A SPECIAL welcome was given to Justin Mackrory, the recently appointed CEO of Ugu South Coast Tourism, at the Margate area committee’s AGM at the Margate Country Club last Tuesday.
Outgoing chairman, Yvonne Booysen, said that an area committee is to provide assistance to Ugu South Coast Tourism by active participation in the tourism process, to encourage debate on matters relating to tourism and tourism development and, in turn, to support the initiatives of Ugu South Coast Tourism.
She encouraged businesses in the area to commit to tourism as every business is in some way connected to tourism. By working together they could achieve so much more, she said.
Membership of the Margate area committee currently stands at 97 members with only 11 new members being signed up during 2013. In her report Ms Booysen touched on many issues, both postive and negative.
She was very proud that Margate beach was a major attraction last December, which made it a favourable destination for sponsors. All the sponsors that supported the 2013 events have booked to take part in the 2014 Summer Festival.
A whopping 2 000 passengers have flown with Margate’s new airline, Cemair, since its launch in November last year.
A media and radio campaign promoting beach events was launched towards the end of November and continued through December, targeting both locals and visitors. The campaign was managed by Ugu South Coast Tourism.
Student Week numbers have dropped and South Coast Tourism needs to address the fact that this festival needs the co-operation of the accommodation sector to allow it to grow.
Excellent exposure was received during the Summer Beach Tour, most events being accompanied by a radio campaign, with East Coast Radio broadcasting live from Margate beach for two days. Fantastic weather from December 12 onwards also attracted record crowds.
“Litter collection points at the entrance to the beach were an unsightly welcome for beachgoers. Huge piles of black rubbish bags were only collected at the end of the day. This needs to be addressed prior to the next season with more suitable collection points selected by HCM and not on the main entrance onto the beach,” said Ms Booysen.
“The toilets on Margate main beach were and are a problem. Toilets remained closed on the main beach for all evening events including New Year’s Eve and during the East Coast Radio Beach Party, despite requests to have them open and operational. The toilets under the tourism office remained out of order for the full duration of the season. This is unacceptable for the number one holiday destination on the South Coast and HCM has to resolve these matters.”
She also noted many complaints from visitors and locals in the local media were about the toilet situation on Margate beach and the general cleanliness of the area. Although HCM has a programme in place to tackle cleanliness it is not always successful.
The Easter Festival was well attended. Sponsors were thrilled with the turnout and general condition of the beach and have booked to return to Margate for Easter 2014.
Africa Bike Week is the premier event for Margate on the biking calendar. The economic value is in the region of R110 million with an estimated 490 jobs being created during the event.
The 2014 event takes place from May 1 to 4. The contract is still in place for a further two years with an automatic renewal on the cards if both parties, Harley-Davidson South Africa and Hibiscus Coast Municipality, are still happy to host the event.
The Uvongo parkrun project, run by Margate Round Table, started in May 2013 and has become very popular. It takes place every Saturday morning at 8am. The first event attracted 26 runners and it now has over 100 runners.
The Margate Urban Renewal Project is finally up and running. The first section of the upgrade project began on the south end of Margate beach and incorporates the upgrading of the tidal pool, the ablution block which serves the tidal pool and the walkway along the promenade towards the fishing pier. However, the proposed start date in January 2014 did not seem to have materialised and there is no evidence of any work on site.
Finally Ms Booysen thanked members of the Margate area committee as she was stepping down as chairman in 2014.
