Affordable Housing For Ct Central
The Cape Town Partnership has just released its annual report in which it says it has broadened its strategies - in a property sense - to promote residential densification and more affordable housing.
In his review, outgoing chairman of the CTP, Shaun Johnson, says this would be done through 'focused co-operation between property developers, municipal planning authorities, and social housing companies'.
The Partnership says it supports the goal of at least doubling the Central City residential population over the next 10 years, to also include the provision of affordable, well located, housing.
Cape Town's inner city regeneration project has been hailed around the world as a model for sustainable urban revitalisation, but there has long been criticism that the residential aspect of the project only caters to a wealthy minority.
Chief executive officer Andrew Boraine writes in his report that in the past year, 'the Partnership has provided assistance to a number of potential developers with the identification of vacant public land and buildings within the Central City for social housing. Partnerships have also been forged with social housing companies for the construction of affordable housing in the Central City'.
Boraine says the Partnership and its partners have a 'vision of creating a diverse Central City where a cross-section of activities and income groups can be located'.
'The year ahead will see the re-doubling of efforts to realise this objective, and to diversify the range of housing options in the Central City to make the area more accessible,' he writes.
A further 3 000 flats will come on line by the end of 2006, mainly through the conversion of under-utilised B- and C-grade commercial properties to residential/mixed-use, increasing the inner city's residential population.
Developments planned for the year ahead include: No. 4 Church Square, No. 11 Adderley Street, Temple House, The Australasian Building, Creative House, the Grand Parade, the Cape Town Station, and the Adderley/Strand Intersection, including the Woolworths and old Edgars buildings.
Of course, charting the way forward for District Six is going to be vitally important. Over 60 000 people were forcibly removed from the area in the Central City in the '60s and 70s. Boraine says up to 4 000 houses will be developed in District Six as part of a land restitution process.
But earlier this month, national government announced that it was taking over the redevelopment of the area, saying that housing minister Lindiwe Sisulu and deputy agriculture and land affairs Minister Dirk du Toit would take over leadership of the project from executive mayor Helen Zille.
But claimants are concerned that Sisulu had earlier stated that people who are waiting for houses, particularly those who form part of the N2 Gateway project, would be accommodated in District Six, as part of the N2 Gateway project.
This would fly in the face of land redistribution to people who had claim to land in the area.
In the meantime, Mayor Zille has said that she does not care 'who delivers, as long as delivery happens, and that the interests of the legitimate claimants are protected and addressed'. - Glenda Nevill
News source: www.news24.co.za
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