Residents of Cape Town working in and around Bothasig, Century City or the city centre who travel to work from far flung areas, now have an opportunity to live much closer to work.
Construction began on 4 November on land owned by Communicare in Bothasig for 314 new rental housing units. Phase 1 of Bothasig Gardens compromises 165 units completed in 1994 and Phase 2 was occupied in 2013 with 120 units under the government’s social housing programme. Phase 3 extends the social housing by adding 314 homes for families who would otherwise find living in Bothasig unaffordable.
The social housing developed by Communicare is a result of the organisation’s innovative approach to financing housing delivery. To grow its portfolio of social housing, Communicare cross subsidises social housing from its other property sales and rentals. The surplus generated is used, in part, to fund the development of social housing.
This model makes it possible for Communicare to allocate over R20 million of its own funds to develop the social housing at Bothasig Gardens. A total of R162.8 million will be spent on this development financed through a combination of Communicare funds, commercial loans and government grants. A loan of R33 million has been raised from Mergence Infrastructure and Development Debt Fund, an impact fund managed by Mergence Investment Managers.
The development will allow 314 families the opportunity to live closer to work, main transport routes along the N1, schools, hospitals and local shopping malls. It provides opportunities for Cape Town residents to live in areas from which they were previously excluded.
"Along with these new apartments, we are creating a community for tenants by building designated play areas and a hall for recreational and cultural activities. It’s about creating the kind of community that we would want to share and be part of," says Van Wyk.
Saving cash and water is important for tenants. Communicare will install energy-saving lighting, heat pumps, dual flush toilets and water-wise showerheads to help tenants save. The indigenous landscaped gardens will be irrigated by using water harvested on site.
To qualify for accommodation at Bothasig Gardens, families must earn a household income of less than R15 000. However, 30% of the accommodation will be allocated to households earning less than R5 500 per month.
Construction on the two, three and four storey buildings begins in November 2019. These are good quality studio, one and two bedroom homes that afford tenants a starter opportunity to achieve greater things, says Van Wyk.
There are four different types of units to choose from to accommodate a range of people in different stage of their lives. Younger people or a couple just starting out may want to start with a studio unit while the larger two-bedroom units are better suited to families. The studio units are about 31m2, one-bedroom units about 36m2 and the two-bedroom units are between 42 and 45m2.
The development has 94 studios, 63 one-bedroom and 157-two bedroom apartments to choose from.
Many young people starting a career or a new job don’t have much choice of accommodation in Cape Town. We are all well aware that property is expensive and young families find it difficult to rent affordable and decent housing. The latest phase of Bothasig Gardens offers affordable rentals for working people.
“The prices will be about a third of what you would pay for similar accommodation in Bothasig. This is incredible value for our tenants,” says says Neville Fowler, CFO of Communicare. "Bothasig Gardens makes it possible for families to live, work and raise children in a supportive environment, close to all the services they need.”
