The Friends of Hout Bay Sports Complex has been formed and will soon announce who will take up which position on the committee.
A new association has been formed to help the City keep its eye on the ball with the running of the Hout Bay Sports Complex.
The Friends of Hout Bay Sports Complex is a voluntary association, which was formed last month, but positions on its management committee have yet to be filled.
All registered clubs and organisations affiliated to a recognised sporting body in Hout Bay put forward nominations to be part of the new association.
Recent renovations at the complex have seen the addition of a second hard court for basketball and other ball sports, the re-establishment of the natural grass field and other improvements (“’World-class’ facility for Hout Bay,” Sentinel News, June 4, 2021).
“The Hout Bay Sports Complex is a vital part of the Hout Bay community and among the most well used public parts of Hout Bay,” said Eric van Graan, who will head an interim committee until the annual general meeting takes place at a date yet to be confirmed.
Everyone on the interim committee would resign at the AGM but be eligible for re-appointment upon nomination by their representative organisations, Mr Van Graan said.
“The facility is operated by the City of Cape Town, and the various communities of Hout Bay use and enjoy this facility as it provides a much-needed community resource.”
The association aims to support the “sporting, social and development needs of the Hout Bay community,” Mr Van Graan said, adding that the Friends of Hout Bay Sports Complex could help to make the facility a “world class public amenity”.
Mr Van Graan said the Friends would work closely with the City to keep the facility running smoothly for the full benefit of the community.
Ward councillor Roberto Quintas said the new association would be of great benefit to the sports complex.
“I am really excited about the potential for co-operation and collaboration that this structure can bring between the facility users and the City,” he said.
The new association, he said, was similar to the Friends of Sea Point Pavilion or the Friends of De Waal Park, which created a “cooperative governance structure for the betterment of those public assets”.