A group of community representatives will, in coming months, participate in co-design workshops for the public spaces and places in District Six. The City of Cape Town introduced the nominated ‘caretakers’ to the public during an online meeting this morning, 2 September 2021.
Over the past seven weeks, the District Six community submitted nominations for representatives to participate in the Public Realm Improvement co-design workshops for District Six. The representatives are from various groups, communities, interested and affected parties, and stakeholders.
The caretakers or community representatives will, together with the Public Realm Study consultants, collaborate on developing a framework for proposed public spaces, priorities for these and design guidelines – the look and feel – of the public open spaces in District Six.
The list of caretakers nominated by constituents are as follows:
Waggieda Ajam, District Six Working Committee
Faeza Bassier, District Six Working Committee
Jennifer Bakker, Canterbury Square Board
Juliet Gordon, resident and community member
Karen Breytenbach, District Six Working Committee
Mandy Sanger, District Six Museum
Shauib Appleby, South African Faith Communities Initiative
Nazeem Ebrahim, Zeenatul Islam Mosque
Bishop Gustine Joemath, Moravian Church
Kirsten Wilkins, Open Streets
Dr Rudolph Perold, Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Rashiq Fataar, Our Future Cities
Asa Salie, District Six Civic Association
Shahnaz Arnold, District Six Civic Association
Hussain Khatib from the National Department of Land Reform and Rural Development
Hassan Kahn, Haven Night Shelter
The City still has a number of seats available for more representatives, in particular for those from schools in the area, and other communities who are not represented as yet.
‘First off I want to congratulate the panel for being nominated. This is a vote of confidence and trust in them to represent their communities and groups. I also want to thank all the nominees for their willingness to contribute to this process. It is a huge task and responsibility, and their commitment speaks volumes,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Marian Nieuwoudt.
The City of Cape Town is committed to re-establish District Six in collaboration with residents. The representatives will be collaborating with consultants to determine the design guidelines for the public spaces and street fronts, and will help identify the first projects to be implemented in District Six.
‘To date District Six has been seen as a place of restitution and redress only. But today we are changing this. The City, together with residents, wants to embrace District Six as a unique and special part of the city that needs caring and nourishment. The idea is to make District Six part of Cape Town.
‘With the Public Realm Study, we are focusing on restoring the legacy and vibrancy of District Six. We want to bring back the life of District Six, and revive the places where the community used to live and play. Our communities are formed over time in public spaces, and this is where we also find a sense of belonging. Thus, the importance of this project, and the collaboration with the community and caretakers of District Six cannot be overstated. You will be involved in designing the public spaces where you will get together and interact with one another,’ said Alderman Nieuwoudt.
Co-design workshops
A series of six face-to-face co-design workshops are planned, the first of which will take place in mid-September. Another three workshops will follow in October and November, and the rest early in 2022.
Open house meetings and an exhibition are planned to inform the public and community on the progress. The dates of these meetings will be announced closer to the time, keeping in mind Covid-19 limitations.
The co-design workshops will be recorded and shared with the wider community to get their input as well. This will eventually feed into design guidelines – the look and feel – of the public open spaces in District Six.
Apart from attending and participating in this process, the caretakers will be expected to report back to their constituencies.
‘The City would have involved as many people as possible at these workshops, but unfortunately, numbers have to be limited due to Covid-19. Still, we will do everything possible to ensure our collaboration with the caretakers is meaningful, vibrant, dynamic, honest, transparent and authentic. We will also make use of technology to inform the public about the progress and ideas as the process unfolds. The community of District Six has an inherent knowledge and experience of the public open spaces, and we want to draw on this wisdom as we are planning the future District Six,’ said Alderman Nieuwoudt.
The Public Realm Study will also inform the draft Local Spatial Development Framework (LSDF) for District Six that is currently available for public participation and comment until 31 October 2021. The plan is available on the City’s website at www.capetown.gov.za/haveyoursay.
The LSDF and related Public Realm Study are aspects that the City can implement. They are separate from, but will enhance the housing project of the National Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development that is currently under way as part of the restitution process.
Source: City Of Cape Town