Strandfontein residents have put their support behind the area’s Islamic Association in its bid to purchase a piece of land the City has put up for auction.
The parcel of land, adjacent to the Strandfontein mosque, has been used, per agreement with the City, as parking by the association for seven years, said Ebrahim de Roos, the mosque’s administrator.
Last month the City announced that it would auction the 1 580 square-metre plot in Marlin Crescent, among 50 other properties, as part of its major land-disposal programme.
De Roos said the mosque should have been given first offer to purchase since it already had an existing agreement over the land.
Mosque fundraises for purchase
He told TygerBurger the congregation had been using Erf 1955 for parking under an arrangement with the Parks and Recreation Department.
“We’re supposed to be first in line because it’s adjacent to us. They know we’ve been using it, but they didn’t notify us of their intentions.”
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The mosque was fundraising to purchase the property.
“We want to purchase it,” De Roos said. “We are fundraising now and the whole community and beyond the community are helping us so that we can purchase it.”
Formal complaint lodged
Strandfontein residents and ratepayers have pledged their support to the mosque.
Community leader Baronise Henry submitted a formal complaint demanding the auction be halted, arguing the Strandfontein community had not been “comprehensively, functionally or effectively engaged” regarding the proposed sale.
Her complaint states unequivocally that “the Strandfontein community is totally against the planned sale of this portion of state-owned land”. Henry said the City did not seek the community nor the Islamic Association’s input as no public participation was done.
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She described the proposed auction as “inconsiderate of community needs, malicious in its disregard for public interest and an inconvenience to a community already deprived of essential services and infrastructure.”
According to the complaint the land represents “one of the last remaining strategic opportunities for public-benefit development in Strandfontein.”
City defends auction process
In his response to Henry James Vos, Mayco member for Economic Growth, said the auction represented “an extraordinary opportunity for private-sector investment across the metro.”
The 50 properties span approximately 282 000 square metres and include residential, commercial, industrial, community and mixed-use sites from the Good Hope Centre precinct to areas in Mitchells Plain, Atlantis Industrial, Parow and Goodwood.
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Vos emphasised that the City’s land portfolio must “drive economic growth rather than sit idle” and defended the auction process, stating it proceeded “in line with the City’s Public Participation Policy and was subsequently considered by full council.”
Vos added he was “not inclined to support the withdrawal of this site from the disposal process” unless his department can prove prescribed processes were not followed.
Community mobilises
Henry has made five formal demands: immediately halting the auction, initiating meaningful public participation, conducting a full community needs assessment, providing written motivation for the sale and committing to ongoing engagement with the Strandfontein Ratepayers Association.
The property has been rezoned to “Limited Use” to prevent high-density developments, which appears to favour community organisations over commercial developers. However, De Roos expressed concern that the auction format could still drive prices beyond the mosque’s reach.The auction is scheduled for 26 February 2026, the Claremart Group overseeing the process.
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