Article Author: Bill Harding
The demolition of Blue Waters in Somerset West has brought to an end a contentious heritage case — but it may also provide an unusually revealing case study of how heritage is managed in the Western Cape.
Blue Waters was an approximately eighty-year-old house with distinctive architectural character, a strong relationship with its setting and an important local historical association. Its demolition to make way for residential development raises questions that extend beyond the fate of one building: how is the heritage significance of twentieth-century buildings assessed; how is associational value treated; how are competing expert opinions dealt with; and, most importantly, is sufficient consideration given to alternatives which could accommodate development without destroying the heritage resource?…