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Section 5 Voices of the People: Case Studies of Medium-Density Housing

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Section 5 Voices of the People: Case Studies of Medium-Density Housing SECTION 5 VOICES OF THE PEOPLE: CASE STUDIES OF MEDIUM-DENSITY HOUSING SECTION 5: VOICES OF THE PEOPLE - CASE STUDIES OF MEDIUM-DENSITY HOUSING 189 VOICES OF THE PEOPLE: CASE STUDIES OF MEDIUM-DENSITY HOUSING 1. Overview Table 38: Overview of case studies Date of interviews Project Location Tenure with residents Spring Þeld Terrace Cape Town (South Africa) Sectional title (rental February 2005 and ownership) Carr Gardens Johannesburg (South Africa) Social rental April 2005 Newtown Housing Cooperative Johannesburg (South Africa) Cooperative housing February 2005 Stock Road Cape Town (South Africa) Installment sale March 2005 (eventual individual ownership) Missionvale Nelson Mandela Metro Individual ownership November 2004 (South Africa) Samora Machel Cape Town (South Africa) Individual ownership November 2004 Sakhasonke Village Nelson Mandela Metro Individual ownership March 2007 (South Africa) N2 Gateway – Joe Slovo (Phase1) Cape Town (South Africa) Social rental January 2008 Washington Heights Mutual New York (USA) Rental Housing Association Vashi Navi Mumbai (India) Cooperative housing Vitas Housing Project Manila, Tondo (Philippines) Rental and ownership The majority of South Africans were denied ensure a more equitable resource distribution. 1 human rights and essential livelihood resources for hundreds of years, especially under apartheid. In this regard, the case studies discussed look Since 1994 the country’s Þrst democratically at the extent and implications of community elected government has approved numerous laws participation in the development and imple- and policies, established development programmes, mentation processes of higher-density housing and rati Þed international treaties to ensure the projects. They explore prospects of approaching realisation of basic human rights, as de Þned in the the future delivery of higher-density housing in a South African Constitution. The ability to access more participatory, inclusive manner. This is so resources is closely linked to an individual’s or a that communities are empowered both during community’s capacity to assert their rights. However, and after housing delivery processes to take it is clear that a constitutional promise of rights does ‘ownership’ of the sustainability of their housing not automatically translate into real change or an environments, livelihoods and community improvement in livelihoods, particularly among the capacity development initiatives. poor and marginalised sectors of the population. This is partly because realising rights requires that This approach aims to equip poor citizens citizens understand their rights, participate in the with the appropriate tools and knowledge to development and implementation of laws and policy, effectively claim and defend their rights, so and hold their elected representatives accountable. that they are better able to participate in the development and implementation of pro-poor In the competition for resources, the poor are public policy. Further, an active awareness and often passive role-players and are up against suitable response by of Þcials and developers powerful economic, social, environmental, political to the requirements of achieving sustainability and bureaucratic interests. As a consequence they are some of the overriding factors in the quest often do not receive an equal share and struggle for processes and products that best meet the to meet their basic needs. DAG therefore aims to long-term needs of the poor. strengthen the voices of the poor in an effort to 190 Development Action Group: Sustainable medium-density housing The importance of sustainable human settlements The questionnaires used for conducting interviews and the role of higher-density housing in achieving with residents, community representatives and good urban quality became more pronounced in project managers/developers were largely based South Africa with the introduction in 2004 of the on those used for the Public Service Commission’s Breaking New Ground Plan: A Comprehensive Plan for the Report on the Evaluation of the National Housing Development of Sustainable Human Settlements (BNG). Subsidy Scheme in 2003, with minor adaptations. The eight local and three international case Forty households from each of the eight local studies presented below illustrate the medium projects in Johannesburg, Cape Town and the Nelson to higher-density housing typology as an Mandela Metro were interviewed. The interviews important tool to achieve sustainability. They were conducted over a protracted period from also instruct through identifying factors that November 2004 to March 2008. Household challenge sustainability. More often than not income and expenditure, rentals and other Þnancial housing provision and implementation take information are generally re ßected as at the time of place without active community participation, the interviews and have not been updated to re ßect capacity development, consumer education, current Þgures, unless indicated otherwise. and an understanding of community dynamics by government and implementing agents. The The process of interviewing residents from the eight most important value of these case studies lies local projects started with obtaining permission from in the insights and experiences of residents community leaders and/or representative bodies/ living in higher-density environments. Although committees. The DAG researcher then requested they are not an exhaustive list of higher-density community representatives to recommend three housing projects, they cover a range of tenure or four members of the community with previous and typology types. They by no means attempt experience in conducting surveys/questionnaires, or to be de Þnitive or to provide solutions. who had high levels of literacy, to conduct interviews with households by means of the questionnaires. Information on international best practice examples Training and assisting community members to of sustainable higher-density housing was particularly conduct the survey was part of DAG’s commitment dif Þcult to obtain. The three international case studies to pro-poor and participatory urban development thus do not necessarily demonstrate best practice, and to develop capacity and assist people to expand but do offer valuable lessons. Information was mainly and make use of opportunities available to them. The obtained through the World Wide Web and personal interviewers were trained by the DAG researcher and electronic mail communication with international and guided through the week-long interview process. NGOs, academics and government of Þcials. Each one typically conducted ten interviews. The research Þndings drew on data from over 320 A strati Þed sample was obtained for each case study interviews, of which 280 were with households in project by dividing the households into subgroups higher density housing projects across South Africa. according to various homogeneous characteristics, Collection of primary data such as information on the which in this case were the unit types (e.g. one, two background and history of the local projects as well or three bedroom units). For each case study, 40 as information on communities, developers, project households from the subgroups were then selected managers, consultants, NGOs and CBOs was mainly for interviewing through systematic sampling. obtained through personal and telephonic interviews and Þeld observation at site visits. Secondary data Responses from households interviewed are was mainly obtained from media articles and reports, captured in green boxes in the case studies other published research, government documents, as discussed next. well as library and archive documentation. SECTION 5: VOICES OF THE PEOPLE - CASE STUDIES OF MEDIUM-DENSITY HOUSING 191 1. SPRINGFIELD TERRACE ST Date of project completion 1992. Project type A demonstration project representing an innovative attempt to introduce a new form of urban development, the Spring Þeld Terrace project was essentially “about the rediscovery of the tradition of urban housing”. 2 It is seen as the Þrst non-racial inner city in Þll project in South Africa with the objective of providing well-located high-density housing for the lower income market. The development challenged established notions and standards held by authorities. 3 Location District Six in the Cape Town city bowl. The site is bounded by the Eastern Boulevard freeway on the west and south sides, Chapel Street to the north and Nelson Street to the east. Municipality Cape Town City Council. Province Western Cape Province. Developer Planned and developed by Headstart Developments, established in 1989 as a not-for-pro Þt housing utility company. Project partnerships Headstart Development, Cape Town City Council and the affected community. Project size 133 sectional title units arranged in nine separate blocks. Tenure type Individual ownership. Density Gross residential density of approximately 165 dwelling units per hectare. Net residential density of approximately 257 dwelling units per hectare. Project funding Government housing subsidies and private sector funding. sue of land was a strategic factor in entrenching statutory and non-statutory racial separation and subjugation. The most strategically located and pro- ductive land was under white ownership, with the poorest people located on the urban periphery of low-density sprawling settlements. Large portions of land owned by central, provincial and local gov- ernment in towns and cities presented opportuni-
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