Heritage

The two rivers convergence is the site of the first contact and over 100 years of battles between the First Nations and settlers before and after the arrival of the Dutch. It is the site of the first settler farms and has a unrecognised, unacknowledged, history spanning from before 1510. It is a site of spiritual significance and memory.

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The River Club site is of national and international heritage significance. In December 2019, more than 20 civic and First Nation organisations submitted a combined application for provincial jointly appealed for provincial heritage status. Heritage Western Cape approved evaluation as a Grade 1 National Heritage Site and the national government has identified the area as part of the Khoisan Legacy Project and the National Liberation Heritage Route. Surrounding the site are some of the first settlement farms as well as the Victorian "village" of Observatory. Combined with the history of Observatory as a "grey" community under Apartheid, and home for activists, artisans and artists,  the area has been one of resistance and diversity for more than 500 years.

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Heritage Western Cape, the provincial heritage authority, rejected the developer’s Heritage Impact Assessment, saying it failed to address legal requirements. They also clarified that the consultant who submitted the developer’s Heritage Impact Assessment had a clear conflict of interest.

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