In November 2024, an advert for this proposed development of a “boutique” Retirement Village in Betty’s Bay took most people by surprise and it was the first time that the BBC was aware of it. After speaking to the estate agent and then consulting the Overstrand Municipality to ascertain the status of the proposed development, we published the following information:
Erf 4032 Crassula Road is currently zoned for Business 3
This erf would need to be rezoned to Residential 2 for this development to proceed
This rezoning process could take about 6 months
A Consent Use for a retirement village within a Residential 2 zone will also required
There is a wetland on the Erf 4032
An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) will be required,
A traffic/ transport impact Assessment (TIA) will be required
This application will be subject to a Public Participation Process
Whilst 54 units are advertised, the number of units will be approved based on growth policy criteria and infrastructure capabilities. The wetland may also impact the number of units.
As of Thursday 28 November, no application to request the rezoning from Business 3 to Residential 2 was received by the OM Town Planners.
Another advert for the proposed development appeared in the Overstrand Herald on 20 February 2025 and online. Currently, not much has changed except that the number of erfs was reduced, the erf price increased, and the proposed layout has changed.
November 2024 layout
February 2025 layout
To date, no planning application was submitted to the OM Town Planning Dept. As above, the modified proposed layout excludes a wetland area, and the number of erfs has been reduced from 54 to 35. The advert promotes “Medical care services provided by Medicentre”, but apparently, until any other medical facilities are developed offsite, these “medical care services” might entail a nurse based in the onsite clubhouse. The Town Planners response to our questions will be included in the next BBC update.
Carol Clark and Ann Bradshaw
If you would like to join the Betty’s Bay Conservancy, please email bettysbayconservancy@gmail.com
or join via https://bettysbayconservancy.co.za/contact-us/join/
Come and join fellow residents who are also passionate about “restoring habitat, preserving biodiversity and embracing biosphere living” in order to help conserve the uniqueness of Betty’s Bay flora and fauna.
Carol Clark, Chairperson of Betty’s Bay Conservancy