Cape Town - With a few homeless shelters already in District Six, residents are petitioning for the use of a site earmarked for another homeless shelter to be used as a multi-purpose recreational centre instead.
Approximately 50 residents gathered outside of the former Tafelberg Crèche and historically the old Silvertree Club House/Crèche, located at 20 Christiaan Street, District Six, on Saturday.
The petition was created by the District Six Civic Association and the Silvertree RFC (Rugby Football Club), supported by the Upper District Six Neighbourhood Watch.
The Department of Social Development had invited members of the public to comment on the proposed Hope Exchange Shelter for homeless adults until July 14. Should it receive the go-ahead, the shelter will accommodate about 116 homeless adults.
The department said while there were already two shelters in District Six, the demand for shelter services was higher than the existing 173-bed spaces. Residents have however placed the number of shelters at four.
Before the forced removals, the building and surrounding fields were used for rugby, soccer, karate, boxing, table tennis, gymnastics and other indoor sports. It also served as a madrassah for many of the children.
“The whole of District Six is considered to be restitution land and we find it disingenuous on the part of the department to earmark the Silvertree Crèche for a shelter. Seeing that we also don’t have a hall in District Six and people are returning,” resident Salih Davids said.
“We feel that the club (Silvertree RFC) that had the lease and lost it due to apartheid and the Group Areas Act, these people should return to enhance our community in sport and get the youngsters involved and away from social ills.”
The residents made it clear that they were not opposed to housing of homeless people.
District Six Civic Association volunteer Shahnaz Arnold said Silvertree was the heartbeat of District Six.
“What made District Six a happy and successful place, because there was balance. There was faith for the spirit and sport for the body. And we feel that we are being dispossessed again with Silvertree being taken away from this community.”
Arnold echoed calls for the premises to be used as a multi-purpose recreational centre.
“The other thing that is very sinister, they call it Tafelberg. They’re trying to even take away the memory of the name. They don’t want us to be connected to the place,” Arnold said.
At the time of the forced removals, the Tafelberg Crèche occupied the now vacant premises.
In a statement released on Friday, the GOOD Party called for transparency on why plans for the homeless shelter at the old Robbie Nurock Day Hospital in Buitenkant Street were shelved and instead Tafelberg chosen.
“Despite the provincial Department of Social Development saying plans for the shelter were ‘axed due to asbestos in the building’, the site has been earmarked for a museum by the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport. R4.5 million was set aside for the original Robbie Nurock Day Hospital building renovation, but now R18m is being spent on a new site, the Tafelberg crèche in Zonnebloem.”
Department spokesperson Monique Mortlock-Malgas said a few site options were considered, but the former Tafelberg Crèche was identified as the most appropriate option.
Residents, stakeholders or interested groups are invited to submit written submissions for the attention of the head of Department of Social Development via email at melissa. [email protected] or hand deliver to Union House, 14 Queen Victoria Street, Cape Town.