Sol Kreiner is a retired South African politician that served as Mayor of Cape Town between 1983 and 1985. At the time of his inauguration, he was the city's second-youngest mayor. His late brother,

Louis Kreiner Louis Kreiner (October 23, 1928 - May 24, 1994) was a South African politician and Mayor of Cape Town from 1979 to 1981. His brother, Sol Kreiner subsequently held the position between 1983 and 1985. His wife, Patricia Sulcas Kreiner was also ma ...

(1928–1994) also served as Mayor of Cape Town between 1979 and 1981. His sister-in-law, Patricia Sulcas Kreiner subsequently served as mayor from 1993 to 1995.

Early life

He was born and raised Grabouw in the Cape Province to a Jewish family. His late grandfather, Eliezer had been a rabbi in Poland. His father Chaim was deeply involved in the local Jewish community in Grabouw and held Shabbat services at the family home for the seven other Jewish families living in the town. Kreiner is fluent in Afrikaans from having attended an Afrikaans-language school, he also attended Herzlia as a boarder, a Jewish school in Cape Town. Prior to his entry into politics, he was the owner and director of a textile distribution company.Cape Town's New Mayor
''South African Jewish News''. 7 September 1983

Career

He entered political life in 1976 as a ward councilor for Cape Town's Ward 8, where he represented Woodstock, District Six, Walmer Estate and Salt River. He rallied against a recommendation by the Theron Commission that Salt River and Woodstock be rezoned for

coloured Coloureds ( af, Kleurlinge or , ) refers to members of multiracial ethnic communities in Southern Africa who may have ancestry from more than one of the various populations inhabiting the region, including African, European, and Asian. South ...

residents. Prior to becoming Mayor of Cape Town, he served as Deputy Mayor. During his political career in Cape Town he was very involved in the

urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...

of run-down areas of the city. He established the West City Action Committee, focusing on urban renewal and preservation in the city's historical districts. In 1983 he succeeded in convincing the national government to provide low-interest loans to homeowners to improve their homes. He also represented the council on the Cape Metropolitan Transport Advisory Board.Kreiner - 'you have to make it happen'
Retrieved on 26 December 2023 As Mayor, he advanced what would become the V&A Waterfront by forming a steering committee to consider a scheme for the waterfront: "As Johannesburg has gold, we have a beautiful city as a tourist attraction and we must all work together for a better Cape Town. We have a large cross-section of people who are prepared to sit down and discuss a scheme which will bring back the old city where one can freely walk around, visit the harbour, go for tug rides and learn more about our heritage." He also became the council-nominated director on the board of the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront Company. In 1984, he told '' The New York Times'' that Cape Town was more racially inclusive than the country at large: "We as a Council have never erected an apartheid notice board... Our position is that all our amenities are open to all people." Kreiner had previously appealed for Woodstock Hospital to retain its access to all races.Sol Kreiner is new Deputy Mayor of Cape Town
''South African Jewish News''. 1981 After his mayoral term he attended several tours of the United States on behalf of the South African government, where he spoke to Jewish audiences about political reforms that were underway in apartheid-era South Africa.South Africa's Lobbyists
''The New York Times''. 13 October 1985

Personal life

He is married to Brenda Shap and they have three children together; Howard, Steven and Caryn. He has since emigrated to the United States with his wife, and they live in Chicago.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kreiner, Sol Living people 20th-century South African politicians Politicians from Cape Town White South African people Jewish South African politicians South African people of Polish-Jewish descent South African emigrants to the United States Mayors of Cape Town Alumni of Herzlia High School Year of birth missing (living people)