Houses for farm workers
2007-05-17
THE Drakenstein Municipality plans to erect a housing project of 300 houses for farm workers from local farms, next to Boland cricket grounds within the next year.
According to Cupido Jacobs, Housing Projects Co-ordinator for the Municipality, 2376 rural families have applied for houses.
“This is a longtime project.
The first phase will start with 300 houses located on municipal land east of the cricket grounds.
Criteria which will be utilised in determining which of the applicants will be eligible to participate in this housing project will be people evicted from farms, and workers on the Urban Waiting List (according to date of application).
Farm workers residing on farms that are within the ward where the development will take place, will also receive precedence,” Jacobs said at a meeting held with farm workers last week.
Project manager Pieter Rossouw of Elenent Consulting addressed the meeting and explained that, if everything goes according to plan, the families might occupy the houses some time next year.
He suggested that a committee should be elected as mouthpiece for the beneficiaries.
Due to the amalgamation of municipalities in 2000, the rural area within the new municipal area became the responsibility of Drakenstein Municipality in terms of housing delivery.
During 2004 Mohlaleng Consultants compiled a housing plan which inter alia confirmed that the rural community forms 20% of the population in Drakenstein.
During a survey of rural housing needes conducted during November and December 2005 by the RDP Office in conjunction with the housing projects section, a total of 2376 farm workers completed application forms.
The Housing Plan further confirmed that the living conditions of farm workers are often deficient and should be investigated in more detail.
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