The city council is hoping to address the shortage of accommodation in Alexandra by using housing models that work in other countries.
This was said by Dan Bovu, MMC for Housing to a packed audience at SanKopano Community Centre. Alex is beset by housing problems which occasionally flare into conflicts between residents and authorities over illegal occupations and evictions.
Bovu said council was sensitive to the housing challenge of the area and was exploring all options to resolve it. He said they were considering models of high rise buildings that were used in Brazil and Singapore for Alexandra because of the area’s limited and congested space.
This he said would be in conjunction with land acquisition in Modderfontein for 30 000 houses.
Bovu indicated that the development of high rise structures and houses would be done in conjunction with the participation of residents, town planning and certified artisans to guarantee compliance, standards and quality. This he said would be a ‘people housing process’ and relate to city council’s desire to get everyone involved, much like the Jozi@Work programme.
He said the collaborative effort would help reduce the use of external contractors in preference for local ones, thus benefiting the local economy.
