The City of Cape Town is making significant strides toward solving its affordable housing crisis by approving the release of five strategically located properties, which will yield over 1 300 affordable housing units.
This decision was made during a City Council session with Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis highlighting the initiative as a crucial step in addressing the pressing need for well-located rental accommodation.
The newly released properties are situated in Lansdowne (308 units), Ottery (375 units), Brackenfell (145 units), Wesfleur (116 units), and Belhar (400 units).
These developments follow a robust public participation process in the respective areas, emphasizing the City’s commitment to community engagement.
Mayoral Committee Member for Human Settlements, Carl Pophaim said, “individuals must register on the Housing Needs Register to be considered as recipients of the housing initiative”.
Pophaim stated that no one will be excluded but that applicants who wish to apply for the housing initiative must earn less than R22 000 per month.
Mayor Hill-Lewis articulated the broader vision behind this initiative, stating, “Bit by bit, property by property, we are changing the affordable housing picture in Cape Town. Each of these developments might seem relatively small on their own compared to the pressing overall need. But look at the full scale of our affordable housing pipeline, and you will see that housing in our city is undergoing a transformation.”
The City is also exploring additional opportunities for affordable housing, with plans for significant development on portions of Mowbray Golf Course, spanning over 42 hectares.
In the last two years alone, Cape Town has released various municipal-owned properties yielding over 4 200 affordable housing units as part of the Mayoral Priority Programme aimed at accelerating land release. The total pipeline now stands at an impressive 12 000 affordable housing units.
Notably, the Ottery site will facilitate around 375 social housing units within a two- to four-storey development, while the Lansdowne site will house approximately 308 units in a similar structure. Meanwhile, the Brackenfell property is earmarked for a mixed-use development that includes 115 social housing units, 30 gap housing units, and retail space to foster local economic growth.
“We will discount all these parcels of land to the housing developer in exchange for the optimal yield of social and gap housing units under our newly developed guidelines for land release,” said Pophaim.
“The affordable housing developments that we are enabling add real value to neighbourhoods and invigorate these areas due to the investment.”
Pophaim expressed optimism about the future of affordable housing in Cape Town, stating that these projects have already proven transformative for thousands of families now residing in various well-located developments around the metro, such as Maitland Mews, Bothasig Gardens, Goodwood Station, and the Conradie Park development in Pinelands.
Weekend Argus