Item 1: INTRODUCTION
- The chairman opened the meeting at 17:00 and welcomed the committee. Chairman welcomed the Jade and Mea to the meeting as guests to present a proposal for an eco-sport indoor facility and a request from the young parents of Betty’s Bay for a space to take their children to play.
Item 2: ATTENDANCE AND APOLOGIES
Executive Committee
(1) Wayne Jackson (Chairman & Membership) Present
(2) Amund Beneke (Vice Chair & Engineering) Present
(3) Hannelie Coetzee (Treasurer) Apology
(4) Julia Frylinck (Administrator & Secretary) Present
Essential Services
(5) Rob Boyd (BEST) Present
(6) Jorika Rabie (Fire and Rescue) Present
(7) Elsa Stofberg (Conservation) Present
Community Services
(8) Abigail Davids (Community development) Apology
(9) Shameez Joubert (Markets) Apology
(10) Claudele Jackson (Crassula Hall) Apology
Communications
(11) Wendy Lucas (Website custodian) Apology
(12) Tersia Starke (Website assistant) Apology
Oversight
(13) Theresa Els (Ward 10 Councillor) Present
(14) Andre Kotze (Rondevlei Rep) Present
(15) Calan Bennett (Central Rep) Present
Item 3: CONFIRMATION OF THE PREVIOUS MINUTES
- The previous minutes were:
- Approved by Rob Boyd
- Second by Amund Beneke
Item 4: MATTERS ARISING
- There are no matters arising, the meeting continued.
Item 5: AGENDA ITEMS
- THE CHAIRMAN
- The chairman suggested that negative and rude communications to the members of the committee should be ignored and focus on the work at hand. The committee agreed.
- Membership criteria should be made available to all, however there were certain members of the community that are very negative and find fault with everything the municipality, our councillor or what we do, and this is not in the spirit of what we have volunteered to do. For this reason, those people will not be allowed to become members of the BBRA. The committee will decide on these membership decisions. The committee agreed.
- The chairman proposed that we come in line with the protocols used by the municipality and the ward committee by allowing members to attend our meetings as observers. It would be the prerogative chairman or a member of the committee through the chair to engage with the community if required. The committee agreed.
- It was also suggested by the chairman that because of our volunteer status and busy work schedules it was no longer fair to remove someone from the committee if they are unable to attend meetings for valid reasons but maintained their work ethic and commitment to their portfolios. The committee agreed.
- VICE CHAIRMAN: TOWN PLANNING AND PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT
- With regard to the special development framework (SDF), he is still waiting for the status quo.
- The situation at “Coffee on Clarence and the Hub / Main Beach / Silver Sands” remains the same as a month ago: Awaiting Director Stephen Muller’s go-ahead to proceed with all three the projects. A Land Surveyor still needs to be appointed to “peg” the area at “Coffee on Clarence/The Hub”. The OLM Traffic Engineer needs to investigate the influence on the “traffic flow” regarding the possible closure of streets / possible transforming to one-way street(s) at the “Main Beach”.
- Most of the vehicles are operational.
- The “Parks Division” is responsible for the cutting of the verges and any request for the cutting of verges on municipal land must be reported to them. Cutting of verges on private land is the responsibility of the Landowner.
- As the Municipality becomes aware of problems, it is addressed within the capacity of the Municipality / given working conditions (weather).
- Residents must log “problems” on Collop themselves to get a reference number and / or where it is over a weekend and it is urgent, the Control Room (028 313 8111) must be phoned.
- Amund requested that Overhills should be added as an agenda item in the future, but in the meantime to monitor Overhills closely.
- As a special note, the Chairman explained that according to recent observations there are many people entering and exiting Betty’s Bay who we employ to clean our home, to do our gardens and semi-skilled labour in the building environment, which has created a huge job market for migration to our area. We have created the need for these people to be accommodated in more formal manner, for many reasons.
- BEST
- For August there were 8 responses. One was a sand boarding accident with multiple fractures in the leg.
- 7 were medical cases where 4 needed transport with the metro ambulance.
- FIRE AND RESCUE
- Fire and Rescue will be hosting a golf day on which the funds gathered will aid in obtaining a fire vehicle.
- The golf day is arranged for the 3rd of October 2025 and is fully supported by the Rate payers committee, and the Chairman sent a letter to this effect.
- Chairman thanked Jorika for her hard work and keeping everything together within her portfolio.
- CONSERVATION
- A member at Sunny Seas requested, via email, the removal of alien vegetation on private property after attempting to get hold of Overstrand Municipality with no response.
- It was advised that the Hacking group in Bettys Bay will cut and poison the alien vegetation at a fee if it is on private property, but it should be understood that the removal of said vegetation must be done by the owners.
- Elsa was asked whether the municipality could not perhaps also aid but it was explained that the municipality is not allowed to clean private erf, but if it is an empty erf the request must be made to fire and rescue in which they will send for an investigator into the area to determine if it poses a fire hazard.
- Elsa represented by Conservation at the recent CITES CoP20 conference meeting on the various proposals that were made at Arabella Hotel. We, as BBRA & SEAWATCH acknowledge that we are pro the proposal and back the minister on this matter of Dried Abalone. Chairman thanked Elsa for her outstanding courage for representing and fighting for us.
- Conservation confirmed that they sent out the requested documentation to Councilor T. Els for feedback and confirmation that they may proceed with the Public Toilets refurb & Facelift project. They are waiting for confirmation to proceed with kick-starting it on the 24th of September, if at all possible and in time.
- It was confirmed that we will get a water testing kit to test the water in Bass Lake. This will be shared to the community and public once done.
- CRASSULA HALL
- BB glass will be coming to put the new noticeboard up soon.
- Claudelle will hopefully be back soon to resume her duties, in the meantime Shameez is holding the fort.
- WARD 10 COUNCILLOR
- Theresa requested that the following statement be made public:
- Should a person have no power or wishes to report a power outage, they are to please log it onto the Eskom app Alfred.
- It is very important, because if people contact her about the issue and she calls Eskom the first thing they ask is a reference number which you receive from reporting it on the Eskom app.
- Once it is logged then the reference number can be used to request a follow up or escalation on the situation.
- RONDEVLEI REP
- No feedback to be given except for the occasional loose dog.
- OM is working on the roads as promised in the area.
- CENTRAL REP
- The potholes have been attended to.
- Calan thanked Theresa for her hard work and explained that it is her dedication and hard work making everything possible.
Item 6: OPEN DISCUSSION
- The chairman asked the committee what their stance on having open meetings was and the committee agreed that this is not a bad idea as it will enable the public to see how the committee meetings are done.
- The chairman therefore made it clear, with committee members agreeing, the future meetings will be open to public to attend without engagement.
- With regards to an issue brought up by a member of the public. If a member is not present at the meetings for a continuous time frame, should that person not be removed from the committee? The Chairman explained that his position is that a lot of the times when a person is not attending a meeting there is a good reason and they are still doing very good work in the background while giving constant reporting which does not instantly mean a dismissal is necessary. Therefore, the removal of a committee member should rather be a discussion at a meeting with a unanimous agreement from all the members. The committee members agreed, and therefore it has been decided that a committee member will only be removed after a formal discussion at a meeting and after all committee members agreed it warrants a removal.
- Mea Viljoen made a proposal for a park for the children. She explained that most parents have to drive to Kleinmond or further just to keep the children busy at a park or with some activity but there has been a rise in the need for Betty’s Bay to have its own park. She proposed that it doesn’t have to be too big, at a minimal simply have a jungle gym, a sand pit and a table for a little picknick with shade.
- A place for families to come together and for children to play. She also made it clear that she and a few mothers are willing to fundraise for this initiative to become a reality. The Chairman asked Mea to convene with Elsa to subcommittee this initiative with the conservation portfolio for now. There was no objection from the committee members.
- Jade Alves made a proposal for an indoor multipurpose sports center in Betty’s Bay. There has been a rise in youth coming into Betty’s Bay creating a need for recreation centers. It offers a space for activities of all ages. This could benefit the whole community whereas it can generate income, create job opportunities, host fundraisers, host sports events, and attract more visitors that will inevitably support local businesses. There is a serious lack of sports facilities in the area with the nearest facilities in Somerset West and Hermanus. If we were to put one in Betty’s Bay, then it would be central making access for nearby increasing youth easier. By having an indoor sports center, it is not weather dependent and also protects the children from outdoor elements while creating a safe environment. The Chairman agreed that this is a very good initiative and asked that this too become a subcommittee with the conservation portfolio for now.
Item 7: CONCLUSION
- The chairman thanked everyone for attending and ended the meeting at 19:30.
- Next meeting: 17:00 Crassula Hall 08 Octob
(J FRYLINCK) Date: 15 September 2025
BETTY’S BAY RATEPAYERS’ ASSOCIATION: SECRETARY
(W R JACKSON) Date: 15 September 2025
BETTY’S BAY RATEPAYERS’ ASSOCIATION: CHAIRMAN