FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The rates have been calculated by the Overstrand Municipality based on municipal property valuations and include the discounts that residential erfs receive. You will note that vacant and business properties will pay more. The reason the commercial and vacant property rate is higher is that they do not benefit from the exemption on the first R15 000, a further reduction of R35 000 for improvements and an additional reduction of 20 percent, these reductions are applicable only to residential properties.

To calculate the estimated cost, if the property is a commercial property apply the factor of 0.00061 per cent to the municipal valuation (as shown on the rates bill), to determine the annual amount payable. If the property is a residential property apply the factor of 0.00048 per cent to the municipal value (as shown on the rates bill) to determine the annual amount payable. Divide by 12 to give you the approximate monthly rate.

A Special Rating Area (SRA) refers to a clearly defined geographical area, in which property owners contribute additional rates to enhance and supplement municipal services, such as safety in public areas, cleansing services and crime prevention.  

According the Overstrand Municipality Special Rating Area Policy, the special rating area model is based on international best practice. It is aimed at preventing the degeneration of towns and the consequential urban decay, and facilitating their upliftment, economic growth and sustainable development.

SRAs are governed by the SA Constitution; Section 22 of the Municipal Property Rates Act (MPRA); the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA); the Companies Act (Non-Profit Company -NPC); and the Overstrand Municipality Special Rating Area By-Law of 2016; and the Overstrand Municipality Special Rating Area Policy of 2019.  

According to the SA Constitution (Sections 152 & 153), the objective of a local authority is to provide all its residents with certain basic services such as water, electricity, sanitation and refuse removal, etc. to an equitable standard. For communities who wish to enjoy municipal services of a higher level, an SRA provides them with the option of paying for these additional services, which should be affordable and sustainable.

The boundaries of the HSRA are from 17^th Avenue in the East up to Swartdam Road in the West, with Still Street as the southern border and Fernkloof Nature Reserve as the northern border. Suburbs included in this area are Westcliff, Westdene, Industria, Northcliff, the Central Business District, Eastcliff, Hermanus Heights, Fernkloof, Kwaaiwater and Voelklip.

Supplementary Crime Prevention and Public Safety Plan

• Patrol officers on foot in the CBD area and vehicle patrols throughout the area. The vehicle patrols will be on a 24-hour basis, 7 days a week.
• Foot patrol officers will be used primarily in the CBD, Hoy’s Koppie and on the Cliff Path which stretches from the New Harbour to Grotto Beach.
• Vehicle patrols will be throughout all the suburbs included in the HSRA area.
• All activities will be monitored through GPS tracking from the control centre.
• The HSRA NPC will have access to a minimum of 19 monitoring CCTV cameras (in the instance of a municipal decision, to transfer existing Hermanus Public Protection (HPP) assets to the HSRA).

Supplementary Cleansing Plan

• Decrease waste and grime in the area through a sustainable cleansing programme;
• Provide additional street sweeping, waste picking and additional refuse collection in all the public areas of the HSRA; and
• Promote waste minimization by providing supplementary municipal services in the area including but not limited to more waste bins and waste recycling opportunities, strictly in alignment with official municipal policies in this regard.
• The HSRA will also support the Overstrand Municipality with an effective litter collection service on the Cliff Path and Hoy’s Koppie.

Funding of HSRA will be provided from a Special Rating Area rate charged by OM and applied to the owners of valid rateable properties on the OM property database. As of October 2019, there are approximately 5501 rateable properties in the HSRA.

The additional monthly rate payment for HSRA will be determined by the property’s Municipal valuation and will amount to 0.00061 cents in the Rand per annum. The table below gives an indication of how much property owners would be required to pay according to the proposed HSRA budget.

This would generate an income of approximately R8,302,000 for HSRA NPC in 2020/2021.

The rates have been calculated by the Overstrand Municipality based on municipal property valuations and include the discounts that residential erfs receive. Residential properties benefit from the exemption on the first R15 000, a further reduction of R35 000 for building improvements and an additional reduction of 20 percent.

No. The municipality is obligated to sustain existing service levels and to provide basic services as per the Constitution.

• A safe, clean and healthy environment will contribute indirectly towards an increase in the value of properties.
• The community as a whole will share the benefits of a safe, healthy and clean environment for living, working and relaxing.
• Monitoring and reporting any signs of degeneration and decay in public areas quickly and effectively.
• All rateable property owners will equitably share the cost of HSRA operations by contributing the same number of cents in the rand value of their properties.
• Visitors will feel safe in Hermanus and will therefore be more inclined to invest in the town and its environment.
• OM Traffic and Law Enforcement Departments will be supported.
• Law enforcement will be able to respond and apprehend law breakers more quickly and more effectively since camera film footage will be available as evidence in a court of law.

Yes, SRAs have been and are being established in many areas around South Africa. The Jonkershoek SRA and Techno Park SRA in Stellenbosch are already operational. Hermanus, Onrus and Vermont and Kleinmond are the first three areas in the Overstrand to apply to establish SRAs.

An SRA is always initiated by the community, and not by the Municipality.

The SRA Steering Committee then compile a five-year business plan (including the motivation report, the implementation plan and a budget) indicating how the improvements are to be achieved, and present this to the community at a public meeting.

Support may only be obtained after the public meeting and on the consent form provided by the Overstrand Municipality.

Any property owner that wants to object to the establishment of a special rating area or to the provisions of the business plan can do so by indicating it on the consent form. The objector will be required to submit an objection letter once an application for the establishment of a special rating area is submitted to Council.

A majority, 50% (fifty percent) plus 1, of owners of rateable property within the boundary of the special rating area approve the formation of the special rating area.

Once this has been obtained, the steering committee has to submit an application to the Overstrand Municipality. The application is then advertised in the media and property owners are also notified to allow them at least 30 days to render any comments or objections. The Overstrand Municipality then considers the application with the objections at a full sitting of Council.

The application must be advertised in terms of the By-law and also set a date for a second public meeting.

After the Overstrand Municipality has approved the application, a NPC is set up and a board is elected. The NPC has to register for VAT, open a bank account and be registered as a vendor with the Overstrand Municipality, etc. This must all be in place before the Overstrand Municipality makes any payment to the SRA.

The SRA will be managed as a Non-profit Company (NPC), controlled by its members and the board they elected.  The HSRA will be operated by a management team appointed by the board. Property owners must sign up for NPC membership to allow them to participate in the SRA`s affairs. The Overstrand Municipality is not involved in their day-to-day operations but exercises financial oversight and legal compliance.

Personal security remains the responsibility of every home owner. Protection of property such as linked alarm systems, burglar proofing, security gates, insurance and other measures, remain the responsibility of property owners. HSRA is not a substitute for these functions. The role of HSRA would be to monitor public spaces and render supplementary services, thus helping to ensure a safe, healthy and clean environment.