Date posted: June 1, 2025
Dear NeighboursIn Memoriam – Brad Bing
It was with deep sadness that we received the news of Brad Bing’s passing. His immense contribution to building our community, both locally and at a broader level, has been inspirational. Brad really understood the value of community and was prepared to step up and make things work with enthusiasm and grace.
Through his leadership roles in the NRPA, as an active and supportive member of CPNW and in many other ways, he contributed enormously to all our lives. He will be well remembered and sorely missed.
Crime Update
Since our last newsletter (almost two months ago – apologies!), we have had four incidents in the area, all involving breaking-and-entering, mostly using similar methods.
The first took place in Willoughby Drive on the Friday night between 4 and 5 April. The perpetrator got in over a locked gate, broke into a toolbox and used the tools to force open a garage door. A high-value black mountain bike was stolen.
A second incident took place in Willoughby Drive on the night of 16 April on an unoccupied property surrounded by a fence and locked gate. The gate motor was removed and a window taken off its hinges to gain entry into the house and garage, where the interleading door was also broken open. A substantial amount was stolen, including ski jackets, a sound system, camcorder, speakers, three laptops, approximately 100 metres of electrical cable and various other electrical goods.
The property is currently under renovation, and investigation is in process to ascertain whether anyone involved with the building activity may have be involved. The property had no security service in place, but the owners have now engaged services to monitor the site, and they will also be joining CPNW.
On 1 May, a break-in occurred at another unoccupied property under renovation in Cardinal Close. This is reportedly the second incident on this property during daylight hours in the past two months. The property is enclosed by a tall fence, suggesting that the suspect(s) may have scaled the fence to gain entry and then forcibly opened a garage, which had been specifically reinforced shut. At the time of reporting it remained unclear what had been stolen, as a collection of building supplies being stored in the garage appeared mostly undisturbed. This was also the case on the previous occasion where a number of window and door frames had been left piled against a tree-stump outside. This property owner is also now engaging a security service provider and joining CPNW.
We were also informed of a break-in at Jake’s Restaurant on 21 April after the restaurant was closed. A window lock was forcibly “popped” to gain access. It is unclear why the alarms were not triggered, and security services are investigating this. Electronic goods were stolen but the exact amount was not confirmed at the time of reporting. We are hoping Jake’s will soon join CPNW!
All these incidents suggest prior surveillance, planning, and then quite brazen activity once the initial layers of security were breached. As such, they reveal our vulnerabilities and remind us that inevitably, malevolent eyes will be out taking note of what we do. Locked gates are no longer enough. We need multiple layers of security, including alarms that are monitored and alert neighbours. We also need to make people aware of what is happening on our properties, including activities that increase human traffic in the area. As importantly, we need to engage with new neighbours, especially prospective ones who are building, to ensure they are aware of security risks and how we cooperate as a community to address them.
Mugging
In a most concerning report, we were informed of the mugging of a female runner at 7 am on the Noordhoek beach end of Chapmans Peak Drive on April 12. She was not seriously harmed but her phone and watch were taken. Camera footage revealing details of the vehicle the assailants were travelling in has been handed to the authorities.
We have not heard of any further attacks, so hopefully this was an isolated incident, but it certainly makes the case for care and vigilance.
Incident Notifications
In the wake of some of the recent events, we received some queries as to why we hadn’t circulated news of these on connector groups. Our policy is to circulate alerts when we believe there is an urgent message regarding action people need to take, but not to routinely send information on every incident. This is partly to protect the privacy of victims (we do not disclose street numbers, for example).
We also believe it is critical to verify such information before we release it. In future, however, we will place information on the WhatsApp groups once it is verified, but still withhold personal details as much as possible.
Wildfire
We are sure everyone shared our relief after favourable wind conditions kept the recent fire away from most of our boundaries!
The situation was less secure for our CPNW members in Danieldale, particularly in Willowfield Road, who were more directly threatened as the fire came down the slopes of Silvermine. Fortunately, the fire was well contained with no serious damage to property, and no injuries. We are particularly grateful to Chris Gippert and other volunteers from those areas who were instrumental in monitoring the situation and coordinating responses.
It was also good to note the prompt activation of our radio networks and a reasonable level of preparedness for such an emergency. Of course, there are always things to improve on, and we are grateful to the NRPA for reviewing the fire response and engaging with the City and Province in this regard.
This fire has hopefully reminded us all just how vulnerable our area is to fire, and why we need to regularly consider fire hazards in the area. Fortunately, the rain now seems to be back, and we should have some grace before the next fire season. Let’s use this time to clear out those fire hazards and ensure readiness for the next time around!
Pothole Alert
Residents may have noticed that there seems to be a larger crop of potholes in the roads than normal; one resident counted over fifty in the Chapman’s peak area!
Please inform the city by logging service requests here:
https://eservices1.capetown.gov.za/coct/wapl/zsreq_app/index.html
If we all log the ones in our street, those fifty+ holes may be seen to sooner rather than later.
Wishing everyone a safe and warm start to the winter months!
The CPNW Committee
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