On Thursaday, the City of Johannesburg Council made 12 City-owned properties available for quality low cost, low-income housing within the inner city.
This has been a critical component of the DA-led administration since taking over in August 2016.
The City has conducted an audit of some 500 bad buildings, 84 of which are confirmed as hijacked. 24 of 500 bad buildings belong to the City. All of these buildings represent opportunities for creating affordable housing.
– Executive Mayor, Herman Mashaba
Through the Inner City Housing Implementation Plan, the inner city housing market will soon work for those who need it most, with public-private partnerships crucial to this strategic approach.
In the coming week, the City will invite private partners to submit proposals for the development of the 12 buildings. In assessing these proposals, chief amongst the City’s considerations will be:
- the investment to be made in developing the building;
- the number of high-density units to be developed within the building;
- the cost of rentals to be charged given the City’s priority for the provision of accommodation for low income households and students;
- the degree of skills development set to take place through artisanal training during the construction phase; and
- the number of jobs created and skills transferred during and post the development.