February 2023
After yet another successful publication of the Pringle Post this past December, we are now looking forward to the next, winter edition of our beloved newspaper!
As you well know, the Pringle Post is packed with interesting, entertaining and generally positive news and stories about our wonderful place in the Kogelberg. We do, however, need people to put their thoughts into words (otherwise the newspaper would be rather flat indeed!)
I would therefore like to extend an invitation to the residents of Pringle Bay – amateurs, experts and enthusiasts alike – to submit something to include in the pages of what is sure to be another fantastic issue of the Post.
Contributions don’t need to be long (between 500 and 1000 words is perfect) but should be entertaining, informative and relevant to our community.
Submit your articles, stories, letters, poems, etc. to editor@pringlebayratepayers.co.za no later than May 5th for consideration. And if you have any pictures or photographs to go with your article, please include them as separate attachments and we’ll try to fit them in.
P.S. We have a great editorial team to help with language and also welcome submissions in Afrikaans.
Our village continues to grow as new residents relocate from other parts of the country, and existing property owners decide to turn their holiday homes into permanent residences.
Our growing population means that we now have more pedestrian traffic using the roads – walkers, cyclists and joggers.
Vehicle traffic has of course also increased; more builders’ vehicles, truck delivery, and courier vans, and of course private cars. In addition, more residents means that the municipal pump-out trucks have more work to do.
All road users have a joint responsibility to abide by all of the traffic regulations and to be patient with and courteous to other road users. Please be careful around pedestrian traffic, as we know, there are no pavements to speak of and some roads are quite narrow.
Keep to the speed limit. We have had residents appealing to us to do something about the speeding drivers, even mentioning two local business owners who have a reputation for speeding and cutting corners. The PBRA does not have the mandate to enforce municipal or provincial laws. All we can do is appeal to everyone to abide by the laws and to be aware that their actions could have serious consequences.
If you observe a municipal pump-out truck driving recklessly or speeding, make a note of the registration number or vehicle identification number and then lodge a formal complaint with Overstrand Municipal Law Enforcement: 028 313 8111
There have been calls for more speed bumps, we are in communication with the relevant authorities.
We have the privilege of living in the Transition Zone of the Kogelberg Biosphere, which brings a level of responsibility on our part. This includes protecting our local fauna. There is something heartbreaking about coming across a flattened tortoise or snake on the road, mostly caused by speeding or negligent drivers. This is NOT what we want to see.
Many nocturnal animals cross our roads at night, please reduce your speed when traveling in the dark. Porcupines, especially, move around then as this is their feeding time.
As property owners could potentially be impacted, we’re sharing this News Release from Overstrand Municipality dated 23 February 2023.
“OVERSTRAND 2023/24 VALUATION ROLL
The Overstrand Municipality is aware of a number of individuals that are currently driving the issue of the latest general property valuations and making assumptions that it would result in exorbitant increases in the rates and taxes of individual households.
It is true that property values have increased substantially since the last general valuation of 2015. This was expected judging from the property sales and the prices paid for mentioned properties over this period as valuations are driven by the market.
Although the Municipal Property Rates Act determines that valuation rolls are valid for four years and can be extended for one year, the Municipality also had to contend with Covid, hence the reason for the longer extension.
However, Council still needs to resolve the actual rate to be charged against the new valuations as part of the 2023/24 budget process. So, any speculations or assumptions at this stage are premature and quite frankly deceitful with the intent to mislead.
Ratepayers are urged to check their valuations and if necessary, lodge an appeal should they be of the opinion that the valuation does not reflect the reality. Appeals must be done in writing to the Municipal Manager on or before 3 April 2023 and will be adjudicated by an independent Valuation Appeals Board appointed by the Provincial Minister of Local Government, Mr Anton Bredell.
The valuation roll is available on the Municipal website www.overstrand.gov.za (click on documents, strategic documents, property-valuation), as well as municipal offices and libraries in the respective towns within the Overstrand.
Issued by:
Overstrand Municipal Manager, Dean O’Neill”
The end of year holiday season was a productive one for Art and Christine Rae’s Alpaca gang.
Truffles, DJ (Don Juan) and Mickey Blue Eyes collected an impressive R2760 in their Volunteer Fire Fighters’ donations box!
It is very much appreciated and will be put to good use. Thank you, guys!
The PBRA is not able to share all Land Use Applications received and processed by Overstrand Municipality (OM). A couple of the reasons are that those pertaining to Pringle Bay and surrounds are not always automatically forwarded to us, and, we receive them on an ad-hoc basis, so not necessarily in time for our regular communications.
We encourage all residents who have an interest, to save the OM website address where Land Use Applications are published, and to visit it periodically.
If you have any related questions, we’ll try to assist: vicechair@pringlebayratepayers.co.za
“Many thanks for this amazing monthly Newsletter! You are really appreciated by the Village”
“As an absentee owner… I very much appreciate receiving this newsletter which keeps me up to date on Pringle happenings. Thank you for the effort it must take to collate the information and then send it out.”
The PBRA has taken the initiative to develop a vision driven, longer-term, conceptual development framework (CDF) for Pringle Bay. The idea is to produce a plan which will guide decision-making in the village into the future and enable knowledgeable interaction with the formal planning processes of the Overstrand Municipality (OM) and other stakeholders as and when required. In this manner the CDF, although not having any legal standing, will be used to steer the decision-making around Pringle Bay in a desirable direction.
This initiative is in line with our Vision for Pringle Bay: “Motivated by the unspoiled beauty of our village and surrounds, the warm embracing spirit of its people, our aim is to grow and nurture a life-enriching community who live, work and play in Pringle Bay”, from which the following relevant strategic Goals emanated
• To promote a sustainable local economy that supports the unique lifestyle of the village.
• To influence orderly and sustainable growth and development supporting the uniqueness of the village.
Developing a CDF will assist us to think through the options available to Pringle Bay for its development over the next ten or so years. What would we like Pringle Bay to be in the future? This question has been raised by residents at our AGM’s. What are our unique attributes relative to other towns in Overstrand? How do we capitalize on our position in the Transition Zone of the Kogelberg Biosphere? How should we design Pringle Bay to be a unique and sustainable village in Overstrand?
There are many forces at work influencing the future development of Pringle Bay. Societal changes such as the changing role of government; the trend for households to relocate to smaller towns away from cities and to take up remote working is already visible in Pringle Bay – consider the post-Covid activity in the property market and the number of new houses being built now. This will change the make-up of the population in Pringle Bay and the functioning of the town. The pressure for economic development in the area surrounding Pringle Bay is also visible, with proposals being made and approved by the OM.
Other factors include the increased role of tourism in Pringle Bay (both domestic and international) with many services being offered and businesses being dependent on tourists.
Pringle Bay and the PBRA need to respond to these forces in a sensitive manner while recognizing the desire of many to preserve the unique lifestyle of Pringle Bay as it is today. Working out a conceptual development framework will assist in clarifying these issues and finding a balanced view in all the uncertainty.
The process to be followed to develop the CDF is for the PBRA to first produce a base CDF in the form of a Discussion Document. This document will then be used to enter a Public Participation Process with the community through a series of structured meetings. The idea is to get as many views as possible to hopefully arrive at a consensus view on the CDF, from which to move forward.
The PBRA is to be assisted by professionals to develop the CDF to bring experience to the table not otherwise available, and to ensure independence and a lack of vested interest. Three firms have been asked to provide proposals. As this work is important the PBRA will assess the proposals and fund the work up to a reasonable amount out of reserves.
We want this initial phase of the initiative to be completed by mid-year 2023.
The strength of this CDF approach is that we as a community can do our homework to enable us to confidently, and from a sound basis, give knowledgeable input into the plans of various stakeholders, thereby assisting us as community to determine our own future.
We’ll keep residents abreast of progress and continue to communicate regarding this initiative.
We would like to express our thanks and appreciation to Nicolette Louw, who of her own accord, and out of her own pocket, arranged to have the excess vegetation and invasive growth cleared from the area next to the Pringle waste station. It now looks much cleaner and less overgrown and Mias (our waste station manager) has easier access to the recycle bin.
Thank you very much, Nicolette. You are always on the lookout for opportunities to improve our green spaces!
Our appreciation also goes to Zandile Bavuma from Overstrand Municipality who, upon being approached by Nicolette, very promptly arranged for the cut vegetation to be removed.
If you’re unsure whether you’re up to date with your membership payments, contact the Treasurer (Mike) on: 076 784 0264 who will gladly check for you.
Our bank details and membership application forms are on our website:
Membership
Should you have any difficulty completing the form or if you have questions, feel free to call the Treasurer for assistance.
Have you joined?
In the event of a major disaster in our area, such as fire or flooding or any other significant incident threatening the safety of Pringle residents and properties, the Disaster Management Telegram network will be the primary means for the Disaster Management Team (DMT) to communicate with the town. This platform will be used to provide accurate updates as well as to provide instructions, for example to evacuate.
We strongly encourage all residents and property owners to join the Disaster Management Telegram network. Install the Telegram app on your phone, search for “Pringle Bay Disaster Management” and press the “Join” tab.
Please note that it’s a one-way channel to receive instructions only, “chats” or replies are not possible.
The establishment of the Pringle Bay DMT was a joint initiative between the PBRA and the Pringle Bay Street Watch after our last serious fire. The team is made up of representatives from our PB Community Volunteer Fire Fighters, the PBSW, the PBRA, the Medical Emergency Responders team, as well as other volunteers who have made themselves available to assist when the need arises.
Residents are reminded that the burning of garden refuse (or any other kind of refuse) on your property is illegal.
Our vulnerability to fires and our windy conditions prohibits this.
Garden refuse can be taken to the vegetation dump on the R44 between Pringle and Betty’s Bay. Bagged waste and recyclables to the Pringle dump, anything bigger than that to the Kleinmond Transfer station, on the left as you approach the town.
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