Please Help put an end to a nuisance guesthouse in Trafalgar

To all Owners/residents, friends of Trafalgar, and those who are simply tired of injustice in SA, below is some background to this petition: 

1. I purchased a home here in 2019 and live here permanently with my family. At the time the house next door (44 Effingham) was for sale
2. A contender for the biggest house in Trafalgar this 3 storey building has 8 bedrooms, many kitchens/bathrooms/toilets; a casino and games room with extra sleeping capacity; a jacuzzi; large pool and lapa; triple garage; and additional living areas for many live-in staff 
3. With no interested buyers, the owners who live in Gauteng, opted to run a guesthouse called Waves of Mercy, that has been operating illegally (without RNM permission) for close on 3 years
4. With 3 balconies overlooking into every space of ours, we have no place to hide. The kind of privacy that every other home takes for granted is something we long for, and are forced to regularly close up our home to avoid people staring into our living and sleeping areas, in addition to the noise factor that 17+ booking guests can create. Mind you closing up does very little to alleviate the disturbance
5. Throughout these years then, we have had a constantly rough time with almost every booking
6. Excessive noise, drunken antics, loud music, and general selfish behaviour (hanging clothes all over; dirt being swept into or thrown into our yard; people sleeping on mattresses or on the balcony overnight) has come to be expected of this place, and we are constantly anxious at the onset of every weekend - during peak holiday periods the house is booked everyday
7. Things have gotten even worse over the last year given a new manager who has a commission-only agreement with the owners, in addition to living in the place, with her kids, with all costs taken care of. It goes without saying then that having the entire house booked, for as long as possible is the mandate, and despite repeated complaints, there is no change to / enforcement of rules - in essence she is paid to overlook all of it as it keeps the owners happy and provides constant revenue for both
8. In order to ensure a steady stream of bookings, prices have been lowered, and the entire house is almost always booked. A perfect example of quantity over quality, from scantily clad ladies doing video shoots on the many balconies, to small minded men who see no wrong in staring at my 13 year old daughter in her room
9. On days when there are no guests, there is noise from the kids who are stifled during bookings, in addition to an everyday influx of maintenance and upkeep staff that are necessary to prepare for the next set of guests - the damage to property over the last year is unprecedented
10. There have also been numerous incidents, where guests have had to be evicted by SAPS and/or local security due to their behavior, which includes denying building access to management, domestic violence, and even an incident whereby a previous manager feared sexual assault by guests
11. With multiple break-ins too over the last year, crime levels in our otherwise sleepy town have increased, given that opportunists realise they can easily steal from inebriated and relaxed holiday makers, and gain access into vehicles parked on the street. There is a lack of optimal security on the premises, and a general lack of foresight in this regard
12. Having had enough of this, I complained to RNM who confirmed that Waves of Mercy do not in fact have a license to operate. This was communicated only in February this year
13. Despite RNM serving them a notice to cease operations, the abundantly wealthy owners are using legal loopholes to continue operating unabated, despite repeated complaints of the same nature
14. They now have until July 19 of this year to lodge a completed application for municipal consent.

I have therefore approached an attorney to assist me and my neighbors to ensure that this application is not granted. Given the ethics on display from owners and the manager, I also feel as if I need a legal representative to look out for any shortfalls within the RNM process, that the public are not privy to.

This attorney is confident that the application will be a challenge to approve, should we unite, and show our discontent.

It is to this end, that I humbly appeal to you for a minute of your time to please sign this petition. This will form part of our objection pack to RNM, which includes years of evidence of ghastly behaviour, reference numbers from calling SAPS and Protection Services, and written complaints between us and management/owners of the business. 

Note that the only people that will benefit from winning this application are the owners, and the manager. To the detriment of Trafalgar, a win would mean that they will certainly continue in this manner, having only the bylaws of RNM to adhere to, which we all know are very poorly regulated and enforced.

Affected homeowners will either be forced to give up and relocate, or join in on the ruling, and benefit financially from selling to others who will quickly learn that Trafalgar is 'open for investment' given the rezoning required to allow this business to continue. This is exactly how small towns like Umhlanga and Umdloti have lost their quaint appeal over the years and commercialised, giving way to across-the-board rezoning, which creates an ideal platform for developers who look to putting up massive oceanside hotels and apartment buildings.

Note that they have made close to/over a million rand in booking revenue over the last 12 months, and you will easily see just how lucrative this is to the owners, and other like minded investors with little to no regard for the rest of us.

I urge you to please put yourself in our position. It immediately becomes clear that this is completely wrong, and should have stopped years ago. 

1. If you have no reason to sign and object, or see no harm in being neutral, how about just siding with my family as a reason. We, who have decided that Trafalgar is our forever home, and have invested in it, and the community at large, rather than someone who is looking to exit and has been trying now for over 5 years.

Please type in Trafalgar in the city, if you are from the area. You may remain anonymous by selecting NO where it asks if you want to show your details publicly online. You need not provide a reason for signing either, but voicing your opinion is encouraged.

Thank you very much for assisting, and for taking a step to ensuring our town retains the serenity and upmarket grandeur which we are well known for. We wish you everything of the best!

Naresh Harie    Contact the author of the petition