Of course someone out there is trying to make The Oranjezicht City Farm Market Day (which, I must tell you, definitely shows the racial and cultural diversity that Cape Town has to offer) look like the bad guy, and obviously they want to put some bad light on HRH Queen Helen of The Western Cape.

Remember how the market used to be at Homestead Park? Well, that area is a provincial heritage site and apparently someone did something to a wall on the property and they had to move. Helen very kindly stepped in to save us all from having to do anything else on a Saturday morning and said the market could be held at Leeuwenhof (the WC Premier’s residence). Now word has surfaced that Helen may have “flouted” the rules a bit to host the market, because she is a long-time friend of Sheryl Ozinsky, who runs the market.

According to City Press, “three officials from the Western Cape government and the City of Cape Town said that in her rush to accommodate the market, Zille failed to comply with the rules and regulations”.

Among the concerns raised were the failure to hold a public participation process for the use of state property; the opening of Leeuwenhof to an associate at the state’s expense; and noncompliance with some city bylaws regulating traffic and noise levels.

When asked why a “public participation process was not held”, Helen said: “In many instances, such a land availability arrangement would be [made]. But in these circumstances, with the notice [to Oranjezicht] served by Heritage Western Cape – which would have meant the sudden end of the market – the premier offered vendors an alternative venue so the market, its job creation and convenience to the public was not stopped by government red tape.”

With regards to Leeuwenhof being a National Heritage Site, CEO of Heritage Western Cape Andrew Hall has said that the market’s move to its new venue “had triggered a section of the National Heritage Resources Act that sets out a system for assessment of impact – and this had been complied with”.

It has also been said that because the market is now at the premier’s residence,” security around the property had been increased at a cost to the state. They (provincial government sources) claimed the maintenance of the property, and especially the costs for maintaining the lawns where the market was held every Saturday, had escalated”.

Helen has replied that any costs were already “sunk costs” which the Western Cape government “already pays to manage the property”. Furthermore, “any additional costs incurred by the market, over and above those the state would have to pay in any event for Leeuwenhof, are paid for by the market”.

Sheryl Ozinsky has said that she has “all the permits she needed to run her market from Leeuwenhof” and that everything has been complied with.

Why, then, is everyone getting so upset? I’ve been, and everything looks to be running smoothly. There is even a swimming pool for your kids now. It is wonderful that such a beautiful property has been opened to the public. I noticed a bit of security standing close to the house (obviously to keep people from peeking in windows, etc.) but certainly nothing that looks like it would cost a fortune.

[Source: City Press]