PATRIOTIC ALLIANCE WARD 46 LEADERSHIP REQUESTS : A Community Demand for Immediate Action: Make the Esplanade Safe and Accessible by Opening the Tidal Pool and Repairing Public Toilets

We, the undersigned residents, families, and businesses of Buffalo City, hereby petition our municipal government for immediate, pragmatic action regarding the stalled Waterworld development on the East London Esplanade.

For over a decade, our community has been patient. We have listened to the promises of a world-class tourism attraction that would revitalize our beachfront, create jobs, and become a pride of the Eastern Cape. We understand that the grand vision for the full Waterworld project has been hamstrung by significant financial constraints, complex tenders, and shifting priorities. While we hope to see that vision realized one day, we can no longer accept that its delay justifies the ongoing neglect and closure of our existing public amenities.

The current situation is unacceptable. A large section of our beautiful coastline, a public asset owned by and for the people of Buffalo City, remains fenced off and inaccessible. This is not due to an active construction site but because of an inactive one. The unfinished structures of the Waterworld project stand as a monument to delay, while a fully functional and beloved community resource lies useless behind barriers.

Our demand is simple, reasonable, and urgent:

1. Open the Tidal Pool Immediately: The existing tidal pool is a natural, free, and safe recreational facility for our families, children, and elderly. It is a cornerstone of community life, promoting health, well-being, and social cohesion. Its continued closure is an active disservice to the public who own it. There is no justification for keeping this public resource locked away.

2. Repair and Reopen the Public Toilet Facilities: The lack of maintained public toilets in the area is a major health and sanitation issue. It discourages visitors, negatively impacts other local businesses, and creates an undignified situation for everyone trying to enjoy our public spaces. Basic service delivery should not be held hostage by a stalled mega-project.

3. Isolate the Construction Zone and Make the Area Safe: We demand that the municipality immediately commission a safety audit of the stalled construction site. The unsafe, unfinished structures related to the Waterworld project must be clearly isolated and secured with appropriate fencing, leaving the vast majority of the land, including all access to the tidal pool and beachfront, open to the public. The danger is the construction zone, not the entire coastline.

We are not asking for the full Waterworld project to be completed tomorrow. We are asking for a practical, common-sense approach that prioritizes community access over corporate or political complications.

The argument that the entire area must remain closed due to the stalled project is a failure of logic and responsibility. It allows a private commercial impasse to negate the public’s right to access their own land. This inaction directly contradicts the municipality’s stated goals of promoting tourism and improving the quality of life for residents. How can we attract visitors to our city when we cannot even provide access to our own natural attractions?

Therefore, we call on the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality to:

• Issue an immediate directive to have the tidal pool cleared, cleaned, and opened for public use.
• Task a municipal team to repair, maintain, and reopen the public restroom facilities without delay.
• Secure the perimeter of the exact construction site only, ensuring all other areas are safe and accessible, removing the eyesore of large, generalized fencing.
• Provide a public timeline for these specific actions within the next 30 days.

This is not a request for a multi-million-rand investment; it is a demand for the responsible stewardship of existing assets. It is a call to put the community’s basic needs and rights first. We urge you to act swiftly to return our beachfront to us.

Let’s not allow the dream of a distant “Waterworld” to destroy the simple, present-day joy of a swim in the tidal pool.

We demand action now.