Statement by Executive Mayor Gesie van Deventer
“As a municipality, we are very excited about our most recent award and the recognition that we have received from the Institute from Landscape Architecture in South Africa (ILASA) for our dedication to heritage”, said executive Mayor of Stellenbosch, Gesie van Deventer, when ILASA’s Presidential Award was awarded to Stellenbosch Municipality’s Heritage Inventory Project.
The inventory also received the ILASA Merit Award’s first place for best publication.
The Heritage Inventory is an inclusive project launched in 2015 to identify all heritage resources, measure its significance and to map it out. It includes all architecture as well as areas of historical and environmental significance. This in-depth mapping of our cultural and environmental heritage is the first of its kind in Africa and is considered to be one of only five similar studies worldwide. It will produce an advanced Heritage Inventory that identifies all heritage resources and measures their significance. The inventory will be a living document that can be expanded when required and will inform our Conservation Management Plan (CMP) to ensure compliance with the National Heritage Resources Act.
The Stellenbosch Municipal area is dotted with a wide array of sites that are of great cultural, environmental and historical significance that draws many tourists to the region – an important catalyst for job creation and economic growth. Diverse peoples have long inhabited these iconic valleys, each leaving their own mark on the landscape and on history – a history that must be preserved for future generations.
Mayor van Deventer said: “The award shows the high quality and excellence of the work that was done and it shows that as a local government we are serious about the preservation of heritage.We have revolutionised the way that local governments view heritage preservation and believe that our approach will make us an example of national and international best practice. Our methods demonstrate our firm commitment to heritage conservation and the continued informed development of our shared cultural landscape.”
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