Table Mountain National Park Records Positive Festive Season Numbers
Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) recorded a successful festive season with visitor numbers, crime incidents and fires presenting an overall encoura...
The car park was closed for the better half of the year so as to safe-guard visitors whilst plantation trees were being harvested and the car park re-instated. The Park appointed a landscape architect, Clare Burgess, who worked collaboratively with local stakeholders and partners to design a user and eco-friendly landscape plan for the reinstatement of the car park.
It now provides for 50 cars to park in designated bays between planted beds of fynbos shrubs and indigenous shade trees. Restoration of the slopes surrounding the car park is underway for the gradual regrowth of the indigenous granite fynbos and iconic silver trees.
Funding for the project was sourced from South African National Parks (SANParks) Park Development Fund for the re-surfacing of the car park. Landscaping was funded through grant funds from Pioneer Foods and the labour provided by National Government”s Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) teams.
The EPWP teams, from the Dept. of Environmental Affair”s Social Responsibility Project, worked on the car park re-instatement project, footpath upgrades and fynbos restoration of the surrounding slopes.
“The re-opening of the Cecilia Car Park has been long awaited, both by users and park management. The upgrade that was undertaken here recognizes Cecilia as a popular gateway to the park; but moreover it recognizes the significant role that Cecilia played in the tree debate” Paddy Gordon, Table Mountain National Park, Park Manager.
Issued by / Media Queries:
Wanika Rusthoi, Public Relations Officer: Cape Region*, cell:072 060 8188, tel: (021) 701 8692, e-mail: [email protected], *Agulhas, Bontebok, Table Mountain, Tankwa and West Coast National Parks