PREV
NEXT
More about Klipfonteyn
In the nineties Kleinbaai and Klipfonteyn were actually known as Van Dyksbaai, and the owner was the Van Dyk family.
Klipfonteyn was originally earmarked for development as a horse ranch, but the owner, Mr. Eddie Albertyn, could not develop the farm due to a lack of water.
The Rupert family (not ‘Johan’) was also interested in purchasing the farm for development; but the farm was eventually sold to Mr. Piet Bester.
Mr. Albert de Witt, who grew up at Gansbaai, was aware of a fully equipped borehole at Klipfonteyn 2. This borehole originally supplied water to Franskraal and Uilenkraalsmond.
The availability of water was a prerequisite for the development of Klipfonteyn and Albert and a friend eventually found the borehole in a thick clump of Rooikrans bushes at Klipfonteyn 2. The borehole is currently still in use.
During 1993 Mr. Albert de Witt together with an associate, Mr. Arrie Slabber, who worked in the shoe industry, started to develop Klipfonteyn and Klipfonteyn 2. The farm was purchased from Mr. Piet Bester for R 3.5 million.
Mr. De Witt commenced with the systematic removal of alien rookrans bushes. As the alien plants were eradicated, the indigenous ‘fynbos” re-established at Klipfonteyn. Green belts were planned to ensure an eco-friendly balance, which was in Mr. De Witt’s opinion, a prerequisite for the development of Klipfonteyn. The original planner of Klipfonteyn was Mr. Jan Hannekom from Paarl Municipality.
The 136 erven were marketed for a number of years, and the marketing strategy was to use the support and names of the Western Province rugby players who had won the Curry Cup for 5 consecutive years in the nineties.
Strauss street was named after Tiaan Strauss. The WP rugby players all wanted to purchase an erf at 50% of the market value, but this request was never granted.
One of the prerequisites of the original purchase contracts was that owners would be allowed to chop wood from the green belts for their own use. This` is still recorded in transport documents today.
The streets were named after important roll-players in the development of the Klipfonteyn residential area.
Street Names
- Bester Crescent was named after one of the original land owners.
- De Witt Street was named after Mr. Albert de Witt.
- Slabber Street was named after Arrie Slabber, one of the initial developers.
- Spronk Street was named after the surveyor who mapped the residential area
- Rademeyer Street was named after one of the Carret property agents.
- Siebrits Street was named after Danie Siebrits, one of the attorneys who was involved with the development and other associated legal matters.
- Strauss Street was named after Tiaan Strauss. Tiaan’s name was used for advertisements and marketing
- Van Zyl Street was named after Hannes van Zyl who handled the transfers for some of the first purchasers.
The prices of the properties were as follows:
- Sea front erven - R170 000.
- Erven adjacent to van Zyl Street - R 35 000.
Erven in the middle of Klipfonteyn - R 70 000 to R80 000.
One of the development prerequisites of the Municipality was that a Home Owners Association (HOA) be established to deal with local day to day aspects. The Municipality did not want to be involved with the development.
The original road from Kleinbaai to Franskraal was re-routed to bypass Klipfonteyn.
The compiler of the first constitution and “rules” of the Klipfonteyn HOA was Mr. Danie Siebrits, an attorney, who was involved with transfers and legal aspects.
The developer, Mr. Albert de Witt, was a member of the HOA until 90% of all erven had been sold.
The total cost of the roads, drainage infrastructure and electricity distribution network was R2.5 million.
Mr. Albert de Wit blocked access to the public open space along the sea-front by placing large boulders, to prevent access by 4 x 4 vehicles to the eco-sensitive fynbos area along the sea.
The original owners wanted to preserve the peaceful rural atmosphere and were against the fencing of the Klipfonteyn development with security fences / walls.
Mr. Arrie Slabber eventually ended the partnership with Mr. Albert de Witt and was bought out by Mr. John Maartens of East Road Works. The partnership’s name was subsequently changed to Activest 26. The new partnership was responsible for the development of Klipfonteyn 2.