Reform needed in town planning

IT is encouraging to note that the Nelson Mandela Bay metro has acknowledged the problems in its town planning division.

Owing to a shortage of qualified people, chiefly town planners, aspiring business owners have had a hard time getting zoning applications passed.

This sloppy red tape leaves investors, big and small, terribly frustrated and possibly doubting the wisdom of setting up stall in the Bay.

No new business owner needs this headache.

Sinking money into a venture is risky enough these days, without the added burden of bureaucratic hurdles.

In Richmond Hill, where a vibrant spirit of entrepreneurship has established itself in the numerous coffee shops and restaurants adorning the area’s streets, at least 28 businesses are operating illegally.

Our lead story on Monday highlighted the chronic deficiency of town planning officials in the human settlements department, a notoriously bad section in the municipality.

Perhaps, then, it is no surprise that past ills continue to plague this vital administrative area. It cannot continue this way.

For one, it sends a poor message to the public. Instead of being “open for business”, a slogan which gets bandied about too easily by politicians as evidence of their commitment to private enterprise, it portrays indifference to the needs of those starting out on their own.

The department’s political head, Nqaba Bhanga, says the authority has only a quarter of the town planners it needs. However, some of these vacancies are being addressed and appointments should flow soon. A good first step. In time it should help to alleviate the backlog of zoning applications while speeding up the process of municipal approval.

Previous reporting on this issue has revealed how lengthy delays have encouraged businesses to open and trade without zoning approval.

Such disregard is obviously untenable for the public and municipality. But it is understandable.

Nothing short of total reform in town planning will do, if development and employment are as important as we like to say they are.