A new provincial Heritage Site plaque was unveiled at the Princess Vlei Eco Park on Tuesday, cementing the wetland as part of the area’s provincial heritage.
Princess Vlei occupies a significant cultural and ecological position, where the area is a transitionary zone between Cape Flats Sand Fynbos and Dune Strandveld, creating unique vegetation.
The area also has a strong cultural significance. Anroux Marais, MEC for Cultural Affairs told IOL that the legend of Princess Vlei is a Khoi San folk tale, where a ‘princess’s tears formed the vlei after being abducted by Portuguese sailors, and elephants eye in the distance is thought to be the place where she lived and the source of her endless tears’.
In more recent history, the Vlei was one of the few public areas that were not declared a whites-only area, making it a popular meeting spot in Southern Suburbs.
Princess Vlei Forum spokesperson, Bridgett Pitt, says he is delighted that the vlei finally got heritage status after talks started in 2012, but a concerted effort began in 2018 when Heritage Western Cape came on board. ‘This is one of the few places where certain plants can flourish. As the forum, we’re working on a restoration plan to bring back the plants to the area,’ Pitt told News24.
Princess Vlei Forum will still assist in maintaining the space, and give a local voice to the daily management of the vlei. For Pitt and the rest of the Princess Vlei Forum, the work is far from done, maintaining that there is still a lot of investment to compensate for the decades of neglect.
Picture: Flickr Commons
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