Sea Point | |
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Aerial View of Sea Point
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Sea Point shown within Western Cape | |
Coordinates: 33°54′55″S 18°23′33″E / 33.91528°S 18.39250°ECoordinates: 33°54′55″S 18°23′33″E / 33.91528°S 18.39250°E | |
Country | South Africa |
Province | Western Cape |
Municipality | City of Cape Town |
Main Place | Cape Town |
Government | |
• Councillor | Jacques Weber (Democratic Alliance) |
Area | |
• Total | 1.58 km2 (0.61 sq mi) |
Population (2011) | |
• Total | 13,332 |
• Density | 8,400/km2 (22,000/sq mi) |
Racial makeup (2011) | |
• Black African | 18.0% |
• Coloured | 7.7% |
• Indian/Asian | 2.8% |
• White | 67.5% |
• Other | 4.1% |
First languages (2011) | |
• English | 68.6% |
• Afrikaans | 13.3% |
• Xhosa | 3.6% |
• Other | 14.5% |
Postal code (street) | 8005 |
PO box | 8060 |
Sea Point (Afrikaans: Seepunt) is one of Cape Town's most affluent and densely populated suburbs, situated between Signal Hill and the Atlantic Ocean, a few kilometres to the west of Cape Town's Central Business District (CBD). Moving from Sea Point to the CBD, one passes through first the small suburb of Three Anchor Bay, then Green Point. Seaward from Green Point is the area known as Mouille Point (pronounced MOO-lee), where the local lighthouse is situated. It is neighbored to the southwest by the suburb of Bantry Bay.
Sea Point is the only sea-side suburb of Cape Town with significant high-rise development and this, along with other factors, has made it a very popular residential area, or for investing in first or second homes and apartments. Before the most recent surge in property values, the suburb used to be regarded as a dangerous area, in part because some apartment blocks had been neglected by absentee landlords. Many foreign and local investors now see it as a place of urban rejuvenation and there are many Dutch, German and British owners.
The area was historically classed as an abode for whites only during the apartheid era, when formal classification of people by race was introduced into the South African political system. With the collapse of apartheid and especially from the late 1990s, a diverse mix of purchasers became active in the property arena and changed the demographic mix. Today Sea Point is home to a more diverse set of cultures. There is a cosmopolitan mix of Capetonians and international visitors.
Sea Point is a suburb of Cape Town and is situated on a narrow stretch of land between Cape Town's well known Lion's Head to the south-east and the Atlantic ocean to the north-west. It is a high density area, where space is at a premium. Houses are built in close proximity to one another towards the surrounding mountainside, while apartment buildings are more common in the central area and toward the beach-front. An important communal space is the beach-front promenade, a paved walkway along the beach-front used by residents and tourists for walking, jogging or socialising.