Starting to make Morkel’s Cottage dream a reality
THE City of Cape Town’s Transport and Urban Development Authority has started the construction of 547 semi-detached and detached single-storey houses in Morkel’s Cottage, Strand.
The City’s Mayco member for Transport and Urban Development, Brett Herron, said: “It gives me great joy to see the start of the Morkel’s Cottage project which has been on the cards since the City purchased the land from the previous owner with a view to implementing a housing development on the farm.
“This development was included in a tender which allowed for the development of three areas, namely Morkel’s Cottage, Temperance Town and Sercor Park.” The development of the two areas was completed in the 2014 and 2015 financial year.
However, the Morkel’s Cottage development was delayed for various reasons, including environmental restrictions due to the presence of protected plant species on the site. The issues were resolved in December 2016, and the City decided to proceed with the development of the Morkel’s Cottage portion in January last year.
The total budget for the development is nearly R146 million.
A turn-key developer, Asla Devco, was appointed on January 26, 2009, to undertake the project.
They completed the Temperance Town and Sercor Park projects and have recently completed the installation of internal engineering services on three of the five phases of the Morkel’s Cottage development.
“We cannot determine the exact number of top structures until the subsidy administration process, which is currently under way, is completed.
“This is dependent on the specific criteria that applies to each individual applicant, and which has varying results,” Herron said.
The civil engineering services such as the internal roads, water and sewer infrastructure for the first three phases have been completed.
The services for phases four and five are expected to start in September this year, followed by the construction of the top structures on those plots.
Mayoral committee member for Area East Anda Ntsodo said the project would seek to prioritise the families from Morkel’s Cottage, which would allow the properties where these beneficiaries are currently situated to be developed as well.