Future of Kleinkrantz 1297 looks brighter after lease is cancelled

GEORGE NEWS - The Garden Route District Council approved a recommendation on Tuesday 30 September to cancel the Garden Route Municipality’s (GRDM) 99-year lease with Waterleaf Properties, the developer it had appointed to develop and manage Erf 1297 in Kleinkrantz.

The Council also mandated the municipal administration to explore other options for the use of the property.

In a statement issued after the meeting, Garden Route Mayor Andre Stroebel said, "Among these [options] is the possible alienation of the environmentally sensitive portion to a public conservation authority, ensuring that the ecological value of the site is safeguarded for generations to come."

SANParks previously expressed interest to acquire the property.

Stroebel also said a portion of about 2ha of the 30ha property that was partially developed [into a resort] more than two decades ago, is part of the area where continued low-impact, sensitive use may still be considered, "but only if aligned with conservation value and subject to legal, environmental, and planning compliance".

The lease’s termination follows after the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) had announced in September that the environmental application for the proposed development of an 'eco estate' on the property had been rejected.

The GRDM in 2020 announced plans to develop the property, and in 2021, it signed the lease agreement with Waterleaf Properties.

The proposed development was controversial in environmental circles from the start due to the negative impact that was foreseen on one of a few remaining pockets of relatively undisturbed land in the Wilderness area.

The environmental watchdog, the Wilderness and Lakes Environmental Forum (Waleaf), had also questioned the process in which Waterleaf was appointed as the developer and management agency, as well as the legality of the lease agreement. It had identified various processes that allegedly did not meet the requirements of the various acts, regulations and policies applicable to asset transfer by the municipality.

At the meeting on Tuesday, Good’s Cllr Rosa Louw said the property had become a financial burden to the municipality and the proposed development was to remedy the situation.

“However, plans that the developer submitted would never be passed based on the location of the property and intended proposals.”

Louw said it would also have created another gated community, and therefore, Good supported the cancelling of the lease.

Erf 1297 is one of the last pockets of relatively undisturbed land in Wilderness.

Cllr Samkele Mangxaba during the meeting on Tuesday proposed that the economic development section of the municipality be mandated to come up with a proposal that would meet the DFFE’s environmental requirements and that can be ‘sold’ to interested developers.

According to one of the recommendations approved, other options for the use of the property must be submitted to Council for approval before any contracts are signed off.

A rental deposit of R43 000 will be refunded to Waterleaf in terms of the cancelled agreement.

Waleaf ‘over the moon’

Waleaf’s chairperson, Melissa Dalton, said they are over the moon.

“This decision by Council marks a positive administrative step in the right direction for Erf 1297 - the last remaining coast-to-lakes corridor in Wilderness. And a positive step for conservation for the area as a whole would be the transfer of the property or as much thereof as possible to SANParks, who itself has expressed interest in including Erf 1297 into its expansion footprint.

"We are therefore encouraged by the resolution taken by Council in the meeting to initiate talks with SANParks.

"We would like to thank all those who have come out in support of Waleaf’s endeavours over the past three years to have the development lease cancelled and have this immensely valuable piece of property protected.”

By the time of going to press, Waterleaf’s managing director, Karin van der Walt, had not yet responded to a request for comment. Last month, after the refusal of their environmental application, she had indicated that they would be advertising a new application.

Stroebel thanked all the residents and interested stakeholders for their engagement throughout the process. "Your continued interest has been invaluable in guiding us toward a sustainable outcome,” he said.

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