Housing projects in limbo while thousands wait

Several housing projects earmarked for people in informal settlements have not materialised, despite a huge demand and a growing backlog.

As early as 2020 the City was warned that the cancellation of tenders due to the responsiveness clause would have a ripple effect on housing projects.

The warning came after a tender for the construction of civil and electrical infrastructure and top structures for farm 1438 in Sir Lowry's Pass Village was referred back to the Bid Adjudication Committee (BAC).

The committee raised concerns pertaining to a "responsiveness" criterion which required that the tenderer should provide proof that the company operates from an office within 100km of the City of Cape Town.

An internal memorandum written in March 2020 which the Weekend Argus has seen, advised that the criterion seemed to be adequately met.

"We bring to your attention that should a decision be made to cancel this tender: the ramifications thereof will be significant. These terminations result in a knock-on effect which ultimately causes huge time delays to the projects in procuring another contractor," the memo warned.

A different housing development project by Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) known as the Symphony Way Corridor has stalled for three years. The project involved the relocation of three informal communities, namely Freedom Farm, Malawi Camp and Blikkiesdorp into formal housing.

Cape Town International Airport (CTIA) regional general manager, Mark Maclean, said: "We understand that all works are currently suspended, to allow the City, the law enforcement agencies and the contractors an opportunity to identify, agree and implement measures that would protect the development.“

ACSA and the City signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) regarding the development of a strip of land located on the eastern and western side of Symphony Way, now known as Symphony Way Development Corridor and includes the Symphony Way Urban Park.

The airports company required the land for the airport expansion, commercial and industrial development which in turn would likely contribute to the social and economic opportunities for the surrounding communities, said Maclean.

The work included the realignment of the existing runway and the construction of a second parallel runway.

The City's Human Settlements Directorate was solely responsible for the housing component, the relocation of the three informal communities, provision of formal housing and awarding of housing tenders.

And the memo also highlighted that in "recent years" three housing projects, namely Delft, Belhar-Pentech and Kannonkop, the services of contractors were terminated as a result of poor performance.

"These terminations result in a knock-on effect which ultimately causes huge time delays to the projects in procuring another contractor. As a result, the City inevitably also incurs additional costs to appoint another contractor to complete the works. During this period of abeyance, vandalism and theft occurs on site, resulting in the City having to appoint another contractor to rectify the vandalised works, as well as to appoint additional security companies to secure the site," said the communique.

In pleading for the tender for the Sir Lowry's Pass Village development not to be terminated, the ripple effects highlighted included:

* the budget allocated to the project for 2020 and 2021 would not be spent;

* the work and time taken to procure and make the award would have been in vain and fruitless;

* cancelling the tender could result in community uprising and protest;

and that the cancellation would also result in a delay to the project of at least 12 months.

"The City will be doing the community a disservice by not creating much needed employment and housing opportunities for the area.

“Cancelling the tender could be deemed wasteful expenditure as cost was expended on external consultants; on an external due diligence audit: advertising and printing cost and by our internal staff", it was further highlighted.

There were four other tenders that were also affected by the "responsiveness" criterion which related to among others, the ACSA Delft Symphony Way project and government subsidised housing developments.

The future of nine other housing projects including Blueberry Hill, Vrygrond, Highland Drive, Retreat, Pelican Park and Vlakteplaas was also noted to be hanging in the balance should a tender for a panel of civil engineering contractors be terminated.

"We appeal to you to explore all avenues to ensure that the (above) tenders are saved and that the need to cancel is not warranted," pleaded the memorandum.

The City did not respond to questions directly related to the tenders and the housing projects, but merely stated that it proposed a R7.6 billion human settlements budget for the next three years.

"We have a 97% budget spend in the previous financial year... it shows the City makes up for delays where possible, despite intense issues such as criminality, safety, gangsterism and community dynamics," it said.

However, there was no breakdown on how the budget would be spent nor an update on the tenders and the projects flagged in the memorandum.