Cape Town: The City of Cape Town has proposed R366 million capital investment in community facilities. Four departments within the Community Services and Health directorate, namely the Recreation and Parks, City Health, Library and Information Services and Community Arts and Culture Development Departments, have been allocated a draft capital budget of R366,381,000 for the 2026-27 financial year.
The draft capital allocation for the top five projects are:
- Cemetery Upgrades – R63,500,000
- Swimming Pool Upgrades – R20,000,000
- Vygieskraal Stadium Cycling Track – R20,000,000
- Rebuild of Suider-Strand Library – R19,524,373
- Strandfontein Pavilion Refurbishment – R9,067,182
Under this, there are many other projects which include upgrades to the Delft Clinic and Hartleyvale Stadium; planning of the Parkwood Community Hall; expansion of the Lwandle Library; restoration of Brown’s Farm Library and additional expansion work at Tafelsig Clinic. Construction of the Blue Downs and Westridge synthetic pitches will also get under way, along with completion planned for the 2027-28 financial year.
As Cape Town continues to grow, planning for future burial space remains a priority. The City of Cape Town is committed to expand existing cemeteries and develop new facilities, together with the supporting infrastructure that is needed to meet the needs of the communities.
Apart from the projects planned for 2026-27 financial year, the Directorate continues to identify and seek approvals for new and expanded cemetery opportunities in areas such as Strand, Kuils River, Mitchells Plain and other parts of the Southern Suburbs. There is also a planned phase refurbishment of the Khayelitsha cemetery boundary fencing, due to extensive vandalism.
Over the last few years, the Directorate has invested significantly in the repairs, maintenance and upgrades of public swimming pools, as part of an accelerated swimming pool infrastructure revitalisation programme. The Directorate also continued to invest in infrastructure repairs, maintenance and upgrades at various swimming pools across areas such as Khayelitsha, Bellville Central, Strand, Athlone, Mitchells Plain-Westridge, Gugulethu, Blue Downs, Atlantis, Mnandi and Sea Point.
The Directorate remained committed to its accelerated swimming pool infrastructure revitalisation programme with recent completion of major works at Goodwood, Bellville South, Newlands, Lentegeur, Delft, Langa and Manenberg. In addition to these big projects, the Directorate also has hundreds of community recreational facilities, including 102 libraries and over 3000 individual parks and open spaces spanning roughly 5000 hectares. As these all require ongoing maintenance to ensure that they are compliant, safe and well used spaces.
Considering this, the Directorate has received a top up budget allocation of R150 million for repairs and maintenance in this new financial year. It took the overall budget to over R950 million.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Services and Health – Councillor Francine Higham stated that this budget reflects the City’s continued commitment to invest in public infrastructure that residents rely on every day. From libraries and community halls to park, sports facilities, clinics and cemeteries, these spaces strengthen communities and improve quality of life for all the residents.
According to Higham, this investment is about protecting, upgrading and expanding those public facilities so that they remain safe and accessible to communities across Cape Town. The team called on residents to help protect these public assets by reporting vandalism, theft or suspicious activity so that everyone can continue to benefit from them in future.