The City of Cape Town says any remaining illegal occupiers at various sites in the CBD, will be evicted after 12 August, if they refuse to vacate.

This after the City says over 150 respondents, in the CBD eviction case, accepted the offer to move to a Safe Space transitional shelter.

The Western Cape High Court granted the City a final eviction order in June, and the deadline for occupiers to relocate lapsed yesterday, 31 July.

However, the court order has been amended by agreement to reflect that individuals now have until 12 August to move.

The City will provide assistance to remaining occupiers for the voluntary relocations to Safe Spaces during the coming week (5 – 9 August), following which preparations will be made to evict any remaining persons at the various sites.

The sites which have been occupied, and which the City aims to clear are:

Buitengracht Street, FW De Klerk Boulevard, Foregate Square, taxi rank and Foreshore, Helen Suzman Boulevard, Strand Street, Foreshore/N1, Virginia Avenue and Mill Street Bridge in the city.

A standing interdict is included in the order preventing further unlawful occupation of these areas.

Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says he is pleased that the majority of respondents in this case have accepted their offer of assistance to move to a transitional Safe Space.

‘They will also have access to medical care, social workers, substance abuse treatment, family reunification services, EPWP work, and personal development programmes to help them leave the streets for good. Accepting social assistance to get off the streets is the best choice for dignity, health, and well-being, and the City has gone to great lengths to extend every offer of care to individuals unlawfully occupying public places in various parts of the CBD.’

Hill-Lewis says the brand new 300-bed Ebenezer Safe Space has been offered to all respondents. A total of 127 respondents will voluntarily relocate to Ebenezer Safe Space, while a further 26 will relocate to Culemborg Safe Space 2.

READ: New 300-bed Safe Space shelter opened

The Mayor reiterated that no person has the right to indefinitely refuse all offers of social support while reserving a public place as exclusively theirs.

He adds the offer of ”dignified transitional shelter and social services remains available at all times for those who have not yet accepted.”

The City will be spending over R220 million in the next three years to expand and operate its Safe Space transitional shelters beyond the current 1 070 beds across the CBD, Bellville, and Durbanville facilities.

Meanwhile, the case to have illegal occupiers removed from around the Castle of Good Hope will be held later this month.

The Department of Public Works, the owner of the Castle, brought this particular case.

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