to games and tickets must be directed to FIFA.

FIFA hotline number: 083 123 2010
FIFA enquiries: enquiries@2010fwctc.co.za or visit www.fifa.com/201.

Interested parties are invited to one of the following City of Cape Town briefing sessions to find out more about 2010 event sites and application and selection procedures:

• CCDI Offices, 75 Harrington Street, Cape Town: 29 April, 10:00 – 12:00
• Goodwood Library Hall, cnr McDonald, Voortrekker and Church Streets, Goodwood: 30 April, 10:00 – 12:00
• Crush Room, 5th floor, Cape Town Civic Centre, Cape Town: 5 May, 10:00 – 12:00
• Lookout Hill, cnr Mew Way and Spine Road, Khayelitsha: 5 May, 14:00 – 16:00
• Guga’Sthebe Cultural Centre, Washington Street, Langa: 6 May, 10:00 – 12:00
• Fish Hoek Civic Centre, Central Circle, Recreation Road, Fish Hoek: 6 May, 14:00 – 16:00
• Somerset West Hall, 91 Main Street, Somerset West (Next to Standard Bank): 7 May, 10:00 – 12:00
• Thusong Centre, cnr AZ Berman and Kilimanjaro, Tafelsig, Mitchells Plain: 7 May, 14:00 – 16:00

All applications will be subject to a selection process to ensure that products to be sold:

• do not infringe on the FIFA trademarks and rights protection programme
• do not include brands of official sponsors, or their competitors
• are handmade in the Western Cape
• are appropriate for the target market, and are of good quality

In addition, successful participants will need to:

• attend a compulsory briefing and training session in the first week of June
• sign a contract with the event organisers
• pay a fee for the hire of retail space within event sites to the respective event organisers
• subject their products to quality testing by a panel from the Cape Craft and Design Institute

Application forms may be obtained from and returned to the Cape Craft and Design Institute, which will manage this process on behalf of the City. Forms are available at the briefing sessions. Completed applications must be e-mailed to thandeka.tyatyantsi@ccdi.org.za or preferably delivered, with samples, to Cape Craft & Design Institute, 75 Harrington Street, Cape Town (tel: 021 461 1488). Application forms and samples must be submitted by 12:00 on 12 May 2010.

“It’s just an amazing stadium, and all the teams who play in Cape Town, will play in a perfect place.”

Without wanting to be biased regarding other host cities, he said Cape Town is “one of the most beautiful in the country”.

He was visiting the city’s 68 000 seater stadium as part of the FIFA Local Organising Committee “state of readiness” roadshow of 2010 World Cup™ facilities in South Africa on Monday, 1 March 2010.

Valcke addressed 125 national and international journalists, along with Western Cape Premier Helen Zille, Executive Mayor Alderman Dan Plato, and Head of the Local Organising Committee, Dr Danny Jordaan.

Valcke added that the Cape Town Stadium rye grass pitch will be treated as a benchmark for all other new World Cup stadiums.

The visit came one day ahead of the official 100 days until kickoff. Celebratory events were held countrywide.

The City of Cape Town celebrated this milestone with a media event at Signal Hill to launch the official 2010 FIFA World Cup™ coin, which has been specially created in honour of the tournament. Mayor Dan Plato kicked off a soccer ball to mark the occasion.

The City has also urged Capetonians to wear soccer shirts or jerseys in support of this occasion.

Valcke said that South Africa’s preparations for the World Cup™ were largely on track, and the country as a whole is 80% ready to host the tournament.

Curious residents and visitors to the city who were not able to attend one of the successful test events held at the new facility can now for the first time visit the new 68 000-seat stadium, which will host eight 2010 FIFA World Cup™ matches.

The Cape Town Stadium Visitor Centre opened on 9 February, and is open on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Hour-long tours commence at 10:00, 12:00 and 14:00. Prices are R30 for adults, and R15 for pensioners and children.

School tours are also available, at R10 per child.

The tours are run by the operators of the stadium, SAIL STADEFRANCE.

The tour of the stadium includes the stands, players’ changing rooms, VIP/hospitality area and prison cell. Access to the pitch is, however, not permitted.

The first signed soccer and rugby ball brought in the stadium also feature.

Directions: From the new raised Green Point traffic circle, take the entrance closest to McDonalds, and park near the site of the old stadium. Enter via the entrance on Granger Bay Boulevard at entrance C onto the podium.

For more information, call 021 430 7346.

Thembinkosi Siganda, the City’s Director: Economic and Human Development, explains the City’s strategy: “The City provides funding and strategic guidance to sector bodies (special purpose vehicles that have been established by the Provincial Government of the Western Cape in conjunction with the City) to facilitate industry development through sector specific interventions. These interventions are intended to enhance sustainable growth and competitiveness in identified sectors, which contribute to the city’s economy. The City is collaborating with these sector bodies to market Cape Town as a competitive destination ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ opportunities.”

These sector bodies, which include the Cape Film Commission (CFC), Cape Town Boat Building and Technology Initiative, Business Process enabling South Africa (BPeSA) Western Cape, Cape Town Tourism, Oil & Gas, the Cape Information and Technology Initiative, and the Western Cape Investment & Trade Promotion Agency (Wesgro), submit reports on a quarterly basis to the City. These reports highlight the activities they have undertaken to promote the priority sectors.

In the latest reports covering the period October to December 2009, the CFC reported that they had, during this period, provided strategic and logistical support to Cape Media Services to, amongst others, maximise media exposure for Cape Town and deliver efficient media support services. Cape Media Services was launched in partnership with the City and the Provincial Government of the Western Cape.

The CFC in conjunction with Cape Media Services showcased their production services and locations available for filming during the World Broadcasters meeting in December at the CTICC. This meeting was attended by at least 400 broadcasters from across the world. By doing this, the CFC has successfully managed to convince the BBC to base its main studio in Cape Town prior to and during the 2010 FIFA World Cup™. This means that they will showcase Cape Town to at least 200 million viewers. The BBC will procure services from local production companies and other related broadcast services.

The CFC also provided content to Cape Town TV and FIFA TV to showcase sport, arts and culture on the Cape Flats and took various broadcast delegations on tours of Cape Town. This has been undertaken in order to market the city’s readiness for the World Cup and beyond.

The Cape Craft and Design Institute (CCDI) has been promoting 2010 products made by local crafters for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

The CCDI participated in the Small Business Week, the Soccerex 2009 Expo and the December Long Street Final Draw Festival to showcase 2010 related products. In addition, the CCDI achieved media coverage by being interviewed on local and international media. This world-wide media exposure has been providing valuable marketing opportunities for locally produced soccer inspired products and their creators.

Apart from engaging with various stakeholders, the CCDI also focussed on preparing craft producers and informing them of FIFA guidelines by holding briefing sessions in the rural areas in the Stellenbosch and Eden District Municipalities and producing a monthly newsletter on 2010 updates.

Wesgro has been promoting the Western Cape as a lucrative destination of global business with exhibitions at Soccerex 2009 in Johannesburg, the World Economic Forum at the CTICC as well as hosting a 2010 themed investor breakfast at the CTICC in addition to participating in the annual ICT exhibition in the CTICC.

Wesgro has not only been focussing on attracting investors, but has also been extending invitations to non-accredited journalists to visit the Western Cape during the 2010 World FIFA Cup™. This is done with the view of showcasing priority sectors as well as 2010 initiatives to the world.

Raising awareness around the City’s readiness for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ is also one of Wesgro’s priorities, which is why they have been working towards publishing the ‘Invest in Western Cape’ publication. This will feature the City’s marketing collateral and is scheduled to be launched in March this year.

Cape Information & Technology Initiative (CITI) during this period has also been instrumental in marketing Cape Town’s readiness for the World Cup. CITI attended the Third Global Forum on Business Incubation in Brazil in October 2009, where they marketed the City’s 2010 readiness. CITI has also continued running the City’s 2010 readiness DVD at the Bandwith Barn premises.

“It is not only the tourist industry that will benefit from the 2010 FIFA World Cup™. The eyes of the world will be focused on South Africa during the year which enables our promotional bodies to better market the Cape Town brand. In addition, people with business interests will be among the visitors coming to Cape Town to watch the games which provides local businesses with the chance to showcase their products and services as well as to establish contacts for more long term relationships. It is the responsibility of the various sector support bodies to be the conduit to help local businesses access the business opportunities that will result from holding the world’s greatest soccer tournament in our country,” says Alderman Felicity Purchase, Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Development and Tourism.

Cape Town motorists are going to have to suffer short-term pain for long-term gain, we explained, as we all endure a series of planned roadworks aimed at significantly improving the city’s transport infrastructure ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

And now it’s 2010 – almost two years later. And that short-term pain was not only nowhere near as painful as we feared it would be, but now it’s over, at least for those of us who got used to squeezing through Hospital Bend.

The new routes – inbound and outbound – will be opened in two phases during March 2010, but finishing work will continue for about a month afterwards.

Bertie Byker, Head: Operations Integration, Roads & Stormwater, reminds us that one of the most important elements of the work was the accommodation of traffic. “Road users were hardly inconvenienced during construction,” he says, “and everything, the sequence of execution, available work areas and methods of construction (using overhead gantries) was determined for road users’ convenience.

“The only times that lanes were closed or restricted was during nighttime off-peaks.”

Hospital Bend is an important link between the CBD and airport as well as the residential area of Khayelitsha.

The Hospital Bend Interchange upgrade included the following key elements:

• Rhodes Drive (M3) inbound was widened on the left-hand side, creating an extra lane before the N2 merge
• A pre-selection lane from the M3 (inbound) to Hospital Bend was created, which included the widening of the bridge over Settlers Way and upgrading of the M3 to N2 outbound loop all on new alignments
• The N2 inbound was provided with an extra lane (third lane) and the vertical re-alignment of the N2 underneath the bridge to provide an acceptable vertical clearance
• Hospital Bend to M3 outbound lane was widened
• A new overpass bridge for Anzio Road on-ramp towards Cape Town
• A new pre-selection lane from Upper De Waal Drive (M3) to Hospital Bend (outbound) was constructed, which included new bridge across the westbound (inbound) carriageway
• Upgraded signage, barrier walls and other guard rails
• Resurfacing, new street lights, upgrading of the stormwater system, and landscaping within the road reserve

The total project budget was R263 million (excluding VAT), and it is expected that the work will be completed soon, within budget and on time.

The following Gallows Hill facilities will be the most severely affected over the three-month period between 1 May and 31 July 2010:

• The Vehicle Testing Station (VTS)
• The Driving Licence Testing Centre’s (DLTC) ‘test track’
• The ‘driver test routes’
• The learner’s licence classes
• The public parking facility

All Gallows Hills driving licence competency tests and vehicle roadworthy tests will be suspended during this period due to the closure of the VTS and test track. Learner’s licence classes will also be suspended from mid-June 2010 to mid-July 2010. Residents are therefore encouraged to use any of the City’s 17 other DLTCs during this three month period. For a complete list, click here.

Gallows Hill DLTC will, however, be open for a limited number of transactions such as card renewals, card collections, appointments and payment of traffic fines.

Every effort will be made to have the new Fish Hoek DLTC fully operational by May 2010 to help cope with the expected increase in driving licence competency tests.

Additional testing officers will be made available at Parow, Milnerton and Bellville DLTCs to assist with the expected increase in the number of competency tests that will be channelled to these testing centres.

Martin Pollack

The match, which is hosted by the City of Cape Town and sponsored by Virgin Active, will be between Premier Soccer League giants Santos and Ajax Cape Town. All available Twenty thousand tickets have already been sold.

“The Cape Town Stadium Soccer Festival affords us the chance to celebrate the ingenuity of the team behind the magnificent Cape Town Stadium, as well as the rich traditions of Cape Town football in the match between Ajax Cape Town and Santos,” says Ross Faragher-Thomas, Managing Director of Virgin Active, the official sponsor of the Cape Town Soccer Festival.

“The Cape Town Stadium is a venue that should make all South Africans proud, not just those from the mother city, and we at Virgin Active are delighted to play our part in this most historic of occasions.

“We know that this event will be well supported by the people of Cape Town, who are passionate about their football, but also their achievements as a city, and we look forward to enjoying the day of celebration with them.” The schedule for the day is:

• 14:00 Gates open Roving podium entertainment
• 15:20 Official blessing of the field and opening of the stadium
• 15:30 Musical performance by Freshly Ground
• 16:00 Ajax Cape Town vs Santos game 1st half
• 16:45 Vuvuzela orchestra performance
• 17:00 Ajax Cape Town vs Santos game 2nd half
• 17:45 Final whistle
• 17:55 Official trophy ceremony
• 19:00 Gates close

The match is being used as an opportunity for the operators of the stadium, SAIL STADEFRANCE to test the stadium’s systems and processes by slowly building-up to the full 68 000 capacity in a number of different games before the 2010 FIFA World CupTM event.

Tickets were available from Computicket and cost between R30 and R50. Parking tickets, of which 3 000 were for sale, were priced at R20, and were only available from Computicket. Fans will not be able to buy match tickets or parking tickets at the stadium on the day.

The City of Cape Town will be providing a free shuttle service from the Civic Centre in Hertzog Boulevard to the stadium and back. To use this facility, all fans need do is present their match tickets.

A helpline has been set up for those who require additional information on the event and can be reached on 021 487 6800.

Martin Pollack

At a ceremony in front of over 200 invited guests and the media representatives from around the world, Executive Mayor Alderman Dan Plato, received the keys to the stadium and proudly declared that “this stadium is ready to welcome the world”.

He said the ceremony was to “celebrate the new stadium and also the city” and later kicked a soccer ball around the new pitch.

The state-of-the-art stadium – which will seat 68,000 for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and will host eight matches, including a semi-final – was completed on schedule, just 32 months after the first sod was turned.

Plato said the R4.5-billion stadium was the biggest project of its kind ever undertaken in Cape Town, and is regarded as a triumph in both design and construction, despite some challenges during the construction period.

“But it has been worth the wait. Capetonians are proud of it, and pictures of it are being e-mailed around the world.

According to Mike Marsden, Executive Director for Service Delivery Integration, the target completion date was achieved through a “magnificent team effort” and thanked all those involved in the stadium, including the main building contractors, Murray & Roberts and WBHO and their “committed and dedicated workforce” of 2 500, as well as the professional team and City professional team.

The key issues in getting it ready in time included resolve, resources and skills, he said. “It’s a remarkable achievement.”

Marsden added that the structure is a “stadium of beauty” comparable to iconic structures elsewhere, such as the Sydney Opera House and Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. “This stadium will be identifiable with Cape Town,” he said.

Plato described the stadium as a “wonderful piece of art” and said it has a “grand, spacious, timeless design”.

“I can assure the whole world that this stadium will be a legacy for the entire country. Cape Town Stadium is set to be one of the world’s sporting landmarks. In this very arena, the best of the world will do battle. It will also be the iconic image of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.”

Plato also reiterated that it is a stadium for all Capetonians, not just for those in Green Point, where it is situated.

“People of Cape Town, this is your stadium, it is our stadium. I hope it will give us all the joy and the pleasure we deserve. This stadium is ready for the world.”

Martin Pollack

The Final Draw, in which the eight groups for next year’s FIFA World Cup™ were decided, was made at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on Friday 4 December 2009.

“We promised the country a spectacular and world-class event and we delivered on that promise. It was a great celebration of Africa which triggered a wave of passion and support on the streets of Cape Town, across South Africa and around the world,” said Jordaan.

Executive Mayor Dan Plato said he had received congratulatory messages from across the world.  “The hosting of the series of events around the Final Draw and the event itself proves that Cape Town and South Africa are indeed ready to host 2010 World Cup.

“We had two events with 120 000 and 55 000 strong crowds respectively. There were no incidents and the atmosphere was fantastic.  I would like to thank all Capetonians for being wonderful and supportive hosts.  You put up with some disruption and inconvenience, but your support was crucial and greatly appreciated and made these events a resounding success.”

Premier of the Western Cape, Helen Zille, said on Saturday the proceedings were a “great success for Cape Town and South Africa”.

Cape Town also showed the world just why it plans to be the party capital of the FIFA World Cup™, with thousands of revellers descending on Long Street to watch the Final Draw on five giant screens.

Fans carrying flags and vuvuzelas gathered in Long Street from early Friday afternoon, where they were entertained by numerous live acts, including the Miss World contestants. FIFA President Sepp Blatter officially launched the FIFA Fan Fest project at 14:00.

With perfect warm summer weather, and Table Mountain towering in the background, the festival was Cape Town’s chance to showcase itself.

Up to 18 000 were expected at the Long Street Festival, but nearly double that number had descended on the cordoned-off area by the time the Final Draw was being made, and officials had to restrict access. Wale Street between Adderley and Loop streets was also closed off to deal with the overflow of fans. The surrounding streets soon filled with revellers, and the party continued long into the night, watched over by a large number of security officials.

The festival gave Capetonians a taste of what to expect at the official World Cup™ Fan Fest at the Grand Parade, where large numbers of people will congregate to watch the games live on big screens.

The City was also able to use the event to test its safety and security systems ahead of the World Cup™, and showcase to an international audience how Cape Town will cope with large numbers of spectators in the city centre, and ensure a safe street revellers’ experience.

Fans in Long Street were glued to the big screen to watch as numerous celebrities and dignitaries arrived on the red carpet outside the Cape Town International Convention Centre, and the excitement was palpable as Charlize Theron said: “Now is the time to draw the teams and find out who will be playing whom in 2010.”

There was excited speculation about the groups and which teams would be playing which opponents as the Final Draw was being made.

According to Jordaan, it is now important to “keep that passion and support for the World Cup alive, not just in terms of what happens on the field but also in terms of selling tickets”.

The next phase of ticket sales has opened on FIFA.com. To date 674 403 tickets have been sold, with 361 582 of those going to South Africans.

Martin Pollack

The exercise focused on a search for a reefer vessel lost at sea.

A South African Air force aircraft was requested to assist in the search and the relaying of emergency messages was broadcast via Cape Town Radio.

The exercise ran over a period of 24 hours and the search area spanned from the Indian Ocean to the mid Atlantic region of the South African search and rescue region of responsibility. There was no physical deployment – it was a “C3” exercise – Command Control Communication.

The main aim was for the MRCC to take the information available to them and pass it on to the correct SAR bodies. The simulated search was successful and the vessel was located.

The exercise highlighted the importance of regular Search and Rescue (SAR) operations training and will be used as a master plan for training opportunities that new recruits and associated search and rescue role-players will benefit from. Later this month an international exercise will take place between the South African MRCC and their Argentinean counterparts.

This joint exercise forms part of bilateral agreements on search and rescue between the two countries as they share a common search and rescue border.

After the 1st round of matches three more games will be played at Cape Town Stadium; on 29 June 2010 one round of the top 16, on 03 July 2010 one of the Quarter Finals and on 06 July 2010 the Semi Finals.

At the draw the countries that qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2010  were placed into these groups:

• Group A: South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France
• Group B: Argentina, Nigeria, Korea Republic, Greece
• Group C: England, USA, Algeria, Slovenia
• Group D: Germany, Australia, Serbia, Ghana
• Group E: Netherlands, Denmark, Japan, Cameroon
• Group F: Italy, Paraguay, New Zealand, Slovakia
• Group G: Brazil, Korea DPR, Cote d’Ivore, Portugal
• Group H: Spain, Switzerland, Honduras, Chile

Greenpoint Football Stadium Cape Town

The full schedule of all matches of the FIFA World Cup taking place in Cape Town will be:

• Friday 11 June 2010 – 20:30 hrs – Uruguay vs France
• Monday 14 June 2010 – 20:30 hrs    - Italy vs Paraguay
• Friday 18 June 2010 – 20:30 hrs    - England vs Algeria
• Monday 21 June 2010 – 13:30 hrs    - Portugal vs Korea DPR
• Thursday 24 June 2010 – 20:30 hrs – Cameroon vs Netherlands
• Tuesday    29 June 2010 – 20:30 hrs – 1H vs 2G (8) Round of 16
• Saturday 03 July 2010 – 16:00 hrs – 2 vs 4 (B) Quarterfinals
• Tuesday    06 July 2010 – 20:30 hrs – A vs C (I) Semifinals

A full match schedule sorted by Match, Team and Venue can be downloaded HERE (PDF 53 kilobytes)

Discuss the 2010 World Cup here.

World Cup transport plan approved
The Council has approved the updated transport plan for next year’s 2010 FIFA World Cup™. The plan provides for 32 000 parking bays in the central business district, and the deployment of more than 200 trained personnel and volunteers to co-ordinate the transport service. Some R8,5 billion is being spent on municipal transport infrastructure. Road closures on non-match days will be limited to two roads next to the FIFA Fan Fest™ at the Grand Parade, with further road closures on eight match days.

43 Langa homes transferred
The City is to transfer 43 sectional title units in Langa, which were developed by First National Bank (FNB) as part of the N2 Gateway project. FNB is to indemnify the City against all possible third party claims or actions.

91 serviced plots in Khayelitsha
The City is to release 91 serviced plots in Ilitha Park, Khayelitsha to small developers. These will be sold to beneficiaries in the affordable housing market on a plot-and-plan basis.

Use of land under bridges formalised
The City Council has approved a process for the formal application and allocation of land pockets underneath bridges. The municipality will develop guidelines which will be communicated to residents.

Lease for Strandfontein lifesavers
The Strandfontein Lifesaving Club has obtained permission to continue renting part of the Strandfontein Pavilion for the next ten years.

Shade relief for cableway visitors
Since the big Table Mountain fire in 2006, visitors have had to queue in the sun while waiting for the cable car. The City has agreed that the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway Company may lease a portion of City land at the lower cable station to build pergolas to provide shade for vistors.

R300 000 for coastal conservancy
The City Council approved the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Kommetjie Environmental Awareness Group (KEAG). In terms of the memorandum,
the City will pay KEAG R300 000 per year to manage and maintain the Witsand-Soetwater Coastal Conservancy, as well as the Witsand landfill site.

City bids for international gym event
The City will assist the South African Gymnastics Federation with R150 000 to bid for the right to host the Gym for Life World Challenge in 2013.

Facelift for Rondebosch Bowling Club
The Cycle Tour Trust and Western Province Cricket Club are to conclude a management agreement with the City for the rehabilitation, management and maintenance of the former Rondebosch Bowling Club. The Cycle Tour Trust will use the building as its head office and the bowling green is to be converted into a multipurpose playing surface for use by the general public.

German help with solid waste system
Germany’s KfW Entwicklungsbank has committed approximately 300 000 euros from the German government for the implementation of an integrated solid waste management system. The main aim is to boost the municipality’s infrastructure by pre-treating municipal solid waste in order to reduce the volumes of waste at landfill sites.

Gardens gets a pedestrian square
The City Council has approved the closure of part of Wesley Street in Gardens for the development of a pedestrian piazza between Wembley Square and a new development next to it. The cost will be carried by the developer, but the Council will maintain control of the street.

Martin Pollack