Councillors concerned that infrastructure cannot handle illegal communes

Ward councillors in areas such as Brixton and Sophiatown are fully aware of the massive problem illegal communes have become.

For Sophiatown and surrounding areas, Ward 86 councillor, Philip Kruger said it is a massive problem.

“It is difficult to say how many illegal communes there are because a lot of the communes that have been reported have never been investigated. We really struggle to get feedback from the City,” Kruger said.

He said the lack of by-law enforcement meant the problem has been left to grow to such enormity that there are no longer enough people to investigate or deal with the complaints.

Representing areas such as parts of Westdene, Auckland Park and Brixton is Ward 87 councillor, Bridget Steer, who said she is aware of 905 illegal communes between her ward and the rest of Westdene and ward 69, which includes Westbury.

“The problem is the infrastructure can’t cope because it is illegal densification,” she said.

“Communes usually have two bathrooms and a kitchen area, with the rest of the space being divided into bedrooms. Usually, we have 80 to 90 per cent coverage on an erf and we wind up with eight to 10 bedrooms, each with two people. There are at least 20 people on a property that has an infrastructure which supports only about four.”

Because they are illegal, these properties are not on record and the City cannot plan for them. This affects simple things like a wheelie bin, which all 20 people use. This can cause a litter problem and in turn, a health problem.

Steer said, specifically, student commune owners are supposed to make sure students get to university and back safely, but they are neglecting this.

In fact, according to the Westdene-Sophiatown Residents Association chairperson, Dauw Steyn, many of these property owners do not live in the area and often do not take responsibility for the communes.

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