GOOD statement by Brett Herron,
GOOD: Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
17 July 2022
This Mandela Day marks the 5th year since the City of Cape Town announced but failed to deliver on a promise for affordable housing in and around the inner-city.
In 2017, the City announced plans for affordable housing projects on 11 sites around Woodstock and Salt River, all within 5km of the city centre and with good access to public transport.
If these projects had not been blocked the City and the Democratic Alliance, Cape Town would have bustling construction sites right now, and not just empty plots with no new affordable housing options for residents.
Instead, the same plans have once again been announced by Cape Town Mayor, Geordin Hill-Lewis, with plans for the housing to be available by late 2023 or early 2024.
While we are encouraged by this apparent about-turn on the development of affordable housing, on well-located parcels of publicly owned land, these kinds of announcements have been made in the past.
In 2011 the Western Cape Provincial Government announced its Inner City Regeneration Programme which promised to leverage the development potential of 5 public properties in the Cape Town city centre.
The promise included development which supports the expansion of mixed use, mixed income opportunities and precincts for affordable housing to ensure that poorer households get incorporated into the central city.
Eleven years later not a single affordable housing unit has been built and not one poor household has been incorporated into the city centre.
Yesterday I joined Reclaim the City’s walking tour to some of the 11 City sites identified and announced in 2017 for mixed income, mixed use development which would include affordable and social housing.
Five years later these sites remain vacant, derelict and unused.
Despite the consistent complaint about the availability of land to develop affordable housing, the 5 sites identified by the Provincial Government in 2011 and the 11 sites identified by the City of Cape Town in 2017, proves that we do not have a shortage of land problem, we have a shortage of leadership problem.
Empty promises do little to instill confidence in these repeated announcements.
Apartheid spatial planning remains one of the biggest challenges in Cape Town and the lack of spatial integration continues to hinder access to opportunities for the majority of residents.
As GOOD, we are committed to our fight for social and spatial justice and will not stop until we create a more just society.
Media Enquiries:
Brett Herron, GOOD: Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
Cell: 0825183264
Email: bretth@forgood.org.za
Janke Tolmay, GOOD: Media Manager
Cell: 0733671223
Email: janke@forgood.org.za