Latest news:

Government waking up to using empty military land for housing

An estimated 67,000 homes could be built at Ysterplaat, Wingfield and Youngsfield

By Matthew Hirsch/GroundUp

For decades, housing activists have been calling for under-used military land in Cape Town to be released for housing. This includes about 668 hectares of well-located land at the Wingfield and Ysterplaat airbases, adjacent to Century City, and at Youngsfield, between Wynberg and Ottery.… Read more

Dozens evicted from informal settlement in Green Point

DA ward councillor says the eviction follows a long process of engagement with the group

By Matthew Hirsch/GroundUp

Chaos erupted near the Cape Town stadium, along Granger Bay Boulevard in Green Point on Wednesday, when a group of about 40 people living in makeshift shelters were forcibly removed.… Read more

Fishers fight offshore oil and gas drilling

TotalEnergies taken to court over plans to drill wells off the west coast

By Liezl Human/GroundUp

Small-scale fishers and environmental organisations were in the Cape High Court on 23 March in a bid to halt oil and gas exploration by TotalEnergies along the West Coast.… Read more

The beauty of small things

In a world scarred by ecocide, Lizzie Gaisford’s finely crafted debut solo album calls us to attend to what remains

There’s got to be a word for that specific kind of grief, sings Lizzie Gaisford on the fourth track of her debut solo album Love the Land, which is a poem, almost a requiem, for nature, for ecosystems, and for things lost and things broken.… Read more

Volvo power: it’s electrifying

The marque’s offerings are making us rethink our penchant for petrol

The shift to electric vehicles (EVs) is real, and even more so now we’re facing a looming oil crisis. Swedish car maker Volvo is ostensibly near the forefront of the electric charge, with a broad range of EVs and an upcoming launch on the horizon.… Read more

Payday to payday gig guide – April vibes

We get all those public holidays this April, why not use some of them?

Theatre

Death and comedy, a surprisingly fun pair. Louw Venter and Rob van Vuuren (directing) open their sequel to The Best Man’s Speech, which ran at the Kalk Bay Theatre for five years before becoming the feature film Konfetti.… Read more

Iconic Good Hope Centre auctioned by City amidst civic opposition

More than 50 municipal land parcels across the city are being sold to the highest bidder while locals suffer a housing availability crisis

The City’s plan to auction the iconic turtle-shaped Good Hope Centre along with other parcels of municipal land across the city on 26 February was met with protests, legal challenges, and a request for postponement from the SA Human Rights Commission.… Read more