Director of Department: Mr. Ludolph Gericke

Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: lgericke@plett.gov.za

Performace Agreement

Personal Assistant: Rosie Brakfesi
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: rbrakfesi@plett.gov.za

Strategic Services Department is split into five sections:

• Town Planning
• Performance management
• Property Management
• Local Economic Development
• Building Control
• Integrated Development Planning

1. Town Planning

The Town Planning Section includes town planning as such, the control over signage, management of the Geographic Information System (GIS) and spatial planning (SDF).

The function of the section is to regulate land use in terms of all legislation relevant to land use.The daily administration of the section includes applications for land use changes, departures, rezoning, removal of restrictions, subdivisions, consent uses as well as the administration of current land uses. Furthermore, the section is also responsible for the administration of the Spatial Development Framework as spatial planning tool in terms of the Integrated Development Plan (IDP), from involvement of compilation thereof to amendments/updating and implementation of identified projects. The administration of signage/adverts in the municipal area is also dealt with by this section. This includes the urban areas as well as along the rural roads. The section also is responsible for the GIS, developing it and structuring it, reflecting all salient information such as erf numbers, size, services infrastructure, etc. The GIS will serve as land management system as prescribed by the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act, 2013.

Senior Manager: Mr. Chris Schliemann
Tel: 044 501 3324
Email: cschliemann@plett.gov.za

Follow link to view Town Planning Documents

2. Performance Management

Responsibilities:

• PMS: Performance Management Systems as prescribed in the relevant legislation. This is a cross-cutting function that assesses performance of all departments and managerial staff
• Compliance monitoring
• SDBIP Reporting: Service Development and Budget Implementation Plan, which monitors and measures the operational and capital expenditure in execution of the Integrated Development Plan and other non-financial activities

Manager: Vacant

3. Property Management

Responsibilities:

The property management section is tasked with looking after municipal properties and it making ensuring that municipal buildings are being maintained and the value being preserved. The section also ensures that all non-residential municipal properties occupied and leased by other parties are compliant in terms of the relevant legislation and lease agreements entered into with the municipality.

1. Ensuring that all municipal properties that are leased by both private and public entities have the necessary leases in place;
2. Ensuring that revenue from the leased properties is collected according to the stipulations in these leases;
3. Ensuring that all properties of the municipality are maintained and kept in good clean condition;
4. Ensuring that staff staying in these properties have the required agreements and are meeting all their obligations in respect of these;
5. Ensuring that municipal land is recorded appropriately and that regular land audits are done to update the data base;

Project Manager: Planning and Design: 
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: 

4. Local Economic Development

Responsibilities:

The local economic development section is tasked with facilitation of economic opportunity within the Bitou area, and covers a range of interventions.

On an individual level the section identifies, develops and maintains suitable trading sites for informal trading, as well as the supervision and licensing of the traders. It also identifies small-scale initiatives for job creation within the community, as well as looking at municipal properties with the potential for business development and manages the processes needed to activate them.

It also functions as a point of contact for potential investors into the Bitou area, as well as conceiving suitable local projects to take to the investment community.

Lesley Jacobs
MANAGER LED
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: ljacobs@plett.gov.za

Alicia Klein
LED Officer- Informal trading/ LED Forum secretariat 
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: aklein@plett.gov.za 

Jofré Lottering
LED Officer – Community Development & Business Support
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: jlottering@plett.gov.za

Lenhard Jonas
LED Officer- Asset Realisation
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: ljonas@plett.gov.za

5. Building Control

Responsibilities:

The Building Control section is mainly responsible for the enforcement of statutory provisions regulating buildings. It also ensures that the relevant legislation and other applicable standards are complied with.

The vision of the Building Control Department is to strive to the best of its abilities to comply with the vision of Bitou Municipality, “To Be The Best Together”, by playing an active and leading role with regard to service delivery and to the development of the community.

Creswell Basson
Building Control Manager
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: cbasson@plett.gov.za

6. Integrated Development Planning

Responsibilities:

The purpose of this department is to manage, monitor and ensure the development and effective implementation and monitoring of the Integrated Development Plan (IDP). An IDP, adopted by council of a municipality, is the key strategic planning tool for the municipality.

As one of the key departments in the municipality the IDP section has many responsibilities that are linked to the success of Bitou Municipality. Some of the department’s key responsibilities are: Manage and coordinate the process of developing, implementing, monitoring and reviewing the Integrated Development Plan (IDP); Monitoring and overseeing the alignment of sectoral plans with the IDP; ensuring that the municipality gives effect to and conducts its affairs in a manner which is consistent with the IDP and achieves the strategic development priorities and objectives as reflected in the IDP. This then ensures that the IDP is compliant with legislated requirements, strategic and integrated; and linked to the resources of the municipality.

Ultimately, the IDP is agreed between local government and residents of Bitou municipality, and thus a fine balance needs to be struck in allocating scarce resources.

Thembinkosi Henge
Manager: Integrated Development Planning
Tel: 044 501 3301
Email: thenge@plett.gov.za

7. Aerodrome

Manager: Position vacant