Two housing projects in the Helderberg, the Macassar Housing Project and the Sir Lowry’s Pass Housing Project, seem to be back on track following glitches last year.
The delays came amid allegations of extortion and other community-related challenges on the two sites.
Carl Pophaim, Mayoral Committee member for Human Settlements, confirmed 260 units are currently under construction in Macassar. The first cluster of housing units, totalling 34, is nearing completion.
“A handover date for the first units will be finalised in due course,” he said, adding that the City of Cape Town has spent more than R200 million on the project to date.
On completion, the project will total about R800 million. “The City also previously noted that the project is in an Eskom supply area where there is currently not sufficient bulk-electricity supply,” Pophaim said.
“The City has also made available R91 million of grant funding for the commissioning of an electrical substation that will service the entire area.”
All previous challenges in Macassar have been resolved, Pophaim said.
The first phase 1 of the project, comprising 605 units, will be complete by June next year, if all goes to plan.
“The City will communicate on the progress and timelines for Phase 2 and 3 in due course,” he said.
Asked to relate some details on the Sir Lowry’s Pass housing project, he said that the R101 million project is on track to be completed this year.
“The project will provide homes to 307 beneficiaries and their families, and homes have been handed over on an ongoing basis,” he said.
The first homes were handed over in April last year (“City hands over keys to unlock long-held dream”, DistrictMail & Helderberg Gazette, 26 April 2023).
Pophaim further confirmed some minor technical challenges were encountered, such as boulder and hard rock on site, but these were resolved by geotechnical engineering teams.
Beneficiaries of all City housing projects are chosen in accordance with the its Housing Allocation Policy and the Housing Needs Register to ensure housing opportunities are made available in a fair and transparent manner, preventing queue jumping and excluding those who qualify for housing under South African law.
