The City of Joburg has committed to turning the city around by reclaiming hijacked buildings and turning them into affordable housing projects for the poor.
“The city hopes to transform the entire metropolis, including its eastern suburbs, into a so-called construction site,” said PR Wards 61 and 62 Clr Bongani Nkwanyana.
He said the city hopes to provide residents with affordable accommodation, free from the property hijackers.
“The city has thus come full circle with a large-scale development tender known as the Inner-City Rejuvenation Project of which the core mandate is to release abandoned or hijacked buildings back to their rightful owners or to the private sector.
“In the case of the private sector, emphasis would be on job creation. There would need to be substantial clarification on their part in terms of the number of people who will be employed to develop the property,” said Nkwanyana.
He said the project has the additional mandate of growing the urban economy while ensuring an environmentally-friendly urban space.
As for when the project will be officially implemented, Nkwanyana said it is likely to go full steam ahead before the end of the year.
“While I cannot pinpoint exact dates, I can confirm that the project will start towards the end of this year,” he said.
To date, a total of 84 abandoned or hijacked buildings have been identified.
These have been approved as part of the rejuvenation project and will be developed.
“We urge developers to funnel occupants back into reclaimed buildings in the correct manner after the buildings have been rejuvenated,” said Nkwanyana.
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