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27-525: At an estimated population of 290,000–305,000 people, it comprises a number of sub-sections which reflect the diverse class backgrounds of the population. It was once a major stronghold of the United Democratic Front , the broad-based ANC-sponsored anti-apartheid body. It also has one of greater Cape Town's biggest shopping centres, known as the Liberty Promenade. Mitchells Plain was created by

54-531: A number of farms south of the outpost. The most southerly of those original farms, named Louwvliet and Questenburg , are today covered by the suburbs of Claremont and Newlands . The area was agricultural for about 150 years. Other estates that were established included Veldhuyzen in 1676, Stellenberg in 1697, Weltevreden (originally part of Stellenberg) in 1730, Sans Souci (originally part of Questenburg) in 1786, and The Vineyard in 1798. They produced grain and grapes, and some farmers made wine. After

81-554: A result, large areas of the suburb stood derelict for several years. Claremont remained predominantly residential until the early 1970s, when commercial development began. A major shopping mall, named Cavendish Square , was opened in 1973, and other shopping centres followed. Claremont places of worship, past and present: Some Claremont schools, past and present: Some Claremont businesses, past and present: Many national banks and chains of shops have branches in Claremont. The suburb

108-602: A shopping centre over and around in the train station, a public library, two major transport interchanges and informal markets. Informal traders in the Town Center sell fruit, vegetables, stationary, spices and cosmetics. Mitchells Plain is home to 85 schools, Some of these schools include Meadowridge Primary School, Aloe, Lentegeur, Beacon Hill, Oval North, Cedar, Glendale, Rocklands and Westville Primary Spine Road , Mondale, Portland, Princeton, Woodlands, Tafelsig, Westridge, Seaview Primary, West End Primary and Westport Primary In

135-483: Is also a business hub, home to premium office spaces such as Paramount Place and Protea Place, amongst others. Companies such as ANVIL Property Smith, Rennie Knight Frank and Trend Space are known to assist with commercial property services. COVID-19 had a significant effect on office space supply in major office nodes across the country, including Claremont. Some Claremont sports clubs and facilities, past and present: Claremont's first medical facility may have been

162-843: Is commonly characterised by overcrowding during morning and afternoon peak periods as well as being unsafe during off-peak periods. The Mitchell's Plain Public Transport Interchange at the Mitchell's Plain Station includes a major bus terminus and taxi rank which provide public transport services to every major employment area within the City of Cape Town during the morning peak period. There is regular scheduled bus and unscheduled mini-bus taxi services to Cape Town CBD, Claremont , Bellville , Wynberg , and other areas. At more than 30,000 passenger trips per weekday and more than 90,000 passengers daily, it

189-572: Is one of the busiest transport interchanges in the city. Recent years have seen significant investment by the local authority in improving and upgrading public transport infrastructure and facilities at the Mitchell's Plain Interchange. The Mitchells Plain Commercial Business District is commonly referred to as the Town Center by residents. It is a shopping district that includes a 58,000-square-metre (620,000 sq ft) retail plaza,

216-461: Is primarily in retail development with Mitchell's Plain being considered as having the strongest level of investment on the Cape Flats . It has a central business district (CBD), locally called the "Town Centre" and three large shopping centres; Promenade Shopping Centre on AZ Berman Drive, Westgate Mall on the corner of Morgenster and Vanguard Drive and Watergate Shopping Centre, completed in 2017, on

243-464: Is situated alongside Lansdowne . It is an important commercial and residential area, which is currently experiencing significant growth and development. Until the arrival of Dutch colonists in 1652, the uncultivated veld of the Cape Peninsula was used by the nomadic Khoikhoi as grazing for their cattle. The Dutch established an outpost on the shore of Table Bay , and in 1657 they established

270-860: The Western Cape Anti-Eviction Campaign , the Treatment Action Campaign and the Mitchells Plain Concerned Hawkers and Traders Association. the Mitchell's Plain Backyarders Association, which had strong links to the Western Cape Anti-Eviction Campaign, organised a massive land occupation - The Mitchell's Plain Land Occupation in 2011. United Democratic Front (South Africa) Too Many Requests If you report this error to

297-591: The Wolfgat Nature Reserve and the Vesuvius Way Conservation Area . Mitchells Plain is reasonably well served by public transport services comprising commuter rail, bus and mini-bus taxi services. There are three Cape Metrorail commuter rail stations within the area at Kapteinsklip, Mitchell's Plain and Lentegeur. The rail line extends northwards towards Philippi, Cape Town 's CBD and the industrial areas at Epping. The commuter rail service

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324-500: The Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.226 via cp1108 cp1108, Varnish XID 750120853 Upstream caches: cp1108 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Fri, 29 Nov 2024 05:34:37 GMT Claremont, Cape Town Claremont is a suburb of Cape Town , South Africa. It is situated 9 kilometers south of the city, and is one of the so-called " Southern Suburbs ", it

351-418: The apartheid government in the early 1970s as a Coloured township for middle-income families and coloured people who were forcefully removed from their homes. The township was laid out in terms of the neighbourhood unit concept with large open spaces, localised public facilities and wide arterial routes. Various forms of housing were provided including, freestanding, semi-detached and duplex housing. However, by

378-435: The area on the map by living at Feldhausen (formerly Veldhuyzen) from 1834 to 1838. A village began to develop on the main road near Feldhausen in the 1830s, and by 1840 it had become known as 'Claremont'. The annual Cape Almanac for 1840 described the area and stated that : The new village of 'Claremont' succeeds, near to which, on the left, is 'Claremont House', the property of R. Waters Esq, who has lately laid out

405-485: The city of Cape Town. Considerable residential growth took place in the 1920s and 1930s, when estates such as Palmyra, Keurboom, Ravensworth, Sanatorium Estate, The Vineyard, Wyndover, and Edinburgh Estate were subdivided and developed. An additional railway station, named "Harfield Road", was built in 1931. The government enforced its apartheid system on Claremont in the 1960s, forcing the Coloured residents to leave. As

432-462: The colony had been taken over by the British in 1814, the character of the area gradually changed from agricultural to residential. British settlers and officials bought the farms, renamed some of them, and turned them into country residences. Weltevreden was subdivided in 1822, and it was a portion of it that was later to be renamed Claremont . The distinguished British astronomer Sir John Herschel put

459-461: The corner of the Cape Flats Freeway (R300) and AZ Berman Drive. The Promenade Shopping Centre is the largest with more than 120 stores comprising major clothing, furniture, banks and restaurant chains. Informal economic activity is a significant part of the local economy. Such activity reflects a dominance of retail functions with informal trading responding to market and thus concentrated around

486-603: The grounds with much taste, in the manner usually known as the English style of landscape gardening. The village grew during the 1840s and 1850s. Public transport consisted of horse-drawn omnibuses which plied along the Main Road from 1837 until the railway was opened in 1864. In 1845 the timber merchant Ralph Henry Arderne started work on what would become the Arderne Gardens . The gardens, by then regionally renowned, were bought by

513-624: The late 80s and 90s, major areas of Mitchells Plain (mostly in the suburb's eastern half) deteriorated into urban ghettos. Gangsterism and drug abuse has increased and a number of informal settlements has sprung up in several areas, most notably in Eastridge and Taflesig. In May 2018, violent protests around service delivery broke out in the Siqalo informal settlement. Residents blockaded entrance roads in and out of Mitchells Plain, resulting in conflict with Mitchells Plain residents. The residential area

540-627: The latter years of apartheid, Mitchells Plain became the seat of the launch of the United Democratic Front , a mass democratic movement of community organisations and trade unions fighting against apartheid . It was launched in August 1983 with such leaders of the people as Dr Allan Boesak , Albertina Sisulu , Helen Joseph , Joe Marks , Trevor Manuel , Mosiuoa "Terror" Lekota and many others present. The most active social movements and activist organisations in Mitchells Plain after apartheid have been

567-504: The main public transport interchanges and along heavily utilised pedestrian routes. The area has or is bordered by a number of notable parks and nature reserves. The Mnandi Beach is a blue flag rated beach located to the south of the area. The Westridge Gardens are located in the community of Westridge features many Cape Flats Sand Fynbos species in an urban garden setting. Two nature reserves border Mitchells Plain that are also notable for their Cape Flats Sand Fynbos ecosystems are

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594-585: The municipal government and turned into a public park in 1928. In 1863, the Anglo-Italian immigrant and businessman John Molteno , who was later to become the Cape Colony 's first prime minister , bought 140 acres of land centred on the Claremont House estate. The property was subdivided and developed from 1897 onwards, and Claremont House itself, situated in modern terms between Molteno Road to Pine Road,

621-477: The railway line was subdivided and developed from 1882, creating a large residential area which is now known as "Harfield Village". In 1882, a village management board was formed, and in 1886 it was replaced by the Municipality of Claremont, which managed neighbouring Newlands too. The privately owned Claremont Hall was taken over as a town hall. The first telephone system was installed in the early 1880s. There

648-445: The township is home to a wealthier middle class population, while the eastern half comprises poorer working class communities. According to 2011 census data compiled by Statistics South Africa , Mitchells Plain comprises the following in terms of demographics: Today Mitchells Plain is one of Cape Town's and South Africa 's largest townships with a population of about 310,000 people in 2020. In terms of economic activity, investment

675-720: Was further residential development, with the subdivision of the Claremont House, Lansdowne, Milburn House, and Paradise estates in the 1890s. An electric tramway service was introduced in 1897, and an electricity power station was built in 1903. The housing boom which followed the Anglo-Boer War saw the subdivision of further estates in the 1900s. Most streets were named in 1903–1904, many of them thematically (e.g. after saints, explorers, British counties and towns, American presidents, and British politicians). In 1913, Claremont and several other municipalities were incorporated into

702-443: Was later demolished. However its two extensions, Greenfield House and Barkly House, still stand today as schools. The opening of the railway from Cape Town to Wynberg in 1864 spurred subdivision and development. The Feldhausen estate (also known as "The Grove") was subdivided in 1869–1870. A new Congregational Church was built on the Main Road in 1877. The Claremont Hall was opened in 1879. The land along Lansdowne Road east of

729-494: Was reportedly named after Mitchell Baker but this is unconfirmed, and is one of a number of possible explanations. Another theory is that the area was named after Major Charles Cornwallis Michell , the Cape's first surveyor-general. Yet another theory is that the area was named after a farmer that previous owned a farm that the neighborhood was built on. Mitchells Plain is split into a number of sub-sections or suburbs. The western half of

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