Cape Town: The City wants to help small-scale developers and landowners in selected areas to build affordable rental flats that are of a better quality, safer, and legally connected to services such as water, sanitation, and electricity. One way of doing it is through the Local Planning Support (LPS) branch that is now up and running to help residents and stakeholders with the complicated planning processes, building plans, and to give advice.
Reportedly, the Local Planning Support (LPS) service was launched in Langa on Saturday, March 28, 2026 by the Spatial Planning and Environment Directorate. The LPS service consists of a dedicated team of City officials from the Urban Planning and Design Department who are experts in planning processes, land use, design, and architecture. They are now available to provide free advice and guidance to entrepreneurs and landowners who want to build affordable rental units on their land in selected areas across Cape Town.
Deputy Mayor and Member of the Mayoral Committee for Spatial Planning and Environment Directorate – Alderman Eddie Andrews stated that when they say they are building a City of Hope, they mean it, and this is how they are doing it; by helping small-scale developers and landowners to build dignified housing that is affordable, legal, and safe to rent.
He said that this way they are not only strengthening the quality of the neighbourhoods, but they are also improving the standard of living of those who will be renting these flats. By building legal, safe, and affordable accommodation benefits all of them.
Firstly, the landowner benefits as she can earn an income from renting out safe and legal units and can also borrow money against these assets.
Secondly, the tenant benefits because she has access to a unit that is safe and complies with health and safety regulations, and is legally connected to water, electricity, and sanitation.
Thirdly, the broader neighbourhood benefits because they do not have overflowing sewers and blocked stormwater outlets and the risk of fires because of illegal connections. And the City benefits, because the private sector, be it the landowner or a small-scale developer, can build affordable rental flats much faster than they can ever dream of to meet the growing demand for this type of housing.