Cope Town

14/11/2016

http://mg.co.za/article/2015-08-06-politics-results-in-filthy-water

Sewage flows because of misplaced trust in local government and co-operative governance.

14/11/2016

http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/hawks-seize-r5m-arrest-man-for-alleged-licensing-scheme-20161113

A man who allegedly ran an illicit licencing and police clearance operation has been arrested at his Belhar home, the Western Cape Hawks say.

13/11/2016

13 KEYS TO THE WHITE HOUSE

http://hubpages.com/politics/Predicting-the-2016-Election-the-13-Keys-to-the-White-House

For almost 30 years, political historian Allan J. Lichtman's "keys to the White House" has been the most accurate advanced forecasting model of American presidential elections. So what about 2016?

07/11/2016

Sub-councils
I have been placed in Sub-Council 10 comprising Wards 92, 93, 94, 97, 98, and 99. See map.

What is a sub-council?

A sub-council is a geographically defined area within the city which is made up of between three and six neighbouring wards. Subcouncils exist to make sure that the issues affecting your neighbourhood are heard and dealt with.

Subcouncils serve as the link between local communities in Cape Town and the City Council.

There are a total of 24 subcouncils which make up the City of Cape Town’s municipal structure. The subcouncils serve the residents by engaging with them on municipal issues. Subcouncils have been given the power to act on behalf of Council via the System of Delegations and they have the authority to make decisions on a range of municipal matters.

These may include service delivery requests, building and planning applications, fault reporting and other matters, including:

Receiving and responding to residents’ complaints and enquiries;

Making recommendations to Council on matters affecting their area;

Commenting on liquor licence applications;

Monitoring the City’s service delivery effort;

Supervising the expenditure of ward allocation budgets (funds that the City allocates to wards in every subcouncil for local municipal projects);

Ensuring that by-laws and policy matters are referred to the community for comment; and

Maintaining an up-to-date database of community organisations in the area.

Sub-council meetings take place once a month, or whenever an urgent issue arises and needs immediate attention. Decisions are made through a majority vote by the sub-council committee.
Who are members of the sub-council?

The membership of each sub-council consists of the following representatives:

Ward councillors
PR councillors
The subcouncil chairperson
The subcouncil manager

The chairperson and councillors are the subcouncil’s political representatives. Ward councillors and PR councillors are not elected by their subcouncil. Ward councillors are elected by the constituents in their wards, and PR councillors are appointed by their political party.

The subcouncil chairperson is elected by the members of the subcouncil and the subcouncil manager is appointed by the city manager to run the administrative affairs of the subcouncil.

Sub-council chairperson

The subcouncil chairperson is the political leader of the subcouncil. The chairperson decides when and where the subcouncil meets, and manages the meetings by following the Rules of Order (included in the document download section below). The subcouncil chairperson is supported by the subcouncil manager in carrying out their duties.

Subcouncil manager

Each subcouncil is managed by a City-appointed subcouncil manager. The subcouncil manager’s job is to organise subcouncil meetings, coordinate the subcouncil's operations, and make sure that projects are completed within budget and on schedule. The subcouncil manager also administers the annual ward allocation budget by working closely with ward councillors and the subcouncil chairperson.

As a member of the community, you may contact the subcouncil manager regarding any municipal service issue that you might have.

Attend a subcouncil meeting

The City values your input on issues affecting your community. One way to make sure that we hear your voice is by attending subcouncil meetings.

All subcouncil meetings are open to the public. These meeting dates are advertised in the community newspapers and you may contact the subcouncil manager if you wish to make a presentation at the meeting.

Please note

It is a good idea to contact your ward councillor with any questions or problems before you contact your subcouncil manager. Ward councillors can also ensure that your community issues are included in the meeting agenda.

Find your ward councilor

Meeting dates are also advertised ahead of time on the calendar.
Contact your sub-council manager beforehand if you wish to attend a meeting of your sub-council.

The following infographic shows you how to get involved in making decisions about your community and the city:

PDF
MEET THE CITY INFOGRAPHIC
Download PDF
Ward allocation projects

Each financial year, every subcouncil is allocated a budget per ward for ward allocation projects. After canvassing the community for their input, the ward committees submit project plans to the subcouncil for approval. The subcouncil in turn reviews the plans and submits them to Council for final approval.

Council’s decisions are based on where the greatest needs are, or where projects will have the greatest impact. If individual ward budgets are not enough to cover project costs, wards may opt for multi-ward projects where needs cut across wards or they can apply for MURP funding (the Mayor’s special fund for ward projects).

Top tip

DID YOU KNOW: You can find out about other ways to share concerns with us by visiting our Have Your Say section on this site.
You can view the current ward allocation projects by clicking on the relevant ward number in the table using our lookup tool.

Document downloads

Rules of Order - Subcouncils - English
27/07/2010, Regulation - 3.1 MB
System of Delegations for Subcouncils
31/05/2015, Regulation - 60.5 KB
Code of Conduct for Councillors
19/11/2000, Regulation - 565.1 KB
Rules of Order - Subcouncils - Afrikaans
27/07/2010, Regulation - 346 KB
Rules of Order - Subcouncils - Xhosa
27/07/2010, Regulation - 98.5 KB

Meetings, agendas and minutes

The latest minutes of subcouncil meetings displayed on this website are subject to confirmation at the next subcouncil meeting. Should a matter directly affect you, please contact the subcouncil for a copy of the extract, which will state that it is a draft minute.
Subcouncil meetings are open to the public and are held at least once a month except during recess, which is usually in the school holidays. Anyone can apply to the subcouncil manager for an opportunity to address a subcouncil meeting on any issue.

Decisions about issues are taken by a majority vote. Use the calendar on the right to find out when your subcouncil’s next meeting will be held and to access agendas and minutes. Other area related events are also shown here as and when they occur.

02/11/2016

LET US ALL SHOW SOLIDARITY WITH THE SAVE SOUTH AFRICA CAMPAIGN

http://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2016/11/02/The-Save-South-Africa-pledge-for-good-citizenship

“We have the power. Our future depends on us.” South Africa belongs to all who live it‚ united in our diversity.

01/11/2016

CITY OF CAPE TOWN - 31 OCTOBER 2016

Two City economic development policies open for public comment

The City of Cape Town’s draft Markets Policy and draft Small Business Support Policy are available for public comment until 17 November 2016. The draft Small Business Support Policy aims to reduce the cost of doing business for small-, medium- and micro-enterprises (SMMEs) in Cape Town. All interested and affected parties are invited to submit their comments during this public engagement period.

Unemployment remains one of South Africa’s key socio-economic challenges and nearly a quarter (24,68%) of the working age population in Cape Town is unemployed. According to the Informal Economy Study conducted in 2015, the informal sector contributes approximately R4,3 billion annually to the Cape Town economy.

‘Based on the above premise, we need to make sure that our City processes and procedures are simple enough to support the development of SMMEs, including the informal economy. Job creation and economic growth relies on the growth and expansion of existing enterprises and new businesses. We need to do all we can, collectively, to ensure that we lend a helping hand to grow and develop the SMME sector. Given the importance of the small business and informal sectors to create employment opportunities, we need to make sure that the City’s processes and procedures help to support growth and development of both these sectors. The City’s draft policies relating to markets and small business development are well aligned with the City’s Integrated Development Plan and other key priorities,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Tourism, Events and Economic Development, Councillor Eddie Andrews.

Draft Markets Policy
The lack of a management model and a clear definition for markets has added to their failure in some areas. The draft policy provides a clear distinction between ‘markets’ and ‘events’ and provides a consistent set of guidelines on the management of markets on City-owned properties. The draft policy outlines the application process for markets, provides a consistent process to assess market applications, and clearly sets out the roles and responsibilities of the market operator and the various City departments.

Draft Business Support Policy
The current Business Support Policy, adopted by Council in 2003, is outdated. A review is required to highlight the City’s business support package and services available to create an enabling and supportive environment for businesses to grow and develop.

Many small business owners have mentioned key challenges that prevent them from growing into sustainable entities in the long-term. On average, small businesses spend eight working days a month dealing with red tape and regulatory burden, which accounts for R1 in every R20 spent by companies. Small business owners have also complained that it is complex to transact with the City.

The draft policy provides clear guidelines on the procedures for business owners who wish to transact with the City. It also outlines a clear business support package for Cape Town to be a business-friendly destination.

‘According to the 2015 Cost of Doing Business Report, the City of Cape Town has the potential to out-perform high-income countries if it implements key reforms. I would like to urge all interested and affected parties to use this opportunity to submit their comments and feedback on the draft policies. We have noted the challenges that both markets and small businesses have faced and we are confident that the draft policies will improve City processes to be more supportive of informal and small businesses. So let us all work together to shape the new policies,’ added Councillor Andrews.

All interested and affected parties have until 17 November 2016 to submit their comments either at local libraries, subcouncil offices, via e-mail, fax, post or online on the City of Cape Town website.

The draft policies can be accessed here:
• Draft Markets Policy:http://resource.capetown.gov.za/documentcentre/Documents/Bylaws%20and%20policies/HYS_Draft_Markets_Policy_23May16.pdf
• Draft Business Support Policy:http://resource.capetown.gov.za/documentcentre/Documents/Bylaws%20and%20policies/HYS_Draft_Business_Support_Policy_final.pdf


End

Note to broadcasters: an audio clip is available for download here: https://soundcloud.com/ct-media/311016-andrews-smmeandmarkets-policies

Issued by: Media Office, City of Cape Town

Media enquiries: Councillor Eddie Andrews, Mayoral Committee Member for Tourism, Events and Economic Development, City of Cape Town, Tel: 021 400 1375 or Cell: 082 377 1414, E-mail: [email protected] (please always copy [email protected]

30/10/2016

CITY OF CAPE TOWN

30 OCTOBER 2016

MEDIA RELEASE

City offers rental properties for sale to sitting tenants

The City has identified approximately 10 700 properties that could easily be transferred at a substantial discount to some of its qualifying legal tenants. Read more below:

Over the past 30 years, the City of Cape Town has systematically transferred more than 54 000 of its saleable rental stock units to qualifying legal tenants.

‘We hope to step up our efforts to drive this sales initiative further, in line with our commitment to redress, empowerment and enhanced financial sustainability through homeownership.

‘The units that are on sale are cottages and maisonettes and the prices would range from between R2 300 and R123 000, depending on the individual’s circumstances.

‘This initiative focuses on two key considerations: we want to encourage empowerment and redress through the ownership of property by residents who were previously prohibited from enjoying such benefits, and we want to ensure that we become a more financially sustainable City by reducing the rental stock that we manage,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Human Settlements, Councillor Benedicta van Minnen.

The units which are for sale are situated across the metro. The areas include: Mitchells Plain, Khayelitsha, Macassar, Melton Rose, Nyanga, Scottsdene, Strand, Sarepta, Athlone, Heideveld, Grassy Park, Hanover Park, Hout Bay, Ocean View, Retreat, Elsies River, Belhar, Langa, Ravensmead, Atlantis, Bishop Lavis, Bonteheuwel, Gugulethu, Manenberg and Valhalla Park.

Multi-storey blocks of flats are not being considered for sale at this stage as they can only be sold through sectional title as set out in the Sectional Title Scheme Act (Act 8 of 2011).

This initiative is funded by the City in conjunction with subsidy provisions as per the Enhanced Extended Discount Benefit Scheme which is available to qualifying legal tenants who may be interested in taking transfer/ownership of their rental units.

The City urges its tenants residing in the areas mentioned above to visit their local housing offices immediately to enquire as to what type of assistance they would qualify for.

To determine eligibility, the following documents must be produced:
· Proof of income: either an employer’s report, salary advices, or payslips (not older than three months); if unemployed, an affidavit; or if self-employed six months’ basic certified income and expenditure statements with supporting documents, if applicable
· Proof of identity: identity documents of both tenant and spouse (if applicable)
· Proof of marital status: marriage certificate/affidavit of customary marriage/Muslim rites marriage certificate or final order of divorce or death certificate (if applicable)

This initiative applies to the following rental units:
· Free-standing houses
· Semi-detached houses (this refers to rental units that share common walls with their neighbouring unit)
· Terraced houses/row houses (this refers to rental units that have at least two common walls, usually on either side of the house, with their neighbours)
· Maisonettes (this generally refers to rental units that have two dwelling spaces, one on top of the other, but which share common walls with their neighbouring unit)

The City plans to hold public meetings regarding this initiative in due course.


End

Note to broadcasters: audio clips are available for download
For English: https://soundcloud.com/ct-media/301016-vanminnen-saleableunits/s-xpSD8
For Afrikaans: https://soundcloud.com/ct-media/301016-afr-vanminnen-saleableunits

Issued by: Media Office, City of Cape Town

Media enquiries: Councillor Benedicta van Minnen, Mayoral Committee Member for Human Settlements, City of Cape Town, Tel: 021 400 1307 or Cell: 084 441 9000, E-mail: [email protected] (please always copy [email protected])

Listen to 301016 VanMinnen SaleableUnits by CT Media on