| ISSUE 1 | THE SPRING ISSUE | OCTOBER 2008 |  |
Welcome to this, our first issue of the The J-Bay Jubilee!
My previous efforts, sent out in May and August proved to be difficult to maintain, being far too busy with all the various initiatives necessary to bring Jubilee Lakes to the next stage in its development. I am pleased to have this important function in the hands of a professional organisation that will be able to do justice to the important work of keeping investors informed.
The past few months have been somewhat frustrating. To have our own application (EIA) to the Department of Environment delayed by the application of the Municipal Water Treatment Works has been a source of frustration to me. I am now very happy to say that our own application has now been submitted in full and we expect to get our Record of Decision (ROD) shortly. Of course this means that my farming activities will have to come to an end here and this means moving a dairy herd and all that goes with it.
We have had good rains in the past few weeks and the land has responded with all its usual glory. The bush is fresh and vibrant, birds are flocking in and there is an air of promise as summer approaches. Spring is always a time of positive expectation, and Jubilee Lakes is no exception. My team and I send you our best wishes and look forward to maintaining our contact with you.
Best regards,
Rob Birch
Co-developer and Landowner of Jubilee Estate
QUICK LINKS
ROB'S REVIEW
Rob Birch, landowner and co-developer of Jubilee Lakes has had a lot on his plate.
FOUNTAINS MALL OPENING SOON
The complex will open at the end of October.
GOLF YES, BUT MUCH, MUCH MORE
Activities will include horse riding, fly fishing and boating on the dams...
A WALK IN THE WOODS
Jubilee Lakes has its own nursery.
WATER FOR AFRICA
Jubilee Lakes will not be using potable water.
JUBILEE LAKES EIA ON TRACK
Jubilee Lakes Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is back on track.
CLOSING THE DOOR ON 2008, BANKING ON 2009
The recent cardiac arrest in world financial markets...
KEY SPORTING EVENTS THIS SUMMER
Nedbank Golf Challenge, Alfred Dunhill Championship, The SA Open and the Proteas tour of Australia.
Rob Birch, landowner and co-developer of Jubilee Lakes has had a lot on his plate. Not only is he in the midst of planning for the start-up of Jubilee Lakes residential estate, but at the same time he is running a sizeable dairy farm on the land.
“It's a bit of a balancing act,” said Rob, “it's all a matter of timing when the machinery moves in and the cows move off.” Rob has a contingency plan in place to move his farm off the land to another location as soon as estate infrastructure commences.
“I have weathered a tough drought over the last six months but recent good rains have been a blessing. We are now heading into the breeding season,” smiled Rob, “but soon the farm here will be phased out. It is an exciting time for Jeffreys Bay with Jubilee Lakes coming on stream and the Mall opening. Jeffreys Bay will be a different place in 5 years' time. Now that the Water Treatment Works has received its Record of Decision (ROD) we are ready and wait for our own Environmental Assessment to go through. It won't be long now, and the farm will have to move."
Jeffreys Bay residents have watched with interest as the new retail Mall development has sprung up on the edge of town, near the N2 off-ramp. Called Fountains Mall, the complex will open at the end of October and provide quality shopping for the entire Kouga area. Certainly, there will no longer be a need to travel to Port Elizabeth for those big ticket items, for most needs will be catered for.
Construction began in August last year and big-name retailers such as Pick 'n Pay, Game and Woolworths will shortly be opening their doors. The Mall has caused many local businesses to move to the Mall or the adjoining Business Park, which will provide new premises for Tiger Wheel & Tyre, Hi-Q and a Total Service Station amongst others.
Anyone approaching the Mall cannot fail to be impressed with the two tastefully built roundabouts at its entrance. Not just a traffic circle with warning stripes, these roundabouts have been professionally designed as beautiful rock gardens with indigenous plants and trees and on the larger of the two, a fountain will gush with exuberance. It will be a wonderful place to meet, shop, have a cup of coffee and perhaps take in the latest movie. See you there!
For more information, visit the website: www.fountainsmall.co.za
Jubilee Lakes is beautifully laid out along two shallow river valleys around an 18-hole golf course. This could give the impression that it’s all about golf, golf and more golf. In fact, residents of Jubilee Lakes need not have the slightest interest in golf and still have very full days with all that the estate will have to offer. Project Manager, Geoff Hindle said that more than half the estate would be devoted to open space. “The estate will have a definite country feel, a feeling of being close to nature away from the pressures of business life.” This is definitely a big plus for the development, for homes will not be crammed in, but tastefully dispersed in this lovely setting, positively inviting residents to step outside and take a walk amongst natural bush where bush buck can be observed, along the two rivers and around the dams. 
Co-Developer, Rob Birch did a quick count of the number of holes on the course that are planned to have water in play. “Eleven of the eighteen will have water in play,” he said, “this makes for challenging golf and adds to the beauty of the estate, not to mention the restful views from homes and of course the fact that birds will be attracted to water and greenery."
The area is known for its abundance of bird life. At this time of the year, migrants are returning and to be seen are the greater striped swallows, red bishops are coming into breeding plumage, the cheeky pin-tailed wydah will soon be about, also laughing doves and the crowned lapwing will be seen. The local birding club is most active and is often to be seen out and about doing bird counts and following other avian pursuits.
Other activities will include horse riding, fly fishing and boating on the dams and when the Recreation Club is up and running there will be quality facilities for tennis, squash, bowls, volley ball and a gym with an indoor swimming pool.
Jubilee Lakes is certainly a place to look forward to, near the sea and good shopping, yet in the country. This is the life!
For more information, visit the website: www.jubileelakes.co.za
Looking far to the future, the nursery will provide trees and shrubs for the entire estate. Presently, 15 000 indigenous trees are growing and next year this number will increase to 50 000.
As a farm, the growing of crops and pastures did not encourage the growth of trees, but that is all to change with its new function, a residential estate. Co-developer, Rob Birch, explained that there was plenty of water available to grow and maintain the trees, this coming from re-cycled water at the water treatment works. Much open space is to be given over to trees, thus enhancing the beauty of the estate.
More news on trees is that the Baviaans Cedar Company will hold a tree planting ceremony on 24 October 2008.
The company was established two years ago in an effort to increase the Willowmore Cedar population in the Baviaanskloof area. The Baviaans Cedar Company is a privately financed initiative based at Tchnuganoo Community Farm in Studtis, in the heart of the Baviaanskloof. The Baviaanskloof is on Jeffreys Bay’s doorstep, the entrance to this rugged wilderness area being just outside Patensie, a mere 40 km. away. The Baviaanskloof Cedar has been listed as one of the 43 conifer species worthy of special conservation status and is along with the Clanwilliam Cedar, a protected tree in SA. They expect to plant more than 800 trees this year.
Jubilee Lakes Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is back on track now that the Water Treatment Works has received their Record of Decision (ROD). Jubilee Lakes, which will draw water from the Water Treatment Works, had to wait for the Water Treatment Works to gain its approval before it could submit its final documents to the Department of Environment. Jubilee Lakes has now done so. In order to gain approval, the Water Treatment Works had to make certain improvements and modifications. The Department of Environment has committed to processing all outstanding applications as soon as possible.
Golfing Estates up and down the coast have been receiving bad publicity over their draw on local water supplies to keep their greens and fairways in tip-top condition. Jubilee Lakes will not suffer this criticism for we will not be using potable water to nurture our trees and golf course. Jubilee Lakes will receive all the clean water it needs from the municipal water treatment works. Using this water will not deplete local resources and of course the supply of re-cycled water will never dry up. It is a sustainable development and will go from strength to strength or perhaps from green to greener!
We are now in the final strait of 2008 and time has come to take stock of the year, plan the summer and contemplate what 2009 will hold. The recent cardiac arrest in world financial markets have been the defining event of 2008 and have – in the short term for worst, in the long term for better – reshaped the fundamentals of the financial world.
In an interview with CNBC, Warren Buffett, the world’s richest man, summed the current crisis up by saying, “Confidence in markets and in institutions, it’s a lot like oxygen. When you have it, you don’t even think about it. Indispensable. You can go years without thinking about it. When it’s gone for five minutes, it’s the only thing you think about.”
While our currency and stock market have also been severely affected by the crisis, South Africa is in a very fortunate position in that it has one significant event that will shore up our economy and that is the Soccer World Cup of 2010 and, more specifically, the related infrastructure and tourism preparation investment that it continues to bring. Closer to home, Port Elizabeth will be beneficiary of a significant portion of this investment spending, and drive the area’s continued transformation as the economic hub of the Eastern Cape. Jeffreys Bay will become to Port Elizabeth, what towns such as Somerset West, Stellenbosch and Paarl have become to Cape Town.
December is the flag-bearing month for South African golf and as always, our golfing calendar will be punctuated by the Nedbank Golf Challenge (December 4 – 7, 2008), Alfred Dunhill Championship (Dec 11-14, 2008) and the SA Open (Dec 18 – 21, 2008).
Headlines around the Nedbank Golf Challenge has been focused on Ernie Els’ decision not to play in the event for the first time since 1992. Els and his family recently moved into a new home at The Bear’s Club in Jupiter, Florida. The Bear’s Club is Jack Nicklaus’ private club and is one of the golf estates the developers of Jubilee visited in 2007 while conceptualizing Jubilee.
Despite Els’ absence, the Nedbank Challenge field will be one of the strongest and most exciting in years. Ryder Cup star Anthony Kim has committed to the event and Masters Champion Trevor Immelman will defend his Nedbank Golf Challenge title. Other strong names in the line up include Sergio Garcia, Kenny Perry, Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson.
Els will play in the SA Open, which will again be played at the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course at Pearl Valley Golf Estates.
Equally exciting will be the Proteas tour of Australia this summer. South Africa has never won a test against Australia in Australia and also has not won a series against Australia since re-entering the sporting world after apartheid. This year the team will have a real chance. Not only are they coming off a high after the series victory in England, but Australia will also be without Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. Hopefully there will be many early mornings of cricket excitement on Supersport.
The first of three test matches will start at Perth on December 17.
Please contact out Marketing & Sales Administrator, Lindi Meyer on 083 675 0082
Or visit our website - www.jubileelakes.co.za
