Waterfront development needs cohesive planning

THE blueprint for the City of uMhlathuze’s proposed waterfront development looks impressive, with five precincts identified for improvement and best usage of waterfront properties.

Presently owned by the municipality and occupied at nominal annual rental by various clubs and organisations, the land in question incorporates

Richards Bay’s prime real estate.

City Development officials obviously need to ensure that maximum use is made of the potential of these properties, located along the Mzingazi Canal, Pelican Island, Bay Hall, Alkantstrand and Newark Beach.

Already a major upgrade is in progress at Newark Beach and any similar improvement to the marine environment is welcomed.

On the positive side, clearing the sites of organisations which do not of necessity need to be on the water’s edge will free land for recreational and other activities for which a shoreline is a prerequisite.

Such properties will surely attract foreign and national interest from developers, especially given our ‘summer all year round’ climate.

Already, City planners have given the assurance that land for common public usage will be reserved for local and visiting beach-goers and anglers – a welcome reassurance to those involved in tourism.

However, the provision of infrastructure as well as the high cost of Environmental Impact Assessments loom as problems that could escalate prices of the properties in question to unaffordable and prohibitive limits.

And while fears of rising sea levels send a red flag to developers, perhaps the possibility of reclaiming land from the sea should also be investigated.

The immediate fear of those clubs presently occupying the various parcels of land earmarked for waterfront development is that they will lose their sites, as well as forfeit the vast sums they have invested in improving the facilities their members enjoy.

The City authorities need to ensure intense communication with these stakeholders and must fully understand the role they play in community

structures.

Some, such as the Zululand Yacht Club, have international links that are essential in the bigger picture and must be acknowledged.