Cape Town - Some Paradise Park Holiday Resort families have rejected the Overstrand Municipality’s relocation offer of emergency housing, claiming they were being forced into inhumane living conditions.
Nearly 300 people, mostly old-age Sassa grant recipients who have lived for more than a decade in the Vermont resort in the Greater Hermanus area, are facing eviction.
This is after the Western Cape High Court ruled in favour of a developer in April, and gave the families three months to vacate the premises.
The Resort’s former owner sold the site to the developer due to financial challenges emanating from the cost of a court battle with the municipality regarding compliance.
According to court documents, the former owner stated that he terminated all lease agreements in 2016.
Some people vacated the premises while others refused claiming they had entered into a long term lease agreement. Others said they had bought houses.
The DA said due to there being many elderly people and children they are willing to “use the DA policy of expropriation of land with reasonable compensation” and relocate the families.
Overstrand mayor Annelie Rabie said where an eviction is sought and granted, they are obligated to provide temporary emergency accommodation for those who will be left homeless.
“Emergency accommodation does not mean formal housing, but a plot with shared services where a temporary structure can be erected. The Council of Overstrand Municipality resolved in 2018 that plots for emergency housing be allocated within the Stanford Housing Development. Residents of Paradise Park were afforded the opportunity to register their housing needs to be considered for state subsidised housing; 28 households completed applications for emergency housing in Stanford. Of the 28 households, 20 applicants are 60 years and older and three are disabled. All other evictees will be offered the opportunity to temporarily be accommodated in the Hawston Thusong Hall,” said Rabie.
Services that will be provided include one toilet for every five households, including a disability friendly toilet.
One tap for 20 households and additional taps may be installed. According to Rabie the occupation of the emergency housing units is expected to commence on October 1.
Paradise Park resident Tracey-Lynn Henn, 48, who has been residing in the park with her husband for about a decade said they were willing to continue the fight against their eviction.
“After the judgement in April we applied for leave to appeal and if we fail here we will take it to the Supreme court. My husband bought a house here around 2012 after the owner allowed people to place their caravans and extend them.
“My son also stays here with his family and my in-laws have been here for about 17 years. Now we are being told we must leave and accept to be placed in unsuitable structures. They are not even embarrassed to say many people will share a toilet and taps while there are people with disabilities and chronic diseases. We also have a right to dignity and houses.
“The DA and the municipality pretend to care but they don’t. This is just PR for them, they want to look good. If they are willing to buy land and build for people who occupied land why can’t they buy land and build houses for us? We will continue to fight,” Henn said.
Cape Times