RAPE OF OLD HISTORICAL PROPERTIES ....

[SandyB]

SEE THEY HAVE NOW DEMOLISHED THE  ENTIRE  REAR AND  SIDE .....  FURTHER PICS  THEY HAVE  PILED UP CONTAINERS  IN THE FRONT ,, IS  THIS A  WAY TO TRY HIDE THEIR ACTIVITIES  ????   TO MY BEST KNOWLEDGE  ANY HERITAGE BUILDING  THAT IS  IN A HABITABLE  STATE  WHICH    THIS  ONE  WAS UNTIL  THEY STARTED RIPPING IT APART  HAS TO BE KEPT  IN AS CLOSE  AS  ITS  ORIGINAL STATE ..... I DONT SEE THIS IN  HAPPENING HERE ...   THE ONLY TIME A  DEPARTURE IS ALLOWED  IF  IT IS  IN  AN UNSTABLE  / DANGEROUS  CONDITION  ...  THE  FEEDBACK I GOT FROM  THE  WALMER  ESTATE  ASSOCIATION CHAIRMAN LAST YEAR THAT WAS THE BUILDING WAS GOING TO BE  RENOVATED BY THE  OWNERS  AND THE  MONSROSITY  ONLY ALLOWED  AT THE REAR ...  I AM SENDING ANOTHER URGENT LETTER  TO  THE  MAYOR AND  PREMIER  TELLING THAT   IF THEY HAVE DEPARTED  OR  IF  THERE HAVE BEEN UNDERHAND DEALINGS THEY ARE TO BE STOPPED  AND MADE TO  RETURN TO ORIGINAL ,,  WISHING IT WAS / IS  SO ....

[SandyB]

FOLLOW THIS  LINK   AND  READ  .. THIS  IS THE  WAY IT SHOULD  BE DONE  , A COMPANY THAT BOUGHT THE OLD  DAIRY FARM THAT THEN BECAME THE LORD MILNER HOTEL ... THEY HAVE KEPT IT  VIRUALLY INTACT  AND  LOVINGLY RESORED IT ,, INTERIOR  VIRTUALLY  UNSCATHED ...

http://www.thepropertymag.co.za/pages/452774491/articles/2008/September/news/Woodstocks-historical-buildings-adapt-with-the-times.asp

[Diana Rudd (Boehme)]

I'm gobsmacked....there's virtualy nothing left. There in the 2nd last pic where the blue and white cars are parked on the right was my bus stop. I have many happy childhood memories of this area. Thanx for the photo's and you continued updates Sandy.  XX

[SandyB]

this  is the letter  I  sent  to the mayor and the premiers offices ... so far no  decent response ... gather maybe I'm just a shytstirrer ...   well i sen again tonight and demand a decent response  and apology ...

[SandyB]

UPDATE ,,,,, WELL THE  SO BUSY COUNCILLOR  WHO CONTACTED ME  IS  SO BUSY THAT SHE CANNOT   TAKE A 5KM DRIVE FROM CITY CENTER  TO WOODSTOCK .. METHINKS THEY KNOW A TRAVESTY HAS OCCURED  AND  DONT QUITE KNOW HOW TO HANDLE IT ,, OR ANSWER QUESTIONS ...  A PALM OR TWO HAS BEEN GREASED  TO ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN COS THE HERITAGE  AND MONUMOENTS  SOCIETY  WHO SADLY SO  DONT HAVE  LEGAL CLOUT  CONTACTED ME   IN RESPONSE TO A COPY  I SENT  TO THEM AND SAID  THIS  IS DEFINITELY  NOT THE ACCEPTED NORM ...
ANYHOW I HAVE ANSWERED THE COUNCILLOR AND TOLD HER  TO READJUST HER  DIARY AND  NOT  ASK ME TO CONTACT  PEOPLE  WHO DEAL WITH HERITAGE IN THE COUNCIL  ITS  HER  JOB  TO DO  SO SEEING THAT  SHE  HAS ACKNOWLEDGED   THINGS DONT LOOK RIGHT ...   ANOTHE  EMAIL BOMB  GOES DOWN TONIGHT ...     

[SandyB]

HERE  ATTACHED A COPY PASTED  DOC WITH THE LATEST CORRESPONDENCE  AND MY REPLY ......  NO WONDER  WE GET PEED OFF .........    I AM INACCEPTANCE THATS  ITS  AN OVER AND  DONE DEAL ,  MY REGRET IS I SHOULD HAVE ACTED A LOT EARLIER , VIS  WHEN THE  REAR WING  WAS ALREADY  DEMOLISHED ,,,,,,,  BUT THEN  WE LEARN HEY ???

[SandyB]

TODAY WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE DAY OF SITE MEETING ... I WILL IN THE MORNING BE RATTLING CAGES  AGAIN ...  WAIT AND SEE,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

[Michael Alexander]

Sandy, one Friday night.... knock back a bottle of the magic water..... then go to the new building and torch it.......

Mmmmh!  Actually give me a buzz! I will come down and bring the marshmallows.... 

[SandyB]

My  request in the  light of  a meeting  supposed to have happened  on the 18th ...  If  one reads their  responses , so tied up in  beaurocracy  etc ...   below  read ...
PS Mike .. its a concrete  mass not  much use trying to burn it ...



RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY‏
From:  Alex Alexander (alexalexander3@hotmail.com) 
Sent: 23 March 2010 07:51:57 PM
To:  marian.nieuwoudt@capetown.gov.za; mayor@capetown.gov.za; leader@da.org.za
  1 attachment
image002.gif (0.1 KB) 



Good  evening  Marian ,
                                    I would gather  in the absence  of  further feedback that  the site meeting did indeed occur on the 18th . I  anxiously await  feedback  and especially answers  from the City of Cape  Town   administration  as  to how  such a  travesty could occur .. I  still find myself in a state of  total disbelief  that  such a demolition of a perfectly  habitable  historical building   could be  allowed , I  am at the point of actually having the personal  opinion  that maybe some palms were greased  and that now  the  City administration  upon investigation finds itself  in an indeed  embarrassing  situation  as to how this  ever happened ...  What should actually have transpired  is that the City should have told Oasis  that if  they wanted build some  huge monstrosity and in the process demolish a  perfectly habitable historical buidling  to take there plans elsewhere to an open  piece of land  and  do so with the utmost pleasure ...

I remain  very resolute   and  would  appreciate  total transparency on this matter  to the point of access  to  the process of how this actually transpired ...  sad fact is I have tried to engage the press  on this matter  on  numerous occasions  but  they seem to have other issues on their agenda , but yes continue to  engage them  to  put  it  in the   eye of the   newsreader , and  yes to draw the public  to   moving away from apathy   and more  action ...

    Regards ,,

       Alexander Buchanan

PS  I DO HOPE  THAT MS ZILLES  MAIL  IS  STILL OT BEING FILTERED  AND THIS INDEED GETS TO HER DESK .............
                               

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Marian.Nieuwoudt@capetown.gov.za
To: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
CC: Lucinda.Carstens@capetown.gov.za
Date: Tue, 9 Mar 2010 14:01:02 +0200
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY


Good Morning



I hereby confirm that Des van Brackel has contacted you on 2 previous occasions and has given you details on how Councillor would deal with this matter.
Des has set up a meeting on the 11th of March with Staff members from Planning, Building office and Heritage office as well as with the Consulting Engineers to discuss the development.
She has also set up a meeting with the Ward Councillor to discuss the development on the 11th of March.
The inspection of the property will take place on the 18th of March and the owner/developer and her staff will be accompanying her.
It is not possible for her to do an inspection without prior knowledge of this application and discussion with the Consulting Engineers.
The owner/developer will only be available for such an inspection on the 18th of March.
The City is dealing with between 50 000 and 60 000 building plans per year and between 10 000 and 12 000 land use applications per year.  It is imposibble to know the detail of each application therefore the procedure followed is necessary.


Regards





Jackie Wilbers

Director: Planning & Environment: Oostenberg

On behalf of Councillor Marian Nieuwoudt

Mayco Member: Planning & Environment

Tel: 021 4005023

fax: 021 4001296

6th Floor, Podium,Civic Centre

12 Hertzog Boulevard

Private Bag X9181

Cape Town 8000

E-mail address: Jackie.Wilbers@capetown.gov


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Alex Alexander [mailto:alexalexander3@hotmail.com]
Sent: 08 March 2010 08:58 PM
To: Marian Nieuwoudt; Mayor; leader@da.org.za
Subject: FW: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY



GOOD   EVENING  ALL ,
                                    I STILL AWAIT SOME FORM OF  RESPONSE AND ACTION HERE , SURELY  THINGS DONT MOVE SO SLOWLY  IN THIS  FAIR CITY ???

REGARDS ,,,

        ALEXANDER BUCHANAN


RE: OASIS PROPERTY WOODSTOCK‏

From:
Laura Robinson (ctht@heritage.org.za)

Sent:
07 March 2010 07:39:24 PM

To:
'Alex Alexander' (alexalexander3@hotmail.com)

Cc:
'Cornelius Johan' (johan.cornelius@capetown.gov.za)


Dear Alexander



I know this property quite well as it is a landmark in the area, and am aware that plans have been developed for it to house offices over a period of years.



I am forwarding this on to my colleagues at the City of Cape Town Heritage Resources section as the Trust is not an approval authority. I am also not up to date on the status of their planning approval, however I think it unlikely that approval would have been given for the amount of demolition that appears to have occurred.



Yours faithfully



Laura Robinson

[SandyB]

GOOD  NEWS  MY  HECKLING   AND PUSHING  SEEMS TO BE DOING  SOMETHING ...   LYNETTE JOHNS  SENIOR  WRITER  FOR  ARGUS CONTACTED ME TODAY ..   THEY  WANT  TO DO A FULL STORY ON  THIS  ONE .. IT APPEARS  THE OWNERS OF THE BUILDING HAVE A HISTORY  OF  ARROGANTLY   FLOUTING  BUILDING REGULATIONS  AND  TOTALLY DISREGARDING  NEIGHBOURS  ETC ETC ...  GOING TO BE INTERESTING ..  I HAVE ASKED WHERE POSSIBLE MY NAME BE KEPT  OUT OF IT ...  INSTEAD  REFER TO A CONCERNED  TROUBLESOME CITIZEN ..  I HAVE  FORWARDED ALL THE CORESPONDENCE  WITH  CITY OF CAPE TOWN  TO  HER  TO GET  HER  UP TO SPEED WITH  THE  STONEWALLING  I BEEN GETTING .........

[Diana Rudd (Boehme)]

I may not always answer but keep posting Sandy I am reading this.     

[SandyB]

Got  this response from Ms Zilles office today .. note I reminded them of my support and expectations and that the leader of DA  although  not expected to micromanage  needs to  be kept up to date of things going wrong as well .. waiting for the   Argus to see what they put out ...   again sadly so its too late ,, but yes the message  that can go out  is  to prevent such  happenings again ...  similar  to the victory of  sea  point association  preventing a huge hotel being built  where the pavillion rsetaurant   was ,, the plans were " passed' obviously by greasing of palms  and have now been rescinded ... the  stuffed ,, grand plans   all to naught ... 

below ... read ......

Subject: FW: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Date: Mon, 29 Mar 2010 14:05:37 +0200
From: leader@da.org.za
To: Lucinda.Carstens@capetown.gov.za
CC: alexalexander3@hotmail.com


Dear Ms Carstens



Please could you advise whether any progress has been made herein?



Please cc leader@da.org.za into your response, so that we can be sure that all voters are receiving the high standard of service they should expect from the DA.



Kind regards



Gairoensa Sonnenberg

Democratic Alliance National Leader's Office

Parliament of South Africa


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Alex Alexander [mailto:alexalexander3@hotmail.com]
Sent: 13 March 2010 11:49 PM
To: Leader
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY



Dear Gaironesa ,
                          thank you for the  reply ,  I am sure  you may remember me me from previous correspondence   in respect of  property issues  and also  support for Ms  Zille  ( check your files )   ....  I  however feel  that  in the picture  of the  big  scheme  and  filtering of  so   called  or deemed  not necessary  issues  in Ms Zilles  busy schedule   , there are at times   certain things that should  be brought  to Ms Zilles attention ...   as it falls under her  total reign of power and my feeling is the  towers of civic center  are  still suffering  and trying to   undo damage of previous  undoings of previous mismanagement  and still  have hangovers  of it ... trust me  they take time  to  root out ...  In  the light of  what I have said  , have  you indeed taken the  bother to   at least  forward  my concerns to Ms  Zille ...??? the stock standard  response   that you have given   does not   do anything  for my feeling of  confidence in  the DA leadership ....

               Regards ... Alexander ...........




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:48:37 +0200
From: leader@da.org.za
To: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
CC: Lucinda.Carstens@capetown.gov.za

Dear Alex



Thank you for your e-mails addressed to Helen Zille.



This is a matter for the City of Cape Town Administration. As such, we have notice that you have also copied them in all your correspondence, please be advised that this is a matter for the Mayor's Office.



If you have any further queries in this regard, I would invite you to communicate directly with the City of Cape Town Mayor's Office at mayor.mayor@capetown.gov.za, or via post at Private Bag X9181, Cape Town, 8000.



Many Thanks,



Gaironesa Sonnenberg

Democratic Alliance National Leader's Office

Parliament of South Africa

[SandyB]

WELL  MY  SUSPICIONS  AND BADGERING  OF  COUNCIL , PREMIERS OFFICE  AND  THE MEDIA HAVE PAID  OFF  READ  ARTICLE FROM TONIGHTS PAPER ...  WHAT SURPRISES ME IS  ONE PERSON CAN  THROUGH PERSISTENCE BRING SOMETHING TO A HALT  YET THERE IS A WHOLE COMMUNITY  IN WALMER  AND  THEY  COULD / WOULD NOT  MAKE  SOMETHING HAPPEN .. A LIFE LESSON FOR ALL ... AND  YES A PESONAL LESSON  TO ME  DONT GET PERSONAL OR EMOTIONAL  JUST STICK TO THE FACTS  AND BADGER THOSE  IN POWER ...  READ  ATTACHMENTS .. PS  TAKE NOTE THE ATTACHMENTS ARE HUGE TO PRESERVE TEXT  READABLE  ,, TAKES TIME TO  OPEN UP ,, SUGGEST MAYBE DOWNLOAD TO PC THEN OPEN ...

[SandyB]

NEXT PART

[SandyB]

HERE THE LAST STRING OF  EMAIL..  STRANGE THE NAME  HENSHILL HOWARD RINGS A BELL ...

From: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
To: lynnette.johns@inl.co.za
Subject: FW: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Date: Wed, 31 Mar 2010 20:47:24 +0000


Good  evening Lynnette ,
                                    from the answers   in  reply  below my reply  appears  I  am  not  a too popular   boy  for the comments ... as  i have said  no regrets ... I oush buttons and prod where necessary  ... seems they in city somehow slipped up in my book ... read /// add to story .....

            Regards ...   Alexander
________________________________________
From: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
To: peter.henshallhoward@capetown.gov.za
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Date: Wed, 31 Mar 2010 20:30:19 +0000

Dear  Peter ,
                   Thank  you so much for the reply and your  candid comments ... I understand  perfectly the  limitations that the  City administration work under , nothwithstanding that  I  am of the opinion that the city should have  with the initial  controversy surrounding Oasis   desire to develop  a monstrosoity  paid a bit more attention to their  goings on ... understood they have a professional  company doing their work  etc  but   it  is at their  instruction ... and    my understanding from sources is that  this is not the first time that   the owners of  the building  have have  departed from  agreed plans , all the more reason for  following  their  progress ..  The comment   "  In the event conditions on site, not the least of which was the state of the old building, resulted in parts of the building being broken down for safety reasons "     is to my opinion  an  ,  and excuse the opinion  a load of codswallop ... the entire building was  a strongly built   and perfectly
habitable  home  ... trust me I live in a  107 year  old  home in Woodstock  , perfectly sound  and  will most probably  outlast  some of the junk being built today ...  and have friends living in   even older  buildings   in other areas ,  many  of them  also old  original  historical value farmhouses .. all still standing  and  sound ... I  unfortunately take  the  comment of whoever  stated that as  reason to demolish  with  a huge pinch of salt ...  if anything would  would have made the  existing  building unsafe  it would have  been  their  extensive  excavation  around it ...  My opinion remains  that  their intent was to  get what they wanted . In my  engagement with  the  Walmer  association  when I expresssed concern about  the ripping away of the original  balcony last year sometime  was that they were  lovingly restoring the Manor  home  and that  parts of it were being sent  to UK for  restoration ... I  found this comment rather strange but  accepted it on face value ... the  removal  of the  rear   U  wings I  still   accepted  as  possibly they required space  .. but  when this last  travesty started  I  have  sprung into action ...  sadly  so  the damage is done ...nothing can reverse  what they have done ....  and yes  I  have possibly in my  pushing   buttons ,  prodding , and  asking for answers  raised some ire in the city administration  , for that I have  no regret   as   I have heard  so many  " ordinary " people having endless hassles with  doing  routine work and minor alterations on their homes   but then when  some well heeled  with armies of  professional engineers , construction  firms  and lawyers    in their employ  and  at their behest  behind them ,  seem to feel  able  to  flout  all  regulations and considerations ... its indeed a skewed equation  in my book ...
On the comment   ...   
A Notice has been served on the owners for contravening the conditions of approval and Heritage Western Cape have been requested to take action in terms of the Heritage Resources Act.     
I am indeeed  heartened and satisfied ...  I do hope  appropriate  action will be taken ,,  unfortunately  nothing that can  undo the damage  done ... fortunately  my  again continual badgering  of the media  has now  got  the required interest  , and  to my knowledge  the travesty will be aired in the media soon  as  a  possible   means of preventing  such unfortunate occurences  recurring ..
For  your  perusal  I  attach pictures  firstly  of when I  engaged the City  on this matter  to the  latest  demolition ...  its  indeed a  sad state of affairs ...   as for  the retaining of facades  , in my book its indeed an exeptional  departure ,  examples of which i have seen in the CBD of the city  .. where the buildinginvolved is in a terrace  of buildings ..   and yes  the final result  is   satisfactory .... this  was a free  standing  building  and should  have been left as   such ...

Regards  ,,,

           Alexander  ( Sandy )  Buchanan
________________________________________

From: Peter.HenshallHoward@capetown.gov.za
To: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
CC: Ursolino.Gonsalves@capetown.gov.za; Mark.Callaghan@capetown.gov.za
Date: Wed, 31 Mar 2010 14:52:28 +0200
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Dear Mr. Alexander,

Firstly, let me state categorically that the City did not "allow the  virtual demolition  of a  historical building to occur".

Secondly, I must point out that the City does not and cannot act as a clerk-of-works on any building site, that is to say we do not supervise building work. Adherence to the approved build plan and compliance with the relevant legislation is the responsibility of the property owner, his professional team and the builder.

For the record the owner did appoint an Architect and a Registered Structural Engineer to oversee this project.

The owner of the property does have an inalienable right to develop his property, notwithstanding the fact that there is an historical building on the site.

During the process of approving the building plan application the City went to great lengths to ensure that the proposed development would be in keeping with the context of the site with its historical building.

The application was approved with the following conditions:

"2.4 No alterations and/or demolitions being permitted to any of the existing structures on the property without prior consent of Heritage Western Cape and Council.
2.20 a)............. No demolitions of any part of the structure can take place without the prior approval of Heritage Western Cape and Council's Heritage Resources Section;
2.20 b) All facades of the old building being retained. Any proposed change thereto must be to the satisfaction of Heritage Western Cape and Council's Heritage Resource Section;
2.21 f) Which currently reads as "New facades having punctured (windows and doors) and plastered walls. No glass or blank facades are acceptable;"   
Amended to read as "All new facades shall be in accordance with plans as listed 3.1 below and shall be to the satisfaction of Council's Environmental Resources Management (Heritage Section)."

As can be seen all possible measure were put in place to ensure the retention of the historic building.

In the event conditions on site, not the least of which was the state of the old building, resulted in parts of the building being broken down for safety reasons.

There has been a huge amount of input by Council Officials, in fact the input was and is far beyond the normal level of input.

A Notice has been served on the owners for contravening the conditions of approval and Heritage Western Cape have been requested to take action in terms of the Heritage Resources Act.

Meetings have been held with the property owner and his professional team and a whole range of protocols have been agreed to.

In conclusion I believe that the City did all it could to ensure that the historic building remained intact given the limits of our resources and the extent to which we can get involved.

Please contact should you require any further clarity.


Kind Regards,

Peter
Peter Henshall-Howard.
Head Building Development Management
Development Policies, Processes and Legislation.
Department: Planning and Building Development Management.
Directorate: Strategy and Planning.
City of Cape Town
Tel 021 400 2049
Fax 021 425 6495
e-mail: peter.henshall-howard@capetown.gov.za

From: Alex Alexander [mailto:alexalexander3@hotmail.com]
Sent: 30 March 2010 09:33 PM
To: Peter Henshall-Howard
Subject: FW: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY

Good evening Peter ,
                             as per  my  previous mail  below  , I await response .

           Regards 

            Alexander ( Sandy ) Buchanan



________________________________________
From: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
To: peter.henshallhoward@capetown.gov.za
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Date: Wed, 24 Mar 2010 19:07:52 +0000


Good  evening  Peter ,
                                 feel as though  I am being given the  runaround  as I am just being redirected  or  deflected all the time ..,,, but yes will direct the questions to you  as   in my correspondence below  ... the burning question is how  did  such  a  what I  regard as a total departure  from  what should have been a very sympathetic  treatment of a  PERFECTLY HABITABLE  HISTORICAL BUILDING ...  excuse the  capitals  but yes thats  my  feelings ...  how  did  the City of  Cape Town administration allow the  virtual demolition  of a  historical building to occur ....   I  would  appreciate  candid  and transparent answers ...

        Regards   Alexander  Buchanan
083 254 9069
________________________________________

From: Marian.Nieuwoudt@capetown.gov.za
To: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
CC: Peter.HenshallHoward@capetown.gov.za
Date: Wed, 24 Mar 2010 11:39:18 +0200
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Good Morning

1.   I hereby confirm that Counsellor Nieuwoudt had a pre-meeting with her officials and the Ward Counsellor.
2.   That the inspection on 18 March rook place with officials from City Planning, Environment and the Building Control officer. The developer as well as his structural engineer also attended the inspection.
3.   If you need further technical information I would suggest that you direct such request to Peter Henshall-Howard or Ossie Gonsalves.

Thank you
Regards

Jackie Wilbers
Director: Planning & Environment: Oostenberg
On behalf of Councillor Marian Nieuwoudt
Mayco Member: Planning & Environment
Tel: 021 4005023
fax: 021 4001296
6th Floor, Podium,Civic Centre
12 Hertzog Boulevard
Private Bag X9181
Cape Town 8000
E-mail address: Jackie.Wilbers@capetown.gov
________________________________________
From: Alex Alexander [mailto:alexalexander3@hotmail.com]
Sent: 23 March 2010 09:52 PM
To: Marian Nieuwoudt; Mayor; leader@da.org.za
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY


Good  evening  Marian ,
                                    I would gather  in the absence  of  further feedback that  the site meeting did indeed occur on the 18th . I  anxiously await  feedback  and especially answers  from the City of Cape  Town   administration  as  to how  such a  travesty could occur .. I  still find myself in a state of  total disbelief  that  such a demolition of a perfectly  habitable  historical building   could be  allowed , I  am at the point of actually having the personal  opinion  that maybe some palms were greased  and that now  the  City administration  upon investigation finds itself  in an indeed  embarrassing  situation  as to how this  ever happened ...  What should actually have transpired  is that the City should have told Oasis  that if  they wanted build some  huge monstrosity and in the process demolish a  perfectly habitable historical buidling  to take there plans elsewhere to an open  piece of land  and  do so with the utmost pleasure ...

I remain  very resolute   and  would  appreciate  total transparency on this matter  to the point of access  to  the process of how this actually transpired ...  sad fact is I have tried to engage the press  on this matter  on  numerous occasions  but  they seem to have other issues on their agenda , but yes continue to  engage them  to  put  it  in the   eye of the   newsreader , and  yes to draw the public  to   moving away from apathy   and more  action ...

    Regards ,,

       Alexander Buchanan

PS  I DO HOPE  THAT MS ZILLES  MAIL  IS  STILL OT BEING FILTERED  AND THIS INDEED GETS TO HER DESK .............
                               
________________________________________
From: Marian.Nieuwoudt@capetown.gov.za
To: alexalexander3@hotmail.com
CC: Lucinda.Carstens@capetown.gov.za
Date: Tue, 9 Mar 2010 14:01:02 +0200
Subject: RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY
Good Morning

1.   I hereby confirm that Des van Brackel has contacted you on 2 previous occasions and has given you details on how Councillor would deal with this matter.
2.   Des has set up a meeting on the 11th of March with Staff members from Planning, Building office and Heritage office as well as with the Consulting Engineers to discuss the development.
3.   She has also set up a meeting with the Ward Councillor to discuss the development on the 11th of March.
4.   The inspection of the property will take place on the 18th of March and the owner/developer and her staff will be accompanying her.
5.   It is not possible for her to do an inspection without prior knowledge of this application and discussion with the Consulting Engineers.
6.   The owner/developer will only be available for such an inspection on the 18th of March.
7.   The City is dealing with between 50 000 and 60 000 building plans per year and between 10 000 and 12 000 land use applications per year.  It is imposibble to know the detail of each application therefore the procedure followed is necessary.

Regards


Jackie Wilbers
Director: Planning & Environment: Oostenberg
On behalf of Councillor Marian Nieuwoudt
Mayco Member: Planning & Environment
Tel: 021 4005023
fax: 021 4001296
6th Floor, Podium,Civic Centre
12 Hertzog Boulevard
Private Bag X9181
Cape Town 8000
E-mail address: Jackie.Wilbers@capetown.gov
________________________________________
From: Alex Alexander [mailto:alexalexander3@hotmail.com]
Sent: 08 March 2010 08:58 PM
To: Marian Nieuwoudt; Mayor; leader@da.org.za
Subject: FW: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY

GOOD   EVENING  ALL ,
                                    I STILL AWAIT SOME FORM OF  RESPONSE AND ACTION HERE , SURELY  THINGS DONT MOVE SO SLOWLY  IN THIS  FAIR CITY ???

REGARDS ,,,

        ALEXANDER BUCHANAN

RE: OASIS PROPERTY WOODSTOCK‏
From:    Laura Robinson (ctht@heritage.org.za)
Sent:   07 March 2010 07:39:24 PM
To:    'Alex Alexander' (alexalexander3@hotmail.com)
Cc:    'Cornelius Johan' (johan.cornelius@capetown.gov.za)
Dear Alexander

I know this property quite well as it is a landmark in the area, and am aware that plans have been developed for it to house offices over a period of years.

I am forwarding this on to my colleagues at the City of Cape Town Heritage Resources section as the Trust is not an approval authority. I am also not up to date on the status of their planning approval, however I think it unlikely that approval would have been given for the amount of demolition that appears to have occurred.

Yours faithfully

Laura Robinson




RE: FOLLOW UP OASIS PROPERTY‏
From:    Alex Alexander (alexalexander3@hotmail.com)
Sent:   07 March 2010 08:49:01 PM
To:    marian.nieuwoudt@capetown.gov.za; mayor@capetown.gov.za; leader@da.org.za
Good  evening  Marian ,
                                   I have been giving lots of thought to this answer , really I expected  on the basis of the pictures  suppied that some form of urgency would  swing  in , seems  its the usual runabout .   and being  given telephone numbers to phone , not  to sound petty but its not my job , but the job of those  that  we pay rates and  taxes to . I have had answers  from  cape town  heritage and  they  say it seems a major  departure ..  In my busy life  I have to  adjust my diary  regularly   , so I  feel in your case  a  short drive from     city center to Woodstock is  not  such a huge  chunk  out of ones  day ...   just my  two cents worth ....


      Regards ... Alexander  Buchanan
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