End of the road for Wingfield resident who refused to be resettled

A Wingfield resident says they are at a loss over what to do next after learning that the City has been granted a court order to serve eviction notices to those still living at the site, as well as Paint City in Bellville.

The City first announced its intention to pursue the eviction of the remaining people living at the former Wingfield military base on Voortrekker Road and at Paint City in Bellville, two years ago.

The two sites were originally set up during the Covid-19 lockdown, when refugees were relocated there after being removed from Greenmarket Square and the Central Methodist Church in Cape Town’s city centre.

While many people moved over time, according to the Department of Public Works (DPWI), who pursued the action with the City, around 160 people remained at Wingfield and 200 at Paint City.

Two years ago the City announced plans to seek the eviction application of the remainder of residents who were living at Wingfield in Voortrekker Road, and Paint City in Bellville.

One of the occupiers said she did not know what they were going to do.

“I have been living in Wingfield for five years. I feel very bad because we don’t know where we will go after,” the woman said.

In a statement on Friday the City and the DPWI said: “The Western Cape High Court has granted the City of Cape Town and the national Departments of Home Affairs and Public Works permission to instruct the Sheriff to serve notices of eviction.”

Public Works minister Dean Macpherson said: “It is our responsibility to return these properties to their intended purpose so they can contribute to the upliftment of our communities.”

The department has also set its sights on evicting residents from Reclaim the City’s “Irene Grootboom House”, formerly known as 104 Darling Street.

Cape Times