Dear HSRA Property Owner,

Greetings from beautiful Hermanus. I trust that you are all keeping safe, healthy, and warm. It is bitterly cold in the Western Cape as I put the final touches to this newsletter.

This month we would like to share several topics.

Resignations

It is with a heavy heart that I announce the resignation of two members of the HPP team.

Brigitte Sabbe (Director Urban Management) has been diagnosed with a health issue, which makes it difficult for her to continue in her role. We would like to thank Brigitte for her support and enthusiasm during the time she was involved with HPP. We sincerely hope that she will make a speedy and full recovery.

Hennie Niemand, who has been with HPP for almost 11 years, has decided to finally retire. In his role as HPP Manager, Hennie provided invaluable support during his tenure with HPP. No request was ever too much for him. Although we are going to miss his contribution and ‘institutional memory’, we have his mobile number and physical address! No doubt we will be knocking on Hennie’s door for support when needed.

The HPP Board wants to take this opportunity to wish Hennie and his wife a happy retirement, and safe travels.

For the moment Hennie’s role will not be filled. His administrative tasks will be absorbed by our Executive Officer.

Operations

Good progress has been made in support of HPP’s aim to establish an integrated and intelligent CCTV system.

We have commenced with the upgrade of the HPP control centre, which includes renovations of the electrical system, enlargement of the monitor area, and improved access control. HPP has agreed with Avigilon to jointly manage a POC (Proof of Concept) to ensure we select a high-quality NVR (Network Video Recorder – back-bone) to manage our future AI (Artificial Intelligence) cameras.

HPP has linked the existing Voëlklip cameras to our control centre to improve our overall observation and coverage capacity.

We are also in an advance stage with the planning to install and then monitor several cameras on behalf of the Fernkloof neighbourhood. Funding for this project came from donations by the Fernkloof community. HPP will own the to-be-installed camera network.

HPP has also installed an additional 16 LPR (licence plate recognition) cameras and linked them to the Navic (National Vehicle Intelligence Cloud) system. This will give as direct access to Navic’s vehicle data information system, which will enable HPP to identify ‘suspicious vehicles’ and track them (and other vehicles) in and out of Ward 3.

As part of the 2021/22 budget, we plan to improve our CCTV-network by installing a state-of-the-art NVR (Network Video Recorder) and increase our camera footprint from 52 to 71. These cameras will be deployed at identified ‘hotspots’ within the SRA.

During the coming months we shall focus on improving the skill levels of our camera monitoring staff, share crime prevention footage with the SAPS and Law Enforcement agencies, and actively participate in the establishment and management of the OPSF (Overstrand Public Safety Forum).

Cleansing

On Saturday 5 June HPP ran, in collaboration with the Overstrand Municipality and various businesses and interest groups, a clean-up operation from Grotto Beach to Hawston to celebrate World Environment Day. The event was incredibly well supported with the removal of litter from twenty sites and almost 300 people participating. Thank you to everyone who partook.

In collaboration with Educational Theatre Overstrand, HPP is arranging an art competition at Enlighten Trust which will focus on recycling. This exciting kids’ competition aims to raise awareness as well as inspire creativity.

A special event for Women’s Day, 9 August, is in development. Ladies watch this space for an announcement about a special event just for you.

SRA – Developments

After some delays, two more Greater Hermanus SRAs will become functional on 1 July 2021:

• Onrus-Vermont, and
• Kleinmond

Against this backdrop, the Overstrand Municipality (OM) hosted a first coordination meeting on Thursday, 17 June 2021. This virtual meeting was attended by representatives from all three SRAs, as well as OM-employees (Finance and Protection Services).

Being well established, HPP was able to share learnings with representatives from the two new SRAs. Going forward, we envisage close collaboration amongst the three SRAs. There are indications that a fourth SRA might be established at some later stage.

Satisfaction Survey

A satisfaction survey was run throughout the month of June. The intention of the survey was to determine the general opinion of Hermanus SRA ratepayers about the service provided by HPP. The outcome of this survey will greatly assist the Board in determining what improvements can be made and the issues residents would like to see addressed in the coming year.

Just over 5% of ratepayers responded with the majority answering very positively across the board. Some of the highlights of the survey revealed that 91% of respondents perceive the HPP to play an important role in preventing crime. Just over 75% of ratepayers view the service as excellent value for money. Some interesting issues were raised that will be discussed further at the upcoming strategic planning workshop. View all the responses here. 

Meetings

The HPP Board held its bi-monthly formal Board-meeting on Wednesday, 23 June 2021. The minutes of this meeting are available on the HPP website (www.hpp.org.za).

The Overstrand Public Safety Forum (OPSF), highlighted in the previous newsletter, held its inaugural meeting on Friday, 25 June 2021. Two HPP directors, Anton Hartman and Theuns Coetzee, serve on the Executive Committee of this forum.

This forum has the potential to significantly impact the safety and security of residents and visitors to the Greater Hermanus. The success of this initiative will depend on the leadership of the local SAPS Cluster Commander.

Upcoming Events

We would like to draw your attention to the following events:

• 9 August – Women’s Day Celebrations
• 14 August – HHP Board strategic planning workshop
• 13 September – Annual General Meeting (AGM)

More detail to follow.

Thanks

The Board would like to express its gratitude towards the following individuals | entities:

• Trevor Edwards – from Lakewood Village for donating cash to buy refreshments for HPP-patrollers
• Gideon Serfontein – from Ocean Basket, who will be sponsoring a free meal for HPP-patrollers
• Greeff Properties – for volunteering in-kind support.

Until next time, kind regards.

Errol van Staden

HPP Chair