BENONI COUNTRY CLUB LETTER

PROTECT & CONSERVE A TREASURED 110-YEAR-OLD ENVIRONMENTALLY IMPORTANT GREEN LUNG Dear Community, Homeowners, Members and Other Interested Parties, The Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM) has informed Benoni Country Club “BCC” that it intends to seek the community’s feeling on the possible development of the land on which Benoni Country Club is situated. This will be achieved either by way of an outright sale of the property or entering into a 30-year lease over the property and its improvements with interested parties. The Club was approached by two possible developers in 2015, where it was made clear to both parties that the Club was not interested in engaging any further with respect to any further potential development at the club. We believe that developers have through their pursuit of financial/commercial gain been allowed to raise interest and in fact convince Council to consider disposing of an asset that has been a proud heritage to the community of Benoni for a 110 years. “Public Participation” is the start of a lengthy legal process that Council has to follow before it can sell a “valuable” asset that it controls and maintains on behalf of the community. The members of the club mandated the Executive Committee to strongly oppose any further development of the property at a well-attended extraordinary general meeting held at BCC on 27 January 2016. We will, in accordance with this mandate, continue to voice our objections to any development. The major reasons why the members voted against the sale/development were recorded as follows: -Green belt and wild life destruction. The forests and open land not occupied by the golf course is currently home to an abundance of wild life and the only safe cycle track owned and enjoyed by the community in Benoni on a daily basis. -The development will destroy the parkland golf course which is currently rated 82 in SA and home to 1500 members and many visitors from the community. -Uprooting of a cemetery that is located on the one side of the property, which is home to the graves of many African miners that lost their lives, on the Van Ryn Estate Mines. -The sale would result in the club being controlled by developers and not by the members and community per se. The developers will obviously maximise commercial gain by way of developing high density houses/commercial buildings and utilising as much of the property as possible in the process. They will restrict access to the facilities and the club will be converted to a restricted golf estate, that’s if they decide to keep the course. -The lack of services, such as sewerage, water, electricity and roads in the area will not support a development of this size, placing even more pressure on the surrounding residents. -The current economic climate is not conducive for another major residential development 500 meters down the road from Ebotse. Leaving the surrounding residents with a major risk that the property development fails midway through the development and without a caring club to keep up the much required on-going maintenance. -We believe that council is in breach of an agreement made in 1951 between BCC and Council known as the deed of gift. BCC waived its rights to compensation from the value of improvements made on the premises (Golf course, club houses, bowling greens, tennis courts and squash courts) to council before council acquired the land from the mine on the understanding that council would continue to foster and promote the club’s activities on the land into the future on behalf of the Benoni community. -BCC employs approximately 80-100 staff members which rely on the club and the community for their economic well-being. Conclusion The purpose of “Public Participation” is for the interested and affected community to be informed of the details in connection with the potential disposal of the land and nature of the subsequent development thereof. Council will then gauge the subsequent response and level of support and interest of the community. We urge all homeowners and interested parties to help save BCC and its world class facilities, by attending the meeting and to join the Club in its endeavour to prevent the sale or lease of this land to any potential developer. It is in the interest of all Benoni residents who care about Benoni to make a stand against this particular sale as this will set a massive precedent for the remaining communal owned facilities enjoyed by residents of Benoni. Queries can be directed to the BCC CEO at:   darren@benonicc.co.za