POLOKWANE – This follows after the Polokwane Municipality’s announcement of its plan to build proper student accommodation and resolving the issue of illegal land use in the city with one project.
Polokwane Mayor, Thembi Nkadimeng, said the majority of illegal land use in the city happens in the downtown area of the Central Business District (CBD) – Buite, Boom, Bok, Dahl, Devenish, Excelsior, and Onder Streets – which is related to student boarding accommodation and rental units.
She said some of the most serious problems associated with illegal land use are illegal water and electricity connections and temporary partitions within the structures.
“We want to build student accommodation in the province to house students who further their studies in the city. We want students to stay in decent houses so they can focus all their attention on their studies instead of worrying about their accommodation. Another concern we have of the illegal land use are large groups of people (20 or more) living in these houses which have numerous risks as after-effect and can lead to high crime rates in the areas,” she said.
She added that the area in the downtown CBD is in a state of decay and students are left with no other option but to reside there in informal accommodation in an appalling state.
“The municipality will partner with developers and possibly institutions of higher learning to realise the success of this programme so our children are accommodated in befitting conditions,” Nkadimeng concluded.
