A trading plan for Milnerton, Brooklyn and surrounds will start to take shape in about two months’ time with some R60 000 worth of improvements, says ward councillor Fabian Ah-Sing. Mr Ah-Sing says the plan for his Ward 55, after getting city council approval in June, is to be gazetted in two weeks’ time, and new bays will be set up once site mapping has been done.

The ward spans Brooklyn, Tijgerhof, Milnerton, Rugby, Ysterplaat, Paarden Eiland, and Sanddrift, and the 57 bays initially planned for it were reduced to 51 after six bays planned for Woodbridge Island were removed following public input.

The draft plan drew a mixed response when it went out for public comment in September and October last year (“Mixed response to trading plan,” Tabletalk, September 20, 2023) and there were concerns about the possible creation of a taxi rank in Koeberg Road for taxis parking at the Shoprite Milnerton shopping centre (“Councillor takes flak over trading plan,” Tabletalk, November 15, 2023).

But Mr Ah-Sing said “unnecessary drama” had been caused by those who hadn’t properly read the plan, and it would be “over my dead body” that such a rank would be set up as it would be an eyesore, cause traffic congestion and undermine the informal trading plan’s key objective to curb urban decay.

In Paarden Eiland, the plan allows for eight bays in Marine Drive, one in Milner Road, three in Mosselbaai Street, six on the corner of Paarden Eiland Road and Neptune Street and one container stall in Lynx Road.

In Rugby, there will be five bays in Sable Road, five near Loxton Road and eight opposite Shoprite along Koeberg Road.

In Brooklyn, there will be 10 bays in Albow Road; two each in Vasco, Church, Fenwick and Justin streets; and one on the corner of Sable and Koeberg roads.

The project will start at Shoprite Milnerton, where the five wooden kiosks will be demolished at a cost of around R10 000.

About R25 000 will be spent to paint markings for the ward’s 51 bays, and another R25 000 will be used to tar two sites near Marine Drive and Sable Road.

The trading bays at Shoprite Milnerton will be on the existing veranda with a few parking bays for delivery trucks to offload.

“For many years, residents have struggled to come out of their suburbs onto Koeberg Road because of the delivery trucks standing in the way, so this was a priority,” Mr Ah-Sing said.

Plant boxes would be placed in spots where trucks were stopping illegally for loading and unloading, and there would be a spot for taxis to pick up and drop off passengers next to Masson Road along Koeberg Road, he said.

“While I am aware that residents, shopping centre staff, and Tijgerhof residents’ domestic workers use the taxis as a mode of transportation, we cannot allow them (taxis) to interfere with the set plans.”

All traders, including existing ones, would not have to apply for permits, which currently cost R67 a month, he said.

“Historical traders on the City’s database will be accommodated first before any open trading bays will be advertised.”

Bays would be advertised and traders would need to register for City e-services to view available ones, he said.

Unpermitted traders would be informed about the City’s informal trading by-law and how to apply for a permit, but law enforcement would intervene if they continued to trade without one, he said.

Several residents we spoke to welcomed the plan, but only Brent Evans, of Tijgerhof, was willing to go on record.

He said he hoped the plan would ease traffic congestion and parking problems at Shoprite Milnerton, that Law Enforcement would monitor the trading bays and that those paying to trade had a fair chance to do so.

A trader outside Shoprite, who asked not to be named, fearing victimisation, said she was just trying to make a living while others sold drugs from their trading bays.

“We dare not say anything or we will get killed or our supplies will get taken from us,” she said.

The Shoprite group and Shoprite Milnerton management did not respond to calls and emails before this edition went to print.

The public can report illegal trading to the relevant City Law Enforcement unit at 021 596 1999 or log C3 service requests.

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Trading plan takes aim at urban rot