Notices

Closing Date: 29 August 2025
For further enquiries, contact the Administrative Officer, Ms P Saaiman @pasaaiman@george.gov.za or call 044 801 9074

George Municipality is aware of a water outage in Seaview, Pacaltsdorp. The affected streets are Dahlia, Chrysanthemum, and Amaryllis. Municipal teams are on-site investigating the issue.

A water tanker will roam the affected area. Residents are encouraged to report a water outage to 044 801 9266 until 16:30, and 044 801 6300 after 16:30.
ETR 6-8 hours

Percentage storage at new raised dam wall height 82,14%
Rainfall for the previous days: 6mm (Measured from 29 July – 4 August 2025)

Please see the link to 2B water restrictions implemented as of 1 May 2024: http://tinyurl.com/3439h4n7
The cooperation of all users of municipal water is essential and is greatly appreciated.

The George Municipality launched an application on 20 August 2024 for the removal of restrictive conditions in Title Deed T59963/1984 relating to Erf 243, Wilderness, better known as the Wilderness Common. This application will ensure that additional restrictions are addressed, preventing the utilization of the land in accordance with the intent for public open spaces as alluded in the George Integrated Zoning Scheme By-Law, 2023.

The prescribed public participation process was conducted from 6 September to 9 October 2024. During this period, numerous comments and objections were received from the Wilderness community, and several engagements were held with the Wilderness Ratepayers and Residents Association (WRRA) and Wilderness and Lakes Environmental Action Forum (WALEAF).

It became evident from the feedback and enquiries that there were significant misinterpretations and misconceptions regarding the intent of the application and the Municipality detected hesitance regarding the removal of conditions from the title deed. Although no change in zoning is proposed, the community held the impression that the restrictive conditions safeguard the property against unlawful utilization and future changes in land use rights.

George Municipality commits to transparency and good governance, and the appropriate response was to revisit the proposal and enter into direct engagement with the community. As a result, the public participation process was extended and a public meeting was called to discuss the alternatives to the original proposal to remove the restrictive conditions, provide clarity regarding the intent, erase misinformation, and to develop understanding of the needs of the community as a whole.

A public meeting was held on 3 July 2025 at 17:30 at the Fairy Knowe Hotel in Wilderness. The meeting was advertised in the George Herald on 19 June 2025, on-site notices were posted, postings at the Wilderness Tourism Office and Spar Liquor Store noticeboards, and hand-delivered notices in the Wilderness central business district on 20 June 2025.

The meeting was attended by approximately 125 residents, and the session was led by Mrs. D. Power, Deputy Director: Development and Environmental Planning, and facilitated by Mr. C. Jacobs, the newly elected WRRA Chairperson.

Mrs. Power provided a detailed overview of the application, explaining the split zoning of Erf 243, Wilderness being ‘Open Space Zone I’ and ‘Transport Zone II’ (public open space and public road), and the permitted uses under the zoning scheme by-law. She addressed the community’s concerns and assured attendees that the intention is not to redevelop the land. Rather, the aim is to align with the zoning to allow for a public park according to the norms applied across the municipal area that remains accessible to all, to serve the community as a whole and respond to the need for community-driven events such as markets, expos, and other public activities, subject to the required approvals.

Mrs. Power emphasized that all events would require approval through the Municipal events committee. The invitation was extended to the local rate payers association to collaborate with the Municipality to ensure that the interests of the Wilderness community is duly addressed when such applications are assessed and to ensure continuous community involvement over the course of evaluating proposals for events.

In response to the initial objections received, the Municipality proposed to amend the restrictive condition instead of removing it entirely. A proposed condition was tabled as an example:
“No camping shall be permitted, and no permanent structures may be erected on the erf, except for ablution facilities, play apparatus, street furniture, engineering infrastructure, and architectural/landscaping features associated with the public open space use.”

The proposal was generally well received by attendees, although some concerns were raised about the inclusion of ablution facilities. It was agreed that further input would be consolidated through the rate payer’s association. The period for comments and objections to the application was extended up until 17 July 2025, affording attendees to respond to the revisions proposed informed by the facts confirmed during the meeting.

Subsequent to the meeting, the George Municipality has received several responses to the application of which some still oppose, and others support the proposal. All comments received will be presented to a Planning Tribunal for consideration by no later than September 2025. Once the Tribunal has resolved, all respondents will be notified of the decision, and the decision will be published on the Municipal webpage for 21 days.

The Municipality thanks the Wilderness community for their participation, their willingness to collaborate and constructive contributions.

The George Municipality would like to inform the public that the GIS Public Viewer is currently unavailable. The issue is receiving attention, and users will be notified once the system is operational again.

In the interim, members of the public who require GIS-related information or assistance are encouraged to contact the following:
• George Municipality GIS Office – Corlize Bester: 044 801 9117 or email on cebester@george.gov.za
• George Municipality GIS Office – Asavela Zono: 044 801 9116 or email on azono@george.gov.za
• Town Planning Department: 044 801 9477

We apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank you for your understanding.