![Minister Bonginkosi Madikizela, Belhar Ward Councillor Desmond Jaftha and local Pastor Henry Loyd plant the first tree at Belhar Gardens Rental Estate Housing Project in Cape Town Belhar Gardens Rental Estate Housing Project](https://www.westerncape.gov.za/sites/www.westerncape.gov.za/files/assets/departments/human-settlements/images/hs-belhar-gardens-rental-estate.jpg)
Direct intervention by Western Cape Human Settlements Minister Bonginkosi Madikizela ensured that construction an almost doomed housing project was officially commemorated with a tree planting ceremony today. Minister Madikizela said “This project is very close to my heart. While many people thought it would never get off the ground, we managed to get together the right partners to ensure that construction is now underway, and 629 families earning up to R7 500 pm will now have options to rent quality housing at a very affordable rate.”
Development rights for the R207 million rand project were issued in 2006, yet were in danger of lapsing due to a number of issues with the preferred social housing company and bulk infrastructure constraints. Minister Madikizela used his executive authority to extent the development rights for a short period, enabling the current social housing institution Madulammoho to step in and get the project underway, ensuring that almost 630 families will soon have affordable roofs over their heads. This type of Ministerial intervention is the first of its kind in South Africa.
The ceremony was also represented by other partners in the development, namely the City of Cape Town, CalgroM3 (the contractor), The Social Housing Regulatory Authority (SHRA) the National Housing Finance Corporation and Nedbank.
The development reflects the Departments strategic focus in providing affordable housing opportunities made possible through the contribution of multiple partners.
The 629 social housing units will consist of the following:
Belhar Gardens Rental Estate will provide rental accommodation for two target groups.
SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE PROJECT
Landscaping:
Energy efficiency:
Zalisile Mbali – Spokesperson for Minister Bonginkosi Madikizela
Tel: 021 483 4798
Cell: 078 600 7729
E-mail: Zalisile.Mbali@westerncape.gov.za