City of Cape Town allocates R900 million to fast track housing projects

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23-01-2023
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News 24
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The City of Cape Town is set to fast track the delivery of housing this year. 

The City's mayoral committee member for human settlements, Malusi Booi, says R900 million has been allocated for the delivery of housing. 

An extra R15 million has been allocated to protect key housing projects from extortionists and gangsters. 

The City of Cape Town is planning to expedite its land release programme and deliver more homes this year.

In an interview with News24, the City's mayoral committee member for human settlements, Malusi Booi, said the department plans on prioritising the land release programme and delivering homes at a more rapid pace for the poor and vulnerable.  

"Our main priority this year is to expedite the land release programme that we've embarked on for social housing in the inner city, so we are releasing more land parcels as the year progresses," he said.

Last year, Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis announced that the Fruit and Veg site in Roeland Street in the inner-city received authority from the council to advertise the intention for it to be released for social housing.

The site is expected to deliver around 150 social housing units as part of a mixed-market development.

The land that the council intends to earmark for social housing was among several other sites that housing activists had been campaigning for the City to release. The City released 11 parcels of well-located land within the City Bowl five years ago.

Booi said the City's human settlements budget was "steady" compared to previous years, with around R900 million allocated to the department for the new year.

"Some of this money will have to go to breaking new ground projects, land acquisitions and informal settlements," he said.

Over the past two years, the City's Human Settlements Directorate experienced many disruptions at key housing projects, which aim to benefit some of the metro's most vulnerable residents.

The City said instances of gang violence, alleged extortion, sabotage, vandalism, theft, unlawful occupation of land, and damage to property had cost it more than R131 million in 2020 and 2021 and that thousands of qualifying beneficiaries had been denied a state-subsidised housing opportunity.

The City's Beacon Valley housing project has experienced significant delays due to violence and intimidation on the site. Four separate shooting incidents have taken place there, as well as petrol bombings of construction machinery.

Booi said the department had made provisions in the budget to protect key projects.

"We are working closely with the safety and security directorate on the matter, and on the budget, we have allocated around R15 million for security. But for land invasions, we are working with safety and security; we have appointed service providers to protect land," he added.

Booi said there had been an exploitation of the poor.

"People must stop buying used structures because they have been lied to, and this is blatant exploitation of the vulnerable who are waiting for homes. It's a serious challenge we have been facing," he said.