City to implement the Improvement Districts

By Mandisi Tyulu
04 May 2009

In November 2000, Cape Town became the first major city in South Africa to implement a fully constituted improvement district for its city centre.

Alderman Ian Neilson, Mayoral Committee Member for Finance, Economic & Social Development and Tourism says this important step has been instrumental in developing a sustainable inner city model and arresting the urban decay that has beset other cities in the country.

All in all, property owners in the Central City Improvement District have contributed over R150 million towards the rejuvenation of Cape Town’s inner city, which in turn, has attracted billions of rands of investment and facilitated hundreds of new jobs, says Neilson.

“This phenomenal success has led to the creation of another 15 City Improvement Districts (CIDs) in Cape Town, while applications for four others are being processed, and another 25 communities have expressed interest in establishing CIDs.”

Neilson says to address the growth in CIDs also known as Special Rating Areas; the City of Cape Town has proposed amendments of its CID by-law to align it with the Municipal Property Rates Act and the Municipal Finance Management Act.