AFTER years of unhappiness by residents of municipal flats in Isipingo, eThekwini Municipality is finally rolling up its sleeves to inspect the state of rental housing in Orient Hills.

Also read: Isipingo flat dwellers to get title deeds soon

Ward 90 councillor, Shad Nowbuth, said a decision was taken at a special meeting on February 20, that the city’s Human Settlements and Infrastructure Unit will conduct the assessments.

“The assessments, once completed and handed over to Senior Management in Human Settlements for its attention, will include areas that require repairs, costs of repairs, and a maintenance plan,” said Nowbuth.

In 2023, eThekwini said it was moving towards giving ownership to tenants, some of whom have been renting the flats for almost 50 years. After 1994 they were promised title deeds but nothing materialised.

Over the years, many flat dwellers have complained that the buildings were falling into disrepair as eThekwini had seemingly neglected upkeep. Nowbuth said 17 blocks of flats in Orient Hills comprising 464 units will be assessed.

“The work is to be carried out by specialist teams that will include a structural engineer, a mechanical engineer, a civil engineer, and an electrical engineer. This is being done in preparation for the handover of the housing units to beneficiaries,” said Nowbuth.

He further requested tenants to allow the engineers unhindered access to their units to fast-track the process.

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