Great signs as visitors find their way on Gqeberha estate

It is no secret that visitors enjoy Sardinia Bay Golf & Wildlife Estate as much as its residents.

After all, what’s not to like?

Herds of animals watching players enjoy a leisurely round while grazing on the second cut, birds chirping those players from their elevated vantage points and the tranquillity of it all never fail to impress.

The one area that has left visitors baffled as the property continued to expand over the past decade was how to find the home of their hosts.

As enjoyable as it may be to cruise around the estate when you know where you are heading, as frustrating it is when you are not.

Tales of guests ending up in no man’s land on the 100-plus hectares of coastal property are not unheard of.

Just imagine a neighbourhood of homes built to the same architectural guidelines, beautifully camouflaged by generous amounts of green foliage. It’s a serene scene for residents but nightmarish for invitees.

In an effort to confine wayward drives to the 18 tees, the homeowners’ association embarked on a project to erect directional signage – adorned with its beloved, signature zebra – across the estate.

Chairperson Tertius de Ridder said it had been pondered in the past but he and fellow trustee Frederick Skein were only able to put the wheels in motion recently.

“Many emails and proposals later, the homeowners voted on a design and we did the necessary,” he said.

Resident Kathy van Onselen, for one, is grateful for the navigational assistance. Previously, she and husband Noel had to send “a whole story” to guests beforehand to point them in the right direction.

“‘Drive in at house number 45, turn right and at the fork turn left and then you’ll see the house on the left’. It was a bit of a gedoente.”

The Van Onselens recently hosted friends from KwaZulu-Natal and, in an about-turn from previous observations, they remarked how easily they had found their home.

The addition of the signage has also been welcomed by Kim Broedelet, who has a great story to tell from the time when she hosted meetings to plan a school reunion.

“One of our committee members stopped at the wrong house, walked to the door and pushed it open,” she said.

“I had told her I would leave my door open and to just come in when she arrived.”

A confused resident met her in the foyer and it quickly became a case of, “Oops, sorry, wrong house!”, Broedelet chuckled.

The delivery of online orders has also been a beneficiary of the directional prompts, with couriers all around no doubt breathing a sigh of relief.

Sards resident Ian Robertson praised the HOA and trustees for the installations and being extremely “attentive to things in general”.

“They’ve done a really good job here.”

Another, recent, initiative winning widespread approval from the community is the placement of speed bumps at strategic locations.