City publishes second annual spatial trends report depicting land use changes in Cape Town
08 November 2024
The City’s second iteration of the Spatial Trends and Implementation Tracking Report, issued today on World Town Planning Day, gives an overview of development and land use patterns in Cape Town since 2012. The documenting of trends is important for evidence-based planning. The report will provide guidance on spatial policies and interventions needed in ensuring residents’ quality of life, while protecting our finite natural resources and heritage assets.
The City’s Spatial Trends and Implementation Tracking Report gives an overview of development and land use patterns in Cape Town from 2012 to 2024. These include changes in densification and mixed use development, the extent of the city’s built footprint, extent of our natural and agricultural assets, changes in the property market, uptake of new development and human settlement patterns. The report also tracks public investment and projects aimed at restructuring and upgrading urban areas; and monitors public capital expenditure over time.
‘Cape Town’s population has shown phenomenal growth because of the quality of life, economic opportunities, and service delivery. However, given Cape Town’s topography, we have limited land available for development, which means we have to make best use of this scarce resource and in a manner that is cost efficient, and also protective of our natural environment. Where and how we develop land determines how far people need to commute to get to work, and how much the City and its ratepayers need to spend on infrastructure for the provision of water, sanitation, and electricity, and a road network to support mobility. This means, we need to prevent urban sprawl which has a direct impact on economic growth, money and time spent on commuting, inclusivity, spatial justice, and Cape Town’s collective resilience to climate change and unforeseen shocks,’ said the City’s Deputy Mayor and Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews.
‘I encourage residents and professionals in the urban planning and built environment, academics, and investors to go online, and scrutinise this user-friendly report. The data and trends are depicted in graphics and maps, and key summaries are provided. It is easy to read, and gives an overview of changes in land use and development patterns over the past decade. The spatial trends over this period will assist us in planning better for the future and inform our spatial policies,’ said Alderman Andrews.
The Spatial Trends and Implementation Tracking Report is available here.
The indicators in the report depict significant spatial trends within Cape Town.
Urban expansion continues to reshape the city's landscape, while environmental impact assessments highlight the ongoing efforts to balance development with sustainability. Residential density in targeted areas shows a shift towards more inward growth, indicating progress towards policy objectives.
Residential density is very different in various communities, noting that the report gives an overview of formal vs informal densities and does not adequately summarise families living on the same land or in the same building. Densification is important as it allows more families to live closer to job opportunities, closer to available public transport such as minibus-taxi, bus and train networks, as well as existing schools and social facilities.
Non-residential development trends within the City’s development corridors and key employment nodes suggest various sectors’ locational preferences and the reinforcement of these existing spatial patterns.
The density and diversity of land use, alongside the prevalence of informality, provide a nuanced view of the city’s evolving spatial patterns and trends.
Additionally, the data on government-subsidised housing and capital expenditure underscore the City's commitment to inclusive growth and infrastructure development.
Some interesting trends:
• The urban footprint, or built environment consisting of human-made structures, increased by 3 608 hectares from 2012 to 2023. This expansion equates to an area the size of 17x Century City developments.
• The number of formal residential dwellings increased from 783 000 in 2018 to 850 000 in 2022, but this excludes the significant number of households living in informal dwellings such as backyarders, in informal settlements or recently unauthorised land occupation sites.
• City-wide, gross formal residential density has increased by 24% since 2012 to 11,7 dwelling units per hectare (du/ha) in 2022. In 2023 the net density in informal settlements and unauthorised land occupation sites are currently in the range of 200 - 250du/ha in areas such as Dunoon, Khayelitsha, Wallacedene and Nomzamo.
• From 2012 to 2022, non-residential land uses increased by 13 million m² in Cape Town (from 40 million m² in 2012 to 53 million m² in 2022). This change largely occurred in existing industrial and business areas, reinforcing existing spatial patterns and concentrations of land uses.
• The largest increases in property value between 2012 - 2022 was generally concentrated along the Southern Corridor, Atlantic Seaboard and New Development Areas in Sunningdale, Kraaifontein and Somerset West.
For more information on the City’s Urban Planning and Design projects please visit this link.
High resolution graphics are available here.
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
