THE eThekwini Municipality has clarified that the Drummond area under Ward 103 has not been rezoned but that only “a change in nomenclature” took place to avoid “potential ambiguity between municipal land-use zoning and future agricultural land classification and protection mechanisms”.

This after some residents in the area had expressed concerns over suspicions that the area had been “secretly” rezoned from an agricultural and farmland area to a small residential and then full-scale high density residential zone.

A PR councillor in the Ward, Mxolisi Khubisa, said these concerns were brought to his attention by residents who expressed outrage at the alleged rezoning which had bypassed “mandatory local government planning frameworks”.

“The community’s biggest grievance centers on the total failure of the municipality to execute intensive public participation and social compacts, which are legally protected under constitutional and local government planning acts. Local land use by-laws dictate that any broad-scale zoning shift requires rigorous statutory transparency. This includes prominent on-site placards, advertisements in local newspapers, listings in the Government Gazette, dedicated community engagement workshops, and an open 28-to-30-day objection window. Residents state that absolutely none of these steps were followed, leaving them entirely in the dark while major spatial shifts occurred right on their doorsteps,” said Khubisa.

The municipality’s marketing and communications director Mandla Nsele, however, confirmed that rather than a rezoning, there was a change in terms “introduced during the 2018/19 review of the eThekwini Municipality Land Use Scheme applicable to the Outer West (OWS Version 1.3)”.

“Its purpose was to distinguish the municipality’s land-use zoning terminology, as regulated through the eThekwini Municipality Land Use Scheme, from the agricultural land classifications and designations contemplated under the national legislative framework, thereby avoiding potential ambiguity between municipal land-use zoning and future agricultural land classification and protection mechanisms.

“The agricultural land-use matrix, the objectives of the zone, and the applicable development controls remained unchanged. Accordingly, the amendment did not constitute a rezoning of individual properties and did not, in itself, facilitate additional residential development, subdivision, increased density, or the conversion of agricultural land to non-agricultural purposes.

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“The process is undertaken in accordance with the applicable legislative and municipal requirements and includes the necessary technical assessment and public participation processes. Ward councillors form part of the relevant public participation process and are afforded the opportunity to engage with, consider, and provide input on proposed Scheme amendments affecting their respective wards. Following completion of the prescribed review, consultation, and municipal approval processes, Scheme Reviews are submitted to Full Council for consideration and ratification.

“Accordingly, the 2018/19 Scheme Review, including the amendment to the name of the agricultural zone, was subject to the applicable public participation and municipal governance processes and was ultimately ratified by full council,” said Nsele.

He added that the change in terminology was not done “unilaterally or outside the established statutory and municipal approval framework”.

“It is important to distinguish a Scheme Review amendment from a site-specific land development or rezoning application. Any application seeking to amend the zoning of a particular property, increase development rights, introduce additional land uses, permit subdivision, or facilitate more intensive development is assessed separately on its individual merits.

“Such applications are required to follow the applicable statutory application and public participation processes and must be considered against the relevant legislative and policy framework, including Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act (SPLUMA) the Municipal Planning By-law, the applicable Land Use Scheme, the Municipal Spatial Development Framework, and other relevant sectoral plans and policies.

“The submission of a rezoning application does not create an entitlement to approval. Each application must be evaluated with due regard to its spatial, environmental, infrastructure, engineering, agricultural, social, and economic implications, as applicable. Where an application may have implications for agricultural land, the relevant agricultural legislation and the requirements of the competent agricultural authority must also be considered.”

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