| City doubles funding to SPCA | <p>The City of Cape Town has extended its agreement with the Cape of Good Hope SPCA to provide support services to the Law Enforcement Department. The first three-year service level agreement was worth R4,5 million and this time the City is increasing the allocation to R9 million for the same period.</p><span><figure class="figure-credits left"><img class="responsive" alt="placeholder" src="http://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Centre/spca2.jpg" /><figcaption>
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</span>The SPCA provides veterinary and general animal welfare services to the City that are required in terms of the Animal By-law but do not reside within the Law Enforcement Department, which is mandated to enforce the by-law.<p>The agreement effectively means that the SPCA supports Law Enforcement with the impoundment of stray animals or animals involved in attacks and homes them for the prescribed impoundment periods.</p><p>The City’s Animal Control Unit deals with hundreds of complaints every month, including domestic animal nuisances, roaming cattle, and other livestock and dog attacks. In the first five months of this year, the Unit impounded 140 animals, responded to 90 animal attacks and served 124 compliance notices in terms of the Animal By-law.</p><span><figure class="figure-credits right"><img class="responsive" alt="placeholder" src="http://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Centre/spca1.jpg" /><figcaption>
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</span>‘Partnering with an animal welfare organisation like the SPCA is of utmost importance to the City and there is immense value in outsourcing animal welfare matters to those with the requisite experience instead of trying to recreate that capacity within the City. This focus on partnerships is in line with our Organisational Development and Transformation Plan and most importantly it helps us protect more animals that are left destitute and build safer communities by addressing threats where they exist.<p>‘I think the fact that we doubled our funding is a clear intent of our commitment to the cause of animals, but society in general. With this new agreement, the City of Cape Town provides more funding for animal welfare than any other municipality in the country,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security; and Social Services, Alderman JP Smith.</p><p>During the last financial year the SPCA provided much-needed services to 9 279 stray animals, 132 seized animals and 208 impounded animals. The funding provided for these animals by the City of Cape Town contributed significantly towards their welfare by enabling the organisation to maintain the highest standards of animal husbandry and care, while providing a safe and comfortable haven for these animals.</p><span><figure class="figure-credits left"><img class="responsive" alt="placeholder" src="http://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Centre/spca3.jpg" /><figcaption>
<p> © City of Cape Town</p> </figcaption> </figure></span>‘The benefits derived from the signing of this service level agreement will allow us to focus on our core business, the prevention of cruelty to animals, instead of being preoccupied with raising sorely needed operating funds to take care of the city’s many thousands of stray, impounded and seized animals admitted into our care following the curtailment of services offered by the Atlantis Pound.<p>‘The City has consistently demonstrated its sincere commitment to the welfare and well-being of animals by enabling not only the SPCA, but the Cape Animal Welfare Forum to deliver a world-class service that would otherwise be out of reach for many indigent animal owners – including subsistence livestock keepers and working horse owners – by co-funding projects and promulgating and enforcing legislation to help ensure the rights of animals. Long may this partnership endure,’ said Cape of Good Hope SPCA CEO, Allan Perrins.</p><p><br><strong>End</strong><br></p> | 2017-07-19T22:00:00Z | | | | | | | 1 | | | |
| Drought crisis: more than 100 private sector water ideas being scrutinised | <p>The City thanks all of the private sector players who took part in this process. The RFI solicited interest from for-profit and non-profit entities in forming possible partnerships with the City to supply, install, and operate temporary plants at various locations along the sea shore and at certain inland locations, for the injection of drinking water – the standards of which are defined by SANS 241 of 2015 – into the City’s water distribution network. </p><p>‘Our Water and Sanitation Management Department is currently busy with the technical scrutiny of the inputs received. We will communicate in more detail as soon as possible. The proposed solutions are varied, as one would expect from a wide ranging call for information and ideas. It must be stressed that the temporary installation of water plants is intended to build resilience and to ensure that the households and businesses of Cape Town are not adversely affected by acute shortages of surface water. </p><p>‘Furthermore, it is important to distinguish between the inability to cater for water demand under normal climatic conditions and the inability to cater for demand due to an extreme and protracted drought. The latter applies to us. The intensity of the current severe drought could not have been foreseen. The City has been using water well under its registered allocation as per the requirements of the National Department of Water and Sanitation. Despite our population growth, our water demand has remained relatively flat,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Informal Settlements, Water and Waste Services; and Energy, Councillor Xanthea Limberg.</p><p>Due to the unprecedented protracted drought that we are currently experiencing and the unpredictability of rainfall patterns going forward due to climate change, the City has adopted a resilience-based approach whereby various supply schemes are being accelerated and which could be scaled up quickly if required. </p><p>‘Not only do we seek to navigate the City safely out of this drought period, but we seek to ensure that over the medium- to long-term we put in place the required measures to ensure that we can withstand future droughts, no matter their intensity,’ said Councillor Limberg. </p><p>For information on how to adhere to the less than 87-litre usage requirement, residents should please visit the water restrictions page on the City’s website: <a href="http://www.capetown.gov.za/thinkwater">www.capetown.gov.za/thinkwater</a> and visit our new water calculator <a href="http://bit.ly/ThinkWaterCalculatorCT">http://bit.ly/ThinkWaterCalculatorCT</a></p><p>Residents can contact the City via email to <a href="mailto:water@capetown.gov.za">water@capetown.gov.za</a> for queries or to report contraventions of the water restrictions (evidence should be provided to assist the City’s enforcement efforts), or they can send an SMS to 31373.</p><p>Water supplied by the City remains safe to drink and is tested in accordance with the most rigorous safety standards.</p><span><div class="image-gallery-slider img-gal-1" id="img-gal-1" data-slides="3" data-slide="1" style="height:493.5px;"><div class="image-gallery-content" style="height:414px;">
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| City’s Pelican Park Clinic construction takes off | <span><figure class="figure-credits left"><img class="responsive" alt="placeholder" src="http://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Centre/sod%20turning%20pelican%20park2.jpg" style="width:576px;" /><figcaption>
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<p>The City of Cape Town’s Health Department today officially signalled the start of its flagship construction project for this financial year, with a sod-turning event in Pelican Park.</p><p>The Pelican Park Clinic is being built at a cost of just over R46 million, with approximately three-quarters of the budget dedicated to the construction and the rest for information systems and technology equipment and furnishings. </p><p>‘This is the biggest project ever to be undertaken by City Health and it is also the first facility to be built from scratch since the construction of the Khayelitsha Environmental Health building. City Health is certainly very proud that we’ve reached this point and I’m hoping that the sense of pride will infect the locals for whom this facility promises easy access to quality healthcare and an improved quality of life,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security; and Social Services, Alderman JP Smith.</p><p>The building will sport a number of green elements, such as intelligent lighting, reuse of water for irrigation, and low-maintenance finishes including face-brick and aluminium windows, PVC gutters and drainpipes, and a tiled roof. It is anticipated that the project will be completed by the end of 2018.</p><span><figure class="figure-credits right"><img class="responsive" alt="placeholder" src="http://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Centre/sod%20turning%20pelican%20park1.jpg" style="width:576px;" /><figcaption>
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© City of Cape Town</p> </figcaption> </figure><p>‘The ceremonial sod-turning today is the culmination of years of planning. This clinic will be the next layer in the community’s development which started several years ago with the New Horizons housing project. The City is committed to providing quality facilities geared towards service delivery and meeting the needs of our residents, as set out in the Organisational Development and Transformation Plan. The importance of this moment cannot be over-emphasised and I look forward to the day that we open the doors to clients for the first time,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Area South, Councillor Eddie Andrews.</p><p>Once completed, the facility will provide a full basket of primary health services:</p><ul><li><div style="text-align:left;">maternal and child health (immunisation, growth monitoring, Vitamin A, deworming, sick children and minor ailments)</div></li><li><div style="text-align:left;">reproductive health (sexually transmitted infections, family planning, cervical smears, HIV testing and management)</div></li><li><div style="text-align:left;">basic antenatal care</div></li><li><div style="text-align:left;">nutrition supplement programme and prevention of mother-to-child transmission</div></li><li><div style="text-align:left;">adult curative and chronic services (TB, HIV and anti-retroviral management)</div></li></ul><span><figure class="figure-credits left"><img class="responsive" alt="placeholder" src="http://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Centre/artist%20impression%201.png" style="width:429px;" /><figcaption>
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© City of Cape Town</p> </figcaption> </figure></span></span></span>Other City Health projects set to get under way in this financial year include the new Fisantekraal Clinic and the replacement of Zakhele Clinic in Khayelitsha. Several upgrades are also in progress or due to start in the coming months at the following clinics: Uitsig, Elsies River, Ikhwezi, Masincedane and Sarepta. <p>‘The build projects and upgrades will improve the overall client experience and boost staff morale. As part of the City’s enhancement of primary healthcare, we have launched an IT modernisation project to investigate the introduction of an appointment system to cut long queues and waiting times at clinics, as well as an electronic records system that will allow clients to visit any City clinic as their folder will be available online and not confined to a shelf in a specific clinic. City Health does life-saving work on a daily basis, but its systems are outdated and initiatives like these are meant to breathe new life into the way things are done,’ added Alderman Smith.</p><p><br><strong>End</strong><br></p><span><span><span></span><p style="text-align:left;"> </p></span></span> | 2017-07-18T22:00:00Z | | | | | | | 1 | | | |
| Affordable housing developments to proceed in Inner-city Precinct | <span><div class="notification with-heading dark-copy pink bg-light-grey"><div class="graphic with-border">
<i class="info note"></i> </div><div class="desc"><h4>Note to editors</h4><p>
<b></b>the following speech was delivered by Cllr Herron at the fourth annual Affordable Housing Africa conference today, 18 July 2017, to announce the City’s package of plans to expedite the delivery of housing opportunities.</p></div></div></span>Where people live matters. <br><p>This statement underpins the entire focus of the City of Cape Town’s Transport and Urban Development Authority (TDA). </p><p>Six months ago I assumed political responsibility for the oversight of the TDA. Today I am proud to discuss our first steps in creating new, affordable well-located housing opportunities for our residents that will begin to reverse the tragic spatial impacts of apartheid.</p><p>Apartheid spatial planning consigned the majority of Capetonians to settlements far away from work, where residents had access to limited services and opportunities. </p><p>Apart from creating a fragmented city, apartheid spatial planning was also characterised by little or no investment to stimulate economic activity in these settlements.</p><p>We must acknowledge that, to date, our efforts to radically transform Cape Town’s spatial reality to enable all of our residents to participate more equally in the local economy have fallen short. </p><p>The dire need for housing for Cape Town’s most vulnerable households is the single biggest challenge we are facing as a local government today.</p><p>We estimate that approximately 650 000 families earning less than R13 000 a month will rely on us for some kind of assistance for housing between now and 2032. This is partly as a result of unemployment, slow economic growth, and rapid urbanisation – Cape Town’s population has increased by 56% between 1996 and 2016. This trend is set to continue. </p><p>Furthermore, our task is exacerbated by the unprecedented growth in the property market in areas close to key nodes of employment, and along public transport routes.</p><p>The investment affirms that Cape Town is a city that works and that more and more South Africans opt to settle here. The flipside of the coin is, however, that inequality is worsened when these investments mostly benefit those who already have access to the free market economy and employment opportunities.</p><p>As much as we welcome the investment, there is an obligation on the City and on the private sector to ensure that the inner-city and other central business districts are accessible and affordable to those who are still living on the periphery. This obligation stems from the commitment that is required from all of us to make Cape Town an inclusive and liveable space where there is room for everyone, and where we share equal access to opportunities, regardless of race and income. </p><p>The City must also mitigate against the displacement of residents, especially tenants in rental properties, who have lived their entire lives in suburbs like Woodstock and Salt River where high-end developments are rising at a rapid pace because of the proximity to the Cape Town central business district (CBD).</p><p>When the Transport and Urban Development Authority was established on 1 January this year, we said that the City must turn a corner in our approach to affordable housing. We said that from now on we will leverage City-owned assets such as land and property to achieve spatial transformation to create an inclusive urban fabric.</p><p>We made a commitment to do everything within our means to expedite new housing developments that are inclusive and to ensure that housing opportunities for lower-income households are situated on well-located land, close to places of employment and social amenities. </p><p>Part of the undertaking is to, within our means, provide those who are facing emergency situations with safe, decent, and affordable temporary housing as close as possible to where they are working; or at least as close as possible to where they can get onto a bus, train or minibus-taxi.</p><p>Over the past few months we have been working to make this commitment a reality and today I can announce that we have identified 10 City-owned sites in the city centre, Salt River and Woodstock to be used for affordable housing opportunities for those who need it most. </p><p>Three of these sites have already been allocated to social housing institutions. The statutory land-use applications are under way and we expect construction to commence in due course:</p><ul><li><div style="text-align:left;">Two erven along Pine Road and six erven along Dillon Lane. The Pine Road development will commence first, with the Dillon Lane development as the second phase. The proposed development will be between two and four storeys, with a mixture of studio, one-, and two-bedroom units. Together these two sites will provide approximately 240 social housing residential units, meaning it is State-subsidised rental housing for households with a monthly income of less than R15 000. Beneficiaries must be registered on the City’s housing database and willing and able to pay rent</div></li><li><div style="text-align:left;">The development of the Salt River Market in Albert Road will provide a combination of approximately 476 affordable housing opportunities – from social housing (subsidised rental units for households with a monthly income of less than R15 000) to GAP rental housing (for households with a monthly income of between R3 500 and R20 000). Beneficiaries must be registered on the City’s housing database and willing and able to pay rent. Retail and office space will form part of the development to cross-subsidise the housing opportunities and to ensure its long-term financial sustainability</div></li></ul><p>Furthermore, we intend to develop the City of Cape Town’s very first inner-city transitional housing project in Salt River, less than 5 km from the Cape Town CBD. More information about the development of this site will be available once we have acquired Council’s approval at the next Council meeting on 27 July 2017.</p><p>The proposed development of the Salt River site is only the first; there are more transitional housing projects in the pipeline – in Salt River, as well as in other areas in Cape Town. In fact, our officials are doing an audit of City-owned land parcels in Goodwood and Bellville. We will confirm the locations once we have established that the potential sites are suitable to include transitional housing.</p><p>Last year in the run-up to the local government elections we made a commitment to do everything within our power to expedite inclusionary housing developments and to ensure that housing opportunities for lower-income households are situated close to places of employment and social amenities.</p><p>Apart from sites intended for transitional housing and social housing mentioned above, we have also identified five City-owned land parcels for the development of affordable housing opportunities in Salt River, Woodstock, and the inner-city.</p><p>The manner in which we are approaching these developments represents a 180-degree change in how we will confront the urgent demand for affordable and inclusionary housing in future. </p><p>We are moving away from a piecemeal development approach towards a Precinct Development Approach which is to be applied first in these inner-city areas. This is a strategic change in line with the City’s transit-oriented development strategic framework that emphasises the need for densification and intensification in transit-accessible precincts – thus, well-located precincts that are close to public transport and employment opportunities.</p><p>Importantly, from now on the City will also apply an investment-like approach, where appropriate, in developing City-owned sites for housing opportunities.</p><p>This means we will, as is the case with the Foreshore Freeway Precinct, make City-owned land parcels available to prospective bidders from the private sector for development. </p><p>When it comes to inclusive and affordable housing, however, the TDA will employ other financial and related investment mechanisms to ensure that these housing opportunities are not outpriced and are integrated within the communities where they are located.</p><p>In so doing, the City is signalling that affordable housing is not merely the provision of units to lower-income households, but a long-term investment in our urban fabric and form. </p><p>We are committed to delivering high quality housing which will improve residents’ living standards. We will apply methodologies, typologies and architecture, as well as energy and water-saving design methods to enhance and rejuvenate our central business districts and suburbs which, in the end, must attract further investment from the private sector.</p><p>The prospectus for the development of the five sites in the city centre, Woodstock and Salt River will be issued within the next two months, save to say that it will encourage ‘tenure-blind’ affordable housing developments where the design of the overall development is integrated into the surrounding area and does not distinguish between the differences in income and tenure within the development.</p><p>We want these developments to offer a mixture of affordable housing typologies, including social housing, combined with market-related housing (for those who can pay). </p><p>In some instances, we would also encourage mixed-use developments – thus, a combination of residential and retail and commercial units so that the business units can cross-subsidise the affordable housing units, in so doing ensuring the long-term sustainability of the development.</p><p>The details of the sites and all of the other information that bidders may need in devising and submitting their proposals will be presented in the prospectus. </p><p>Again, once issued, the approach will mirror the one that we have followed in the proposed development of the Foreshore Freeway Precinct.</p><p>The precinct-led development in Woodstock and Salt River is a pivotal introduction to a customer-centric approach to housing delivery. It is a new way of doing business which we will apply in all of the other precincts where we intend to provide affordable and inclusionary housing on City-owned land.</p><p>The prospectus will be a public document so that all residents and interested and affected parties can have access to all of the available information.</p><p>Going hand-in-hand with this approach is the message that we need our residents, the private sector, and non-governmental organisations in the housing realm to support us.</p><p>To conclude, in 2016 Council adopted the City’s new Organisational Development and Transformation Plan which reoriented the administration to be more customer-centric. This chartered a new course for the City to apply a transformational, data-driven implementation agenda in the years ahead in addressing the socio-economic challenges and transport inefficiencies that are reflected in the built environment due to apartheid spatial planning.</p><p>To reiterate: we will, in line with our transit-oriented development strategic framework, identify housing opportunities closer to our MyCiTi stations and rail stations. </p><p>The City is also developing a strategy for the provision of housing opportunities in all of the central business districts – not only the Cape Town CBD, Salt River and Woodstock, but also in smaller inner-cities such as Bellville, Parow, Khayelitsha, Claremont, Mitchells Plain, Wynberg and Plumstead. </p><p>Not only will we identify suitable land, but also buildings within these CBDs that can be developed or converted into affordable rental accommodation.</p><p>Providing affordable housing opportunities closer to where people work or close to public transport is non-negotiable. In this way, we will create a more integrated and inclusive city where residents have equal access to opportunities. </p><p>As I have stated, where people live matters.</p><p>There are ample opportunities for affordable housing in many areas across the metro, and the development and availability of affordable rental accommodation in central areas of the city must play a key role in the future development of Cape Town.</p><p>Also, on 20 June 2017 the City announced that we are seeking more social housing partners to up-scale and expedite affordable housing opportunities on well-located land across Cape Town. <br> <br>The City currently has partnership agreements with five social housing companies to develop and manage affordable rental housing stock for lower- and middle-income residents. </p><p>Given the acute demand for affordable housing, the City needs more social housing partners to help us up-scale and expedite the number of opportunities delivered in the short- to medium-term. </p><p>Releasing more of the City’s land for social housing development will provide us and our new social housing partners with the ideal opportunity to work together to increase the delivery of affordable housing opportunities.</p><p>The City is therefore seeking to enter into partnership agreements with more companies who are accredited with the Social Housing Regulatory Authority (SHRA) as stipulated by the Social Housing Act in order to increase the capacity and pace at which housing can be delivered.</p><p>We want to sign full partnership agreements with companies that are already experienced in developing and managing their own rental stock, but we are also looking for conditional partners who will be given capacity support to develop and manage their first projects. Once they have proven their ability to deliver, their agreements may be transitioned into full partnerships with the City.</p><p>Companies who are accredited with the SHRA and interested in entering into partnerships with the City have been requested to register on the City’s social housing database before the end of this month. </p><p>We want partners who are just as committed as we are to addressing the critical need for housing. They must be obsessive about delivery and quality, and they must be willing to serve the beneficiaries of these projects with passion.</p><p>This term of office is about implementation. </p><p>There is no room for delays, and so there can and will be no pause in the execution of service delivery. </p><p>We are determined and committed to make Cape Town an inclusive city.</p><p>We need a similar commitment from developers in the private sector to assist us in providing inclusionary housing on well-located land. I am eager to get their proposals on how they intend to do things differently going forward.</p><p>There are no quick fixes and change does not happen overnight, but this is a start.</p><p><br><strong>End </strong><br></p> | 2017-07-17T22:00:00Z | | | | | | | 1 | | | |
