The City of Cape Town has placed boulders on the field adjacent to the Trafalgar Pool in Woodstock to prevent soccer games from taking place.
The area is an open public space which is used by residents of Woodstock and Walmer Estate. The area is supposed to form part of a green belt, and has been used informally for many years by both adults and children from the community who are being punished and are at risk of injury at night said the chairman of the Walmer Estate Concerned Residents Forum.
However the Mayoral Committee member for Community Safety and Special Projects claims that the rocks were introduced to prevent formal games of soccer from taking place and that clubs should instead pay to use one of the City’s formal sports fields.
As usual residents were neither consulted nor informed of the decision and many believe that the area is being targeted by property developers who have also been responsible for recent evictions in the surrounding area.