Cape Town council approves building of 15 000 houses
The City of Cape Town’s Council has given its approval for the development of seven housing projects that will provide more than 15 600 houses.The council’s approval of the projects on Wednesday paves the way for the City’s Transport and Urban Development Authority (TDA) to conclude the seven contracts for the appointment of multi-disciplinary teams tasked with overseeing the housing developments.The housing developments will be situated in Vlakteplaas in Strand; Blueberry Hill in Blue Downs; ACSA Symphony in Delft; Pelican Park; Mahama in Khayelitsha; Elsies River; and Bonteheuwel, the City said in a statement released on Thursday."Since the contracts will be in place for longer than three years, the TDA had to obtain Council’s approval before the signing of the contracts could go ahead," said the statement."Together, the seven contracts amount to approximately R72.9-million. Once signed, multi-disciplinary teams will oversee the planning, design, and construction of 15 664 housing opportunities across Cape Town.""The housing opportunities will become available within the next two to three years, depending on the type of development and the area where the development is taking place," said Councillor Brett Herron, the City’s mayoral committee member for transport and urban development.The teams will also be responsible for the statutory land use applications and the environmental processes that will precede the housing developments."At this stage we foresee that the developments will include site-and-serviced erven, double-storey units, double- and single-story semi-detached units, as well as double- and single-storey free-standing units."Where possible, the developments will include community facilities, open spaces where residents can socialise, and commercial and retail opportunities."We are striving to create integrated and sustainable communities as far as possible so that the beneficiaries of these projects can have access to social amenities, work opportunities, and public transport," said Councillor Herron.The contracts are funded from the Urban Settlements Development Grant, as well as the Housing Development Capital Fund. "I am grateful that Council approved these contracts. The demand for decent housing in Cape Town is acute, and is arguably one of the biggest challenges this administration is facing," said Councillor Herron."We have to use all of the tools at our disposal to speed up delivery – be it from using longer-term contracts to ensure quality control to identifying well-located land for inclusionary and affordable housing."
