Cape Town is fighting hard to reach agreements with the two major objectors
to the building of the 2010 World Cup stadium in Green Point - the Metropolitan
Golf Club and the Green Point Common Association (GPCA).
The GPCA was locked in all-day discussions with mayor Helen Zille, senior
counsel and city officials on Wednesday to find a solution that would
stave off any further delays in the start of construction.
"We are hammering at it 24/7 to try and devise a solution that works
for everybody. But it is too soon to say whether we are there or not,"
said GPCA chairperson David Polovin.
It is understood that the city would like to conclude the negotiations
before the end of next week when Environment, Planning and Economic Development
MEC Tasneem Essop is expected to take a decision on the rezoning of the
common and objections to the building of the 68 000-seat stadium.
City 2010 spokesperson Pieter Cronje said: "We don't want to drag
our feet indefinitely. We have to land a decision soon. Either we are
parting ways or there's an agreement. But we can't say yet that we are
on the brink of a breakthrough."
The GPCA is pushing the city to agree to a deal that would prevent 67
hectares of the common's green area from being developed.
The stadium and related sporting facilities will take up 18 hectares,
according to a urban design plan adopted by the city council three weeks
ago.
The GPCA also wants to have a say in the management of the reconfigured
common.
The city is also considering a business plan outlining expenses the golf
club will incur during the 18 months of the construction of the new stadium.
The two parties will meet next week to discuss the compensation of about
50 permanent and contract staff, maintenance of the club house and staff
quarters.
The club spends about R100 000 a month on salaries.
The captain of the Metropolitan Golf Club, Demetri Zitianellis, said on
Wednesday that once these issues were ironed out, the club would be ready
to seal the deal with the city in writing.
Neither party would disclose the amounts being considered and Zitianellis
said these were subject to change if the golf course staff could be used
in the construction of the new course.
Cronje said the compensation might not all be in monetary terms.
The city and the golf club will jointly oversee the building of the new
golf course - the club would lend its expertise and the city would foot
the bill and oversee the contractors for the new course, which will move
from its existing location on Fritz Sonnenberg Road westwards, adjacent
to Bay Road.
Cronje said that by Friday the city also hoped to have a better grip on
the actual costs of building the stadium.
The city was waiting for a report from a professional team that would
include contingency costs, exclusions and professional fees.
Cronje said the three tenders for construction were very close and the
bid evaluation committee required more detailed figures before awarding
the contract.
Last week the city and the province were disputing where the responsibility
lay for rezoning the common from a public space to a community-use area.
Premier Ebrahim Rasool had to concede that it was the responsibility of
the province to take the rezoning decision before the city could give
the go-ahead for the building of a stadium.
By Lindsay Dentlinger. ,
December 28 2006.
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