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October 2015
A
ccording to Trollip the metro
has the highest water loss in
South Africa with burst pipes
and wastage accounting for R327
million or 36% water loss.
Insteadof growing the local econo-
my, Jordaanhas kept themetroout of
benefitting from the Coega Industrial
Development Zone. “Jordaan has
protected those who unlawfully and
improperly hand out tenders, bungle
contracts and accept trips to other
provinces withmunicipal tender bid-
ders,” says Trollip.
He says that instead of cutting
costs on non-core expenditure
Jordaan decided to cut ‘special
skills allowances’ to critical officials
in the electricity and water director-
ates. This has caused a wildcat strike
and power outages in areas of the
North and also resulted inwater cuts.
“There is a housing backlog of 38 000
units andwith plans to complete only
1 293 houses this year, communities
are unimpressed. According to Stats-
SA, over 80% of residents in Nelson
Mandela Bay are afraid to go out after
dark because of the crime rate – the
highest of any metro.”
Trollip comments, “Possibly his
greatest failing is the continued rot
of the IPTS bus system and after buy-
ing buses, there is now a proposal
to sell the IPTS. This will represent a
R2 billion loss for the metro.”
But Trollip is confident that things
will change as the DA aims to intro-
duce job zones, an entrepreneurship
centre as well as establish infra-
structure detection and monitoring
systems. Trollip plans to launch
independent forensic audits of all
wrongdoing and will work with other
metros that have efficient Bus Rapid
Transport systems, to formally launch
the Nelson Mandela Bay IPTS based
on the best working model.
■
Turbulent times for Nelson Mandela Bay
TheDemocratic Alliance’sMayoral Candidate for NelsonMandela
Bay Athol Trollip recently lashed out at Danny Jordaan, for being
only a part-time mayor of the metro. Jordaan had promised to
modernise the administration and grow the local economy.
A
ccording to Statistics South
Africa, growth in activity levels
in the planning and construc-
tion phases of new housing was
largely segment driven till July.
Jacques du Toit, Property Analyst
Absa Home Loans, says that the
number of new housing units for
which building plans were approved
improved by 5%year-on-year (y/y) to
more than 35 000 units since Janu-
ary, with strong growth of 15,5% y/y
recorded in the category of flats and
townhouses. Growth in the number
of newhousing units constructedwas
recorded at 6,3% y/y, with a total of
almost 22 000 units built in the seven
months up to July. This growth was
largely the result of a relatively strong
Strong growth in residential building
improvement in new houses to the
tune of 19% y/y, or a total of 15 951
units. The number of new flats and
townhouses built was down by 17,3%
y/y in the seven-month period, but
with these housing developments
it takes time to complete construc-
tion. The double-digit growth in the
residential planning will probably be
reflected in the construction phase at
a much later stage.
The average cost per m² of new
housing averaged R6 014 in the first
sevenmonths of 2015. This was 5,3%
higher than in the corresponding
period last year.
Building costs per m² in the vari-
ous housing segments from January
to July cost:
•
Houses of <80m²: R3 884, an in-
crease of 12,8% y/y.
•
Houses of ≥80m²: R6 293, a hike of
4,8% y/y.
•
Flats and townhouses: R6 864, cost
8,4%more y/y.
“There is a significant lag between
the planning and eventual comple-
tion of units because of the rezon-
ing process, construction phases,
preparation of development land,
availability of municipal services
and infrastructure such as water,
sewerage and electricity. Also the
outlook for the economy, household
finances and consumer and building
confidence are also key drivers of
residential building activity.”
■
Housing