The Mandela Bay Development Agency has completed a R5.8m project to stabilise eroded ground around Port Elizabeth’s historic St Peter’s church, and construct a 200m boardwalk through St Mary’s Cemetery.
The project, which took 14 weeks to complete, celebrates a key site at the heart of old South End.
Built in 1875, St Peter’s served the vibrant multicultural community that existed before the forced removal in the 1960s of coloured people to North End in terms of apartheid legislation, and some of Port Elizabeth’s earliest residents were buried in St Mary’s Cemetery.
Four proposed public artworks were being assessed and the best one would be installed soon at a suitable spot to crown the landmark project, agency spokesperson Luvuyo Bangazi said on Tuesday.
The aim of the project was to restore a heritage tourism asset and tell the story of South End, he said.
“It is about preservation and restoration, giving back something that was taken away forcefully, for all our citizens to enjoy.
“The site will now contribute to all who live in the Bay as a must-see heritage tourism activity.
“Positioned a short distance from the harbour, the site forms an ideal second stop for visiting cruise liner passengers, after the Campanile.”
Today, only the crumbled walls of the church remain and, until the project began, the area was strewn with rubble and occupied by vagrants.
But the site had now been transformed, project manager Thandi Mafu said.
“There is no access as yet to the church itself as the walls were weakened by the recent heavy rains and we have temporarily fixed this and sent an urgent application to the Provincial Heritage Resources Authority to allow for long-term rectification.
“But the steep slope on the seaward side of the church has been gunited to prevent erosion, and the boardwalk allows visitors to get the best views of the building and cemetery.”
The boardwalk begins at the top of the Black Steps – a famous feature of old South End where lovers met for secret trysts and activists fled from police, she said.
“It stretches 202m down around the church and then ends in front of it. Five-metrehigh lamps have been placed along its length.”
A small car park has been constructed at the head of the boardwalk off Gardner Circle and a fence and electronic gate have been installed around it.
Mafu said a competition to create an appropriate new artwork for the site had been launched in August.
The brief was to include some or all of half a dozen themes, including the community’s cosmopolitan nature and the role of the church in bringing residents together.
Other suggested themes were St Peter’s strong link to the fishing industry, and the Fisherman’s Cross – “symbol of love and hope for the men in the trawlers and line boats in Algoa Bay”, which used to form part of the church – as well as the value placed on education and sport, and the harsh effects of the forced removals.
The site was not yet open, unless there was a request from a specific group, but the agency was engaged in talks with stakeholders to ensure the best system, Mafu said.