The City of Cape Town will be hosting additional meetings with communities from Mitchell’s Plain, Khayelitsha, Mfuleni, and Nomzamo about the review of the spatial development frameworks (SDFs) for the Mitchell’s Plain, Khayelitsha and Helderberg planning districts.

At the meetings, residents will have another opportunity to engage with City officials about their challenges, needs, and priorities insofar as it relates to planning in their local areas. Officials will also explain to residents the process we are undertaking to prepare the SDFs and how this will affect local developments in these planning districts.

Residents, interest groups, and stakeholders are encouraged to attend one of the following meetings:

Mitchell’s Plain: 22 January 2020 at the Lentegeur Civic Centre, Merrydale Avenue, Lentegeur. The meeting will take place from 19:00 to 20:30.

Khayelitsha: 28 January 2020 at the Eyethu Multipurpose Hall in Tanga Street, Fsection. The meeting will take place from 19:00 to 20:30.

Nomzamo: 29 January 2020 at the Nomzamo Community Hall, Michael Street, Nomzamo. The meeting will take place from 19:00 to 20:30.

Mfuleni: 30 January 2020 at the Mfuleni Community Hall, School Street, Mfuleni. The meeting will take place from 19:00 to 20:30.

‘We hosted nearly 30 meetings across Cape Town in November and December last year and involved as many residents as possible to help us identify the challenges, needs and priorities in their areas. During this first round the communities from Lentegeur, Khayelitsha, Mfuleni and Nomzamo asked for another opportunity to participate in this process. I am encouraging residents to please attend these meetings as they have a wealth of knowledge and firsthand experience of the areas they live in. Their contributions and input is much needed,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Marian Nieuwoudt.

Background information:

The City is in the process of updating the spatial development frameworks (SDFs) for the eight planning districts with the latest information about the state of the population, employment levels and income; the state of the urban and natural environment and heritage; state of development; the supply of and demand for housing; local economy; property market; and current services and infrastructure.

All of this information is included in a Baseline and Analysis Report (BaAR) for each district, inclusive of the challenges, needs and opportunities on a local planning level.

The BaAR documents are available on the City’s website and residents can submit their comments until 31 January 2020.

The review of the district SDFs will be based on the BaARs and the inputs received for the respective districts. It is therefore crucial for community leaders and stakeholders in each district to participate in this process and to comment on the BaARs.

It is also important for the City and residents to consider the current situation in each planning district before we embark on a review of proposals and guidelines of the respective district SDFs.

The district SDFs will be finalised during further rounds of public participation in the coming months. These will deal with the concepts and the final proposals.

‘The SDFs will be the City’s response to manage urban growth on a district level and in a manner that is sustainable, resilient, and equitable. It will determine how we should intervene on a local planning level to mitigate against constraints, and to enhance opportunities that will improve residents’ quality of living.

‘The plans will focus on the nature and location of development on a local level to promote economic growth and job creation. It will guide the City’s decisions on how and where the private sector and public sector can and should pursue development; how land should be used; and where we should protect our natural environment and resources to become more resilient to climate change and other shocks, prevent urban sprawl, but also ensure that we direct our resources to vulnerable communities,’ said Alderman Nieuwoudt.

Once approved by the City Council, the district SDFs will guide future decisions about developments, land uses, and interventions to create integrated and inclusive communities across Cape Town.

Source: City Of Cape Town