School’s boarding facilities remain unoccupied due to delays in obtaining a permanent occupation certificate
LYNDHURST – The building has been inspected and complies with the National Building Regulations and all the certificate of compliance have been issued.
With Nokuthula LSEN School operating with a temporary occupational health certificate, both local and provincial governments are confident that they will soon remedy the situation.
The school was built to accommodate children with special needs. The facilities include dormitories for boarding purposes, however, the facilities remain unused as the school has a temporary certificate issued by the City of Johannesburg.
According to the City, a temporary certificate is issued in terms of Section 14 (1A) of the National Building Regulations (NRB), it is temporary because there are outstanding town planning issues, not necessarily related to building regulations.
Poppy Louw, the spokesperson for the City’s Department of Development Planning, said the building was inspected and complies with the national building regulations and all the certificates of compliance have been issued.
Louw added that the City is constantly engaging with the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) on the matter through their consultants to finalise the process and issue a permanent certificate. “The current status of our engagement is that there are land-use and administration processes and documentation that the department must finalise.”
When asked if anyone one is to be blamed for the delay in issuing the certificate, Louw said no.
Gauteng Department of Education spokesperson Steve Mabona, however, blamed the delay on the township establishment legal processes which are currently underway with the City.
He said these processes have to do with the determination of rates and taxes and other requirements of the municipality since the site has been successfully rezoned for educational purposes. “The amendment of the township establishment is the responsibility of the City of Johannesburg Municipality.”
“GDID [Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development] has reported to GDE that it has submitted all the required documents to the municipality, in order to be granted a permanent occupation certificate, and currently awaits the City to finalise the evaluation of the documents submitted.”
Mabona added that the certificate of occupancy is a document issued by local government or building department certifying a building’s compliance with applicable building codes and other laws and indicating it to be in a condition suitable for occupancy. “An implication for continuing to operate in a building without a valid occupational certificate is that they may face a fine or eviction until compliance is reached. For the school in question, this would not be applicable given that the certificate was extended for a further 180 days.”
Mabona conceded that the school is fully functional and operational except for the boarding facilities which remain unoccupied due to delays in obtaining a permanent occupation certificate from the City.
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