The Mossel Bay Municipality is in the process of developing an Architectural Design Guideline Manual (ADGM) to address many aspects of the built environment within the central area of Mossel Bay and has scheduled a public participation meeting in this regard.

The meeting will be held in die Side Hall of the Mossel Bay Town Hall at 16:00 on Wednesday, 15 April 2015, and is open to the public.

The Municipality appointed Matrix Urban Designers and Architects to compile the manual to complement the future development of the built environment within a defined area of Mossel Bay.

The manual is intended for use by building industry professionals, developers and individuals who intend to develop land or alter or renovate existing buildings. It will furthermore act as a tool to assist the Municipality, especially the Aesthetics Committee, in assessing building plan applications.

The process of formulating the guidelines began with an Inventory. Through extensive field research in the many diverse suburbs that comprise the defined area in Mossel Bay, a better understanding of the specific spatial characteristics of each area was obtained.

Concurrent with the field research, a desktop study was conducted to assess the relevant underlying policy documents that influence the built and natural environments in order to ascertain the extent of the guidelines and recommendations that are already in place or proposed. The abovementioned data was then assimilated and formed part of the formulation of a vision and a number of guiding principles for future development. From these principles a set of the architectural design guidelines was developed and illustrated.

The inventory takes stock of the urban and architectural conditions in the Mossel Bay Central/Historic Core, Ridge, Point, Long Street and George Road, the Post Office Tree, Tarka and the harbour areas.

The vision for the manual is to provide a set of principles and associated physical guidelines that will assist in ensuring that all new development, including new buildings and minor and major alterations, additions and renovations to existing buildings, positively contribute towards the aesthetical character and sense of place of the existing built fabric within the prescribed study area in Mossel Bay.

This includes ensuring that any development, whether infill or isolated, should be “of their time” and rather be sympathetic towards than to imitate the old. Furthermore, in doing so, any development must complement the dense, fine urban grain, regional coastal texture and the relationship with the relatively unique north-facing topographical condition and enhance the interface between the closely knit public and private realms.

The Architectural Design Guidelines address many aspects of the built environment, including response to topography, response to immediate built context, environmental design, integration of building services, architectural language and also touch on aspects such as architectural heritage and advertising/signage.

The Executive Mayor of Mossel Bay, Alderlady Marie Ferreira, tabled a total draft budget of R948,6 million for the 2015/2016 financial year at the Council meeting on 26 March 2015. This compares with the revised total budget of R914,3 million for the current financial year.
 
The total 2015/2016 budget is comprised of a capital budget of R135,9 million and an operational budget of R812,7 million.
 
With the exception of electricity tariffs, for which an increase of 12,2 per cent is proposed, the proposed increase for other service tariffs is six per cent across the board. Although the electricity tariff increase is 12,2 per cent, as approved by the National Electricity Regulator of South Africa (NERSA), the annual Eskom tariff increase amounts to 14,29 per cent, which means that the Municipality has to absorb a portion of the Eskom increase.
 
The Minister of Finance in his budget speech announced a 2 cent charge per kWh on electricity, which has not been included in the tariffs nor in the purchase costs for purposes of drafting the proposed budget. Clarity is still sought in this regard and the impact on this on the budget will be made public as soon as possible.
 
The plight of the poor has again received attention and it is proposed that the monthly subsidy for households registered as indigent or poor is increased from R404,79, plus VAT, per month to R429,06, plus VAT per month. Indigent households will continue to receive 50 kWh of free electricity per month. As in the present financial year they will also not pay for sewerage and refuse services and do not pay property rates on the first R50 000 valuation of their properties.
 
All households, including indigent and poor households, will continue to receive 6kl of water and 20 kWh electricity free per month. Mossel Bay remains one of a handful of municipalities in South Africa, which still supplies free water on the abovementioned basis to households.
 

 The total monthly income limit of a husband and wife at which pensioners will become eligible for a discount of 50% on their property rates is increased to R12 750 per month. The limit to qualify for a discount of 30% is increased to R17 000 for the 2015/2016 financial year.
 
The Municipality will again be dependent mainly on service charges to balance the operational revenue budget. Excluding departmental and other internal charges, the main contributors are the following:
 
-           Electricity charges                                            R 320,5 million.
-           Water charges                                                  R 93,9 million.
-           Sewerage charges                                            R 46,4 million.
-           Refuse removal charges                                   R 36,6 million.
-           Other                                                                R 32,7 million.
 
The main categories of expenditure from the cash budget for 2015/2016 will be the following:
 
-           Employee-related costs of R240,7 million, which at 29,6% of the cash budget is marginally below the national norm of 30%.
 
-           Bulk purchases of R251,3 million, or 30,9% of the operating budget.
 
-           Other general expenses of R145,3 million, or 17,9% of the operating budget. This category includes an amount of R24,2 million in respect of housing top-structures, which is derived from Provincial Human Settlements Funding.
 
The major allocations in the Capital Budget are as follows:
 
-           Streets and Stormwater             :                       R 36,1 million.
-           Electricity Services                   :                       R 21,9 million.
-           Sewerage Services                   :                       R 21,1 million.
-           Water Services                         :                       R 16,4 million.
-           Human Settlements                  :                       R 24,9 million.
 
 
The draft budget, together with the draft revised Integrated Development Plan that was tabled at the same meeting is now available for public inspection and comment at the municipal offices and libraries in Mossel Bay, D’Almeida, Hartenbos, Herbertsdale, Great Brak River, KwaNonqaba and Friemersheim as well as on the Municipality’s website at www.mosselbay.gov.za.
 
Comments or representations must be in writing and addressed to the Municipal Manager, Mossel Bay Municipality, Private Bag X29, Mossel Bay 6500. It can also be e-mailed to admin@mosselbay.co.za or faxed to (044) 606-5062. The deadline for comment and representations is not later than Monday, 4 May 2015.
 

The site for the new sludge dewatering plant at the Municipality’s regional sewerage works at Hartenbos was handed over to the civil subcontractor for the project on Wednesday, 11 February 2015.

The project, with a total value of R18 million, entails the construction of the plant at which waste-activated sludge will be dewatered and treated to improve the quality of the water that will be discharged from the plant. It will also have facilities to facilitate the disposal of the dewatered sludge.

The Municipality is at present using drying beds to dry the sludge but the existing drying beds are approaching maximum capacity. There is not sufficient space on the property to build additional drying beds and it has therefore been decided to build the new plant which will be an improvement on the current processes and will lead to increased productivity.

When the new plant is commissioned, the waste-activated sludge will be pumped to the existing sludge holding ponds from where it will gravitate via two waste-activated sludge pipelines to the dewatering facility. One line will feed the belt press, to be installed under this contract, and the other line will feed a second future press to be installed at a later date. From here, the flow of sludge onto the press will be controlled.

Polyelectrolyte, together with dilution water, will be added to the stream of sludge and the sludge will be dewatered by the linear screen/filter belt press equipment (dewatering process train) with a design load of 420 kg per hour per press.

The dewatered cake will then be transferred to a sludge silo. From there it will be collected and removed.

The filtrate (as well as filtrate collected from the existing dewatering facility via a new gravity line to be installed under this contract) and wash water will be pumped to the nearest drying bed located approximately 40m away.

The main contractor on the project is PCI South Africa and the sub-contractor (civil) is Khubeka Construction. The electrical sub-contractor is Electron and the engineers are Worley Parsons RSA. Lyners Consulting Engineers are the project managers.

The project is scheduled for completion in November 2015.

PICTURE CAPTION

The Executive Mayor, Alderlady Marie Ferreira, turned the first sod at the site for the new sludge dewatering plant at the regional sewerage works in Hartenbos. With her are, from left to right, Mr Hugh Apollis (site agent, Khubeka Construction), Mr Gershwin Kock (Plant Manager, Municipality), Mr Dick Naidoo (Director Technical Services of the Mossel Bay Municipality) and Mr Irwin Ross (Khubeka Construction).

Several enquiries have been received about load shedding, while there are also questions about the Municipality’s role in this.

Load shedding is determined entirely by Eskom, which also switches off the municipal sub-stations in stages (1, 2, 3a or 3b) depending on Eskom’s ability at any given moment to meet the national demand for electricity. Announced stages are often changed during the day, with notice periods sometimes less than two hours.

The load shedding is done according to a schedule drawn up by Eskom for municipalities. The latest schedule took effect on 1 February 2015 and applies to the whole municipal area. All areas in Mossel Bay, with one exception, are switched off more or less simultaneously for the same period in terms of the schedule.

The exception in the Mossel Bay area is Voorbaai, Island View and adjacent areas, which are served by the same substation. The substation is not switched off in order not to disrupt the pumping of diesel from tankers to the Gourikwa power station next to the PetroSA plant. Eskom imports diesel to Mossel Bay to supply the power station.

The load shedding schedule for Mossel Bay can be viewed on the Municipality’s website at www.mosselbay.gov.za.

During Stage 1 load shedding the power is switched off for one period of two and a half hours per day. Mossel Bay is not affected during Stage 1 on days 3, 7, 11, 15,19,23,27 and 31 of the month, depending on the number of days per month.

When it is Phase 2 load shedding it alternates between one period of two and a half hours and two periods of two and a half hours each per day. When it is Phase 3a load shedding, it alternates between two periods of two and a half hours and three periods of two and a half hours per day. When it is Stage 3b load shedding the power is switched off for three periods of two and a half hours each per day.

A sister city arrangement with Yogyakarta and Indonesian investment in Mossel Bay were on the agenda when the Mayoral Committee and municipal management met with an Indonesian delegation led by Mr Suprapto Martosetomo, the Indonesian Ambassador in South Africa, last Friday.

Mr Martosetomo, accompanied by Mr Joel Rohrohmana, Economic Consul and Acting Consul General of Indonesia in Cape Town, and Mr John Purba, Vice Consul, paid a courtesy visit to the Executive Mayor, Alderlady Marie Ferreira, prior to Indonesia’s participation in the 2015 Dias Festival this weekend.

Ambassador Martosetomo raised the possibility of Mossel Bay entering into a sister city arrangement with a city in Indonesia, and suggested that such an arrangement is pursued further with Yogyakarta, a coastal city approximately 500 km south-east from the capital of Indonesia, Jakarta.  Yogyakarta, alternatively spelt as Jogjakarta, has a history dating back more than a 1 000 years, several universities and is sometimes described as the cultural heart of Indonesia.

Although such an arrangement is likely to focus strongly on tourism, the possibility of investment in other areas of the local economy was also discussed. Mossel Bay’s water security as well as good transport infrastructure was emphasised in these discussions. Ambassador Martosetomo undertook to approach the Yogyakarta city authorities as soon as possible about the twinning arrangement.

The Mossel Bay Municipality has built up good relations with the Indonesian Consul-General in Cape Town over the past three years and this will be the third consecutive year that Indonesian folk dancers and performers will participate in the Dias Festival. Their colourful and rhythmic shows were highlights at previous Dias festivals.

They will this year perform at the Dias Festival cultural concert at the Bartolomeu Dias Museum on 29 January 2015 and again on Saturday, 31 January 2015 on stage at the festival arena in the Santos Caravan Park. They will also take part in the street parade.

PICTURE CAPTION

The Indonesian Ambassador, His Excellency Mr Suprapto Martosetomo (third from left) paid a courtesy visit to the Executive Mayor, Alderlady Marie Ferreira (second from right). With them in the photograph are, from left to right, Dr Michele Gratz (Municipal Manager), Mr Joel Rohrohmana (Acting Consul-General and Consul (Economic) (Cape Town) and Mr John Purba (Vice-Consul, Cape Town).

The Dias Festival in Mossel Bay has become synonymous with air shows, and fans can look forward to another exciting aerobatics programme at this year’s festival from Friday, 30 January 2015 to Sunday, 1 February 2015.

Including the Boeing 737 of Kulula.com, which will do a special fly past over the bay on Saturday, 30 January 2015 as part of the festival, nine different types of aircraft will be on display. Many of South Africa’s leading aerobatics pilots, some of whom are South African Airways pilots, will also be in action.

The fly past by Kulula.com during one of their regular flights is a major coup by the Mossel Bay Aero Club, which is organising the airshow. Passengers on this flight will each receive a special certificate of participation in the Dias Festival airshow.

The Flying Lions aerobatics will again be in action in their Harvards. Mossel Bay fans can look forward to another one of their spectacular night displays on Friday, 30 January 2015. They will do two performances on Saturday, 31 January 2015.

A World War 2 Mustang fighter-bomber, piloted by Patrick Davison, is expected to be another big attraction while the Team Xtreme formation aerobatic display team of Mark Hensman and Nigel Hensman, both flying MX2 aircraft, is also likely to add to the excitement of the airshow.

Other aircraft that will be in action are a Yak 55 (Jacque du Plooy), an RV7 (Martin Venn) and a Slick 540 (Neville Ferreira).

The programme will again flag jumps during which members of Skydive Mossel Bay will jump onto Santos beach from a C182 with the South African, Chinese, Indonesian, French, Madagascar and German national flags as well as that of Standard Bank, the main festival sponsor. These countries are all either participating in or are represented by diplomats of the countries at the festival.

Members of the Mossel Bay Aero Club will also do fly pasts in various aircraft on Saturday, 31 January and again on Sunday, 1 February.

Dancing planes, dancing cars, dancing people, and free entertainment for all - the Dias Festival 2015 is going to be the highlight of the second half of Mossel Bay’s summer.
“The Dias Festival is an annual celebration of cultural diversity in Mossel Bay that’s coordinated by the Municipality to boost tourism and the economy of the town,” said Mossel Bay’s Municipal Manager, Michele Gratz.
The event - which is themed ‘Where Cultures Meet’ - will take place from 29 January to 1 February, 2015.
 Dr. Gratz said that the theme is appropriate since research into the Middle Stone Age archaeology of the region - centred on the Pinnacle Point Caves - has revealed the earliest evidence for the use of ochre as paint, which puts Mossel Bay as the birthplace of culture.
“By tradition, the Festival kicks off with a cultural evening in the Maritime Museum of the Bartolomeu Dias Museum Complex,” she said.
The evening will feature arts troupes and folk dancers who will appear by courtesy of the Consuls General of Portugal, Indonesia, and the People’s Republic of China. These troupes will also appear on the Festival stage at Santos Caravan Park, and will take part in the street parade on the 31st of January.
The entertainment on the Sound Stage in the Festival Arena at Santos Caravan park will run from Friday to Sunday, with performances by Emo Adams and his band, Take Note, as well as Idols finalists Lloyd Cele, Karin Kortje and Jody Williams, who will be joined by Loyiso Bala, Armand Hofmeyr, Pieter Mohr, Freddie Nest, Gerrie Pretorius, David Fourie, Willem Botha, Ampie du Preez, Monique, Nadine, Michael Lindt, and Snotkop - as well as the Mama Africa Xhosa folk dancers, the Grastrapper riel dancers, and troupes of gumboot dancers.
The programme for Sunday will feature country music and brass bands. Entrance to the Festival Arena will be free of charge.
“Mossel Bay has become a popular destination for aero-sports, and we’re excited that the Western Cape Aerobatics will once again form part of the Festival, and that the country’s premier aerial displays team - the Eqstra Flying Lions Formation Team of Scully Levin, Arnie Meneghelli, Ellis Levin and Sean Thackwray - will be taking part in our annual airshow which will also take place during the Festival,” said Dr. Gratz.
The air show will feature a World War II Mustang P51 fighter-bomber and, if weather permits, the Harvards of the Eqstra Flying Lions will perform a night-flying display over Santos Beach.
“This year the traditional ceremonial arrival of Bartolomeu Dias will take a new twist - he’ll be arriving at the Festival Arena by train, courtesy of the new light rail service, which has proven an incredible hit with the public in the short while since its inception,” said Dr. Gratz.
Dias’ arrival will be accompanied by skydivers flying the flags of the countries participating in the Festival, who will land on Santos Beach - near where Dias himself first set foot on South African shores on 3 February, 1488.
Dr. Gratz said that the Festival will include a motor sport gymkhana, a street parade, a fun walk for dogs (and their humans), and a programme of children’s entertainment - which proved such a hit in 2014, that it’s been expanded for this year.
Food and other stalls, a tea garden, a beer tent, and static displays of new vehicles, vintage cars and tractors will be set up in the shade of the trees at the Festival Arena.
“The festival will also be opened officially Friday, the 30th at the Festival Arena by the Western Cape’s Minister of Finance, Dr. Ivan Meyer.”
 “It is a Festival for all, and we look forward to welcoming everyone to Mossel Bay,” said Dr. Gratz.
 More information:
Dias Festival: www.mosselbayevents.co.za
Mossel Bay: www.visitmosselbay.co.za

Apart from closing at 13:00 on 24 December 2014 as well as on 31 December 2014 the Mossel Bay Municipality will maintain normal office hours from 07:45 to 16:15 daily on weekdays between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. It will also be open as usual on 2 January 2015.

Essential services will be provided during this time. In the case of emergencies or problems the Municipality can be phoned at (044) 606-5000.

Refuse removal will also take place on all weekdays during this period, except on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day when it will be collected the next day in affected areas. Although refuse collection previously took place on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day when these days fell on a weekday, this had to be stopped as the PetroSA landfill site is no longer open these days.

Mr Marius Botha joined the Municipality on 1 December 2014 as Director of Financial Services and therefore also Chief Financial Officer. He succeeds Mr Herman Botha who retired at the end of November.

Mr Marius Botha achieved the degrees B Com (University of Port Elizabeth) and B Com Hons (B.(B&A) and MBA (both at the University of Stellenbosch). He also completed his articles as a chartered accountant and auditor.

He joined the Port Elizabeth Municipality as an internal auditor in 1985 and in 1987 was appointed as Deputy City Treasurer of East London in 1987. He became Town Treasurer of the George Municipality in 1991. From 2005 to 2008 he worked as a consultant for local authorities and from 2008 to 2011 he was a consultant to the Development  Bank of South Africa. He was appointed as Head of Finance of the Karoo Hoogland Municipality in 2011.

Mr Botha says he is proud to have joined one of the most progressive and financially steadfast local authorities in South Africa, where service delivery is also definitely prioritised.

“I have inherited a particularly healthy financial state of affairs where the administrative processes are in place and where the Municipality has also achieved a third consecutive clean audit. The shoes which I have filled have walked a healthy path  and I will try to build on the foundations that have been laid for me,” he said.

The Mossel Bay Municipality has achieved a clean audit for the 2014 book year, making it the third consecutive year that it has achieved a clean audit.  It also places Mossel Bay amongst the five per cent of 278 local municipalities in South Africa to have received three or more consecutive clean audits.

“As a Council we are absolutely delighted by this extraordinary achievement. Not may people realise what an achievement it really is to get a clean audit. It means much more than that a Municipality’s financial matters are in order. The Auditor General’s audits also include audits on compliance with financial as well as non-financial legislation and the implementation of different management systems. This achievement is evidence of the quality of the Municipality’s management team as well as personnel. The Municipal Manager, Dr Michele Gratz, and her team must be congratulated with their third consecutive clean audit. It is the result of hard work and top-notch management,” said the Executive Mayor, Alderlady Marie Ferreira. 

A Municipality can achieve one of five audit opinions, from very good to very bad, from the Auditor General. They are an unqualified audit without matters of emphasis (clean audit), an unqualified financial audit with matters of emphasis, a qualified audit (an opinion cannot be given on the financial statements in their totality because of irregularities or inaccuracies), a disclaimer (opinion cannot be given on the annual financial statements as a whole because the statements have not been completed sufficiently) or a negative opinion because the financial statements are not an accurate reflection of how the municipality managed its financial affairs).