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Capetonians, help name your neighbourhoods
6 Jul 2011
Capetonians are renowned for being exceedingly proud of their city - and Cape Town does indeed have some unique characteristics to brag about (apart from the mountain). Most road trips will provide you with a scenic view - I've been here for more than eight years and still, while commuting between home and the office, I admire the beautiful surroundings. The vibe is so eclectic that just crossing over into a different street in the CBD could take you to a distinctly different atmosphere.
Try taking a stroll from Zonnebloem up to Long Street and then catch a cab up to Green Point - these districts are within mere minutes of each other and yet, take on the personality of those that frequent them - or is it the other way around...? To accentuate the distinctness, and to build a sense of community within each area, locals and tourists are being called upon to suggest names for these "hoods".
Creative, functional names needed
The Name Your Hood project, initiated by Bruce Good and Nic Lamond, two local entrepreneurs, have launched a campaign seeking the "most creative and functional names" for these neighbourhoods. Hoods to be named include; Zonnebloem, the Foreshore, Woodstock, Tamboerskloof and Green Point, among eight others. Areas around upper Kloof Street and Bree Street have been chosen as the two pilot hoods for the city.
Submissions can be made online or through a number of voting booths which will be available in participating shops throughout the city.
The project is supported by Cape Town Tourism, Cape Town Partnership, Accelerate Cape Town and Wesgro, as well as local businesses including Pam Golding Properties, Mr Delivery, Groupon and Vida e Caffe.
"We're celebrating everything Cape Town has to offer; its incredible landmarks, rich history and vibrant culture. We pulled in local heroes, architects, historians and city planners to create new, easy-to-navigate city hoods. Now it's up to everyone to get involved - anyone could potentially name one of the neighbourhoods and leave a legacy," says Bruce Good, founder and CEO of Name Your Hood.
The following panellists will adjudicate the initial phase of the naming process:
- Nils Flatten, CEO, Westgro
- Ravi Naidoo, founder, Design Indaba
- Natalie Becker, actress and model
- Nik Rabinowitz, comedian
- Seth Rotherham, founder, 2oceansvibe Media
- Mokena Makeka, founder, Makeka Design Laboratories
- Bulelwa Makalima-Ngewana, MD, Cape Town Partnership
- Rashiq Fataar, MD, Future Cape Town
- Alex van Tonder, author, Capetowngirl.com
- Barry Smith, chairman, CIBRA: City Bowl Ratepayers Association
- Skye Grove, communications & PR manager, Cape Town Tourism
On completion of the naming process and in partnership with Cape Town Tourism and Creative Cape Town, the project will see new tourist maps printed and distributed throughout the city to include the new neighbourhood names. A series of individual websites for each neighbourhood will also roll out; these will provide insider information on business directories, site-seeing, travel information and community news.
Go to www.nameyourhood.co.za for more information, and to vote.
The Name Your Hood project aims to roll out across the entire city in time. It will also launch in Johannesburg and Durban in 2012.
About Sindy Peters: Africa editor
Sindy Peters (@sindy_hullaba_lou) is a group editor at Bizcommunity.com on the Construction & Engineering, Energy & Mining, and Property portals. She can be reached at moc.ytinummoczib@ydnis.
