Civic action, small-scale but important improvements and neighbourly warmth are reshaping this tiny place into a more optimistic community. Howick is perfect for all the things it is not, pretentious being one of them. On Saturday, the main street has old-trading-post vibes, with farmers, second-hand dealers and coffee roasters doing business alongside chain stores.
The Midlands Meander, with its Nelson Mandela Capture Site, craft breweries and country eateries, offers a postcard version of the place, but the town itself is humbler and more grounded. Howick is in the middle of the Meander. It is also the seat of the uMngeni Municipality, which services a vast, disparate area including Howick, wealthy nodes like Hilton and Nottingham Road, and poor, service-constrained Mpophomeni.
Howick is 124km from King Shaka International Airport. Turn off the N2 when you see Midmar Dam. A few roads lead into the town, some with less flattering views than others, giving a quick sense of the wealth disparity and governance challenges.
Read Full Article on Daily Maverick
[paywall]
In 1849, the Brits established a town at the uMngeni River crossing and called it Howick because the secretary of state for the colonies, Earl Grey, had recently acquired the title of Lord Howick. Fast-forward 176 years, and Howick and uMngeni are synonymous with the smart, young, white, gay, fluent isiZulu-speaking mayor, Chris Pappas. Howick residents are homespun: working-class and farming folk.
Typically not wont to gush, they speak glowingly about Pappas. Pharmacy worker Colleen Wilson made Howick her home 25 years ago: “It’s so pretty here. People are friendly.
Pappas has cleaned up.” Marius Wiese runs the Treatery at Yard 41, part of a series of beautiful buildings on the corner of Main Street and the Karkloof Road. Tourists scoff delicious fare and take in the 180m falls. Howick is a launchpad for ziplining through the forest canopy, cycling, hiking and exploring endless quirky roadside stalls.
“Pappas is brilliant. Howick is utopia,” Wiese beams. That’s a stretch for some, but the 34-year-old mayor must get credit.
His approach to government has been influenced by a book called Making Massive Small Change: Ideas, Tools, Tactics: Building the Urban Society We Want by Kelvin Campbell. It advocates sustainable development through small-scale community interventions.
[/paywall]
