De Poort heritage village forges ahead
2005-04-21
THE De Poort heritage village planned in Pine Street, Paarl South, is forging ahead with the support of the local municipality, the district municipality, and even the Lotto.
At the recent annual general meeting where the master plan was launched, chairperson Frances Graves said that with funds from both district and local municipality, De Poort had been able to present a professional face to the world.
This year they would concentrate on preparing for the construction of phase one of the project, which would consist of the wagonmaking factory on the north-eastern corner of the site nearest Paarl station.
The National Lotto Trust had made funding of R2,3 million available for the Wagon and Cart Factory on the municipal site and De Poort hopes to erect its first building there soon.
Craft Development was another goal for 2005. This would involve identifying those who were already involved in crafts and those who wished to be trained. De Poort would hope to provide a means of marketing and promoting their work.
During the unveiling of the master plan, architect Karin Ström explained that the aim had been to keep the buildings to the perimeter and allow the site to retain its mature trees and lovely vistas of the mountains.
The building style would reflect an industrial heritage village. More research was needed on the history of the artisans and crafters of the carriage building industry.
Guest speaker Calvyn Gilfillan, recently appointed to Cape Town Routes Unlimited, described De Poort as “emotionally important” in reclaiming a lost heritage.
In his new post, he would hope to link De Poort up with the Product Development Unit of Cape Town Routes Unlimited as a new attraction for the Western Cape as a whole.
The project’s integration with the rest of the tourism environment was paramount.
Keynote speaker Anthea Sheldon (deputy mayor) said that De Poort was now moving from concept to reality and could make a big contribution to local economic development.
In her address, Sheldon reviewed Drakenstein’s goals for the integration and alignment of tourism functions within the greater municipal area.
It was important that existing structures and the municipal marketing arm co-ordinated effective marketing for Drakenstein as a tourism destination.
Interns at the municipality were looking at various projects and one of these might be a Heritage Week in September.
Heritage tourism throughout Drakenstein needed to be focussed, said Sheldon.
“People’s stories are part of social capital".
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