The agreement reached between Power Construction and the City of Cape Town will deliver the largest integrated housing development ever launched in the Western Cape. The 3 200 housing units will be built over the next five years. It's envisioned that local artisans and labour will benefit hugely from the project.
Called On The Vlei (Market Housing) & New Horizons (GAP Housing), Pelican Park, the new development will be located in Pelican Park, adjacent to Zeekoeivlei and Strandfontein Road, and will be spread over an 80ha site.
A show village is already under construction. The public will be invited to a launch scheduled for Saturday, 13 October, 2012, when they'll be able to inspect show houses.
Councillor Ernest Sonnenberg, mayoral committee member for Human Settlements, said that he was very proud of the new housing project: "We're proud to launch this project as one of the City of Cape Town's first integrated developments that crosses different ranges of affordability. We regret that all the red tape associated with development and procurement prevented us from launching the development sooner.
"We're glad to be part of this historic project. This will be a mixed development and we are glad to provide dignified housing to some of the city's extremely needy citizens."
The development includes more than 2100 Breaking New Ground (BNG) state-subsidised houses, 696 single-storey semi-detached GAP houses selling from R290 000, 63 double-storey house shops (residents can operate a small business/shop) selling from R288 000, and 359 open market units selling from R480 000.
The BNG units will be offered to qualifying beneficiaries drawn from the city's housing waiting list. One potential homeowner in this category has been on the city's housing list for at least 40 years.
For the chairman and founder of the Power Group, Graham Power, getting involved in this project is a chance to give something back to the people of Cape Town.
He said: "Building affordable housing is not very profitable, but this is not about money, this is about giving back. Nothing beats seeing the excitement on the face of someone who has never owned a house when they receive a key, which says you now have your own roof over your head."
Labour will be sourced from the areas around the project. "Lots of jobs will be created for the construction of this R500-million project, which will be developed over the next five years. The skills we need are in the local community and we'll use local labour wherever possible."
He said that a community liaison officer would be appointed shortly. "Discussions with the local community and artisans will take place prior to construction starting."
He paid tribute to Mayor Patricia de Lille and Western Cape Premier Helen Zille for their commitment to make the new development succeed.
He was optimistic, he said, that "Cape Town's first integrated housing development was a harbinger of how housing projects will look in the future".
