One thousand homes in Delf handed to new owners

By Mandisi Tyulu
23 October 2008

Today its been 10 months after one of the biggest home invasions in South Africa’s history where 1 000 homes in Delft will be handed to their rightful new owners by, the Minister of Housing Lindiwe Sisulu.

The damage to the homes following the invasion has been repaired by construction completed and the homes allocated according to the agreed N2 Gateway formula of 70% to former occupants of informal settlements, who are mostly from Joe Slovo and 30% to families that used to live in backyards in the vicinity of the development.

Approximately 1700 Delft Symphony homes in various stages of completion were invaded last December by backyard dwellers duped into believing that if they did not grab the homes they would all be allocated to former informal settlement residents.

The invaders were evicted in February by order of the Cape High Court. Some of these families now live in a temporary camp provided by the City of Cape Town (called Blikkiestown by the residents); approximately 100 families have elected to stay in shacks along Symphony Way opposite the project – and about 200 families who were verified N2 Gateway beneficiaries have been officially allocated new homes.

The Delft Symphony homes are of the Breaking New Ground (BNG) variety, the new standard introduced with the new integrated housing policy of the same name to replace RDP production.

Housing spokesperson Xolani Xundu says, whereas RDP homes were 20-27 square meters single bedroom structures, BNG homes are 40 square metres in extent and contain two bedrooms, a bathroom, open plan living area and kitchen. The first BNG home in the country was handed over to an Aunty Katie Hoffman in Delft Symphony in June 2007.

‘The N2 Gateway is altogether delivering nearly 11000 homes in Delft, 2400 of them in Symphony. Approximately 9000 of the 11000 total will be given free to families qualifying for the full housing subsidy from government.”


Xundu says the remainders are a combination of affordable bonded and rental stock, for families that do not qualify for the subsidy.


‘This is part of government to make sure that people are housed in this area that faces an acute shortage of house and there was another commitment that next month another houses will be handed over, says Xundu.