Thread by @brettherron

🧵: @Our_DA has been in government in Cape Town for 20 years & in Western Cape for 16 years.

In that time not a single affordable housing unit has been built in the inner city.

But at least 20 promised sites have been announced & reannounced for housing. Its clearly performative:

🧵2:
In 2010 the Western Cape Government published a prospectus of 6 provincial government precincts they would make available for development including affordable housing. None of these have been developed.

🧵3:
In 2017 the City of Cape Town released a prospectus which identified 11 City owned sites for affordable, social & transitional housing.
Only one site was developed - one transitional housing site we managed to deliver before we left.

🧵4:
On Thursday 21 August the Mayor of Cape Town announced redevelopment of the “Fruit & Veg” site in Roeland Street. It was previously announced in Sept 2017, canceled in August 2019, relaunched with a sod-turning in Feb 2022. It’s been announced 3 times since 2017.

🧵5:
On 25 July 2025 the Premier of the Western Cape announced the “Founders Garden” project.
It was previously announced in the 2010 Central City Regeneration Programme as “Artscape Precinct”.
It was also announced for social housing again in 2016 & in 2019 the WC cabinet announced it would be released for social housing again. It’s been announced 4 times since 2010:

🧵6:
In 2017 the Pickwick Street site in Woodstock was announced for release for mixed use development including social housing.
In August 2019 it was cancelled.
In October 2023 it was reannounced as released for affordable and social housing. It still lies vacant.

🧵7:
In 2017 a parking lot on Newmarket Street in the City Centre was announced for mixed use, affordable & social housing development as part of the Inner City Affordable Housing projects. It was cancelled in August 2019. Leased to Growthpoint for parking. Then reannounced for housing in 2024:

🧵8:
In 2011 the Western Cape Government agreed to transfer the Pine Road, Woodstock, sites to the City of Cape Town for social housing development. The site was allocated to SOHCO. 14 years later the sites lie dormant:

🧵9:
In 2008 the City identified the Salt River Market site for redevelopment to include housing & retain the market. In October 2018 the DA caucus rejected the disposal to a social housing company because of the value of the land. I resigned. The DA then approved the sale in December 2018. It took them 4 years to transfer the land. They failed to arrange a solution for the traders. 17 years later & nothing has happened:

🧵10:
In 2011 the Western Cape Government tabled a report for the use of the Tafelberg School site in Sea Point for housing. In 2015 the WC cabinet decided to sell the site to the highest bidder. This sparked resistance & litigation. A ConCourt judgment is awaited. In 2019 Premier Winde committed to resolve the dispute. But then took the judgment against the Province on appeal. In 2025 the Province reannounced the housing project under the name 353-on-Main:

🧵11:
In 2010 the Western Cape Government included Dorp Street sites in the Central City Regeneration Programme. Nothing happened for 15 years. In 2025 the project was repackaged and reannounced as “Leeuloop”:

🧵12:
In 2010 the WC government “Central City Regeneration Programme” included the Government Garage Precinct in Roeland & Buitenkant Streets.
15 years later nothing has happened. We expect the site to be renamed and reannounced in the run up to the 2026 election:

🧵13:
In 2018 the City intended to participate in the C40 Cities Regeneration Initiative. To use unused city owned sites as demonstration projects for carbon neutral developments. One of those sites was the parking lot adjoining the civic centre. The DA caucus referred the report to sub-councils for comment. Nothing came of them.

🧵14:
In September 2024 the City presented their “Affordable Housing Programme” to MPs from the NCOP. They presented renderings of proposed land release & social housing projects in Kromboom Road, Enslin in Ottery & Eoan Way in Scottsdean. These projects were part of a presentation I made to the DA caucus in June 2018 as already “allocated” to social housing:

🧵15:
In 2017 the City included two sites for transitional housing in its Inner City Affordable Housing prospectus. One, in Pickwick St, involved a renovation of a hostel & was developed to temporarily house families living on the Pine Road site so that the social housing could be developed. They would return to formal housing. They’ve lived in temporary housing for 7 years. The St James Street Clinic was never redeveloped. The Constitutional Court recently criticized the City for not having transitional housing in Woodstock for the Bromwell St families who faced eviction. St James Clinic site would’ve dealt with that.

🧵16:
In 2017 the City identified the “Upper Canterbury Street” as sites for further work and to be released for inner city affordable housing.
Nothing has happened since.