People Requesting to be Moved to Delft TRA

While the Delft Temporary Relocation Area (TRA), more well-known as Blikkiesdorp, has been portrayed as an area to move poor people to prior to the World Cup, the City continues to receive requests from people who want to move there.

This TRA, situated in Delft along Symphony Way, was established in 2008 to manage the illegal occupation of N2 Gateway houses in Delft and the first families were moved there on 09 May 2008. It is in close proximity to public transport routes with good access to community facilities such as clinics, libraries and schools.

It was initially funded by the City itself and has since been extended to provide housing for people in various emergency situations. These include, amongst many others, victims of xenophobic attacks, former occupants of an unsafe building that collapsed in Salt River, evicted people for which the City has been named respondent, people living on the streets, in atrocious conditions in backyards, in road reserves, in pipes, on pavements or those living in condemned buildings. In all of these instances the alternative accommodation which has been offered to them in Blikkiesdorp represents a significant improvement to their previous living environment.

The Delft TRA was developed in terms of the National Housing Programme for Housing Assistance in emergency circumstances and residents receive far more services than the minimum basic requirement. Phase one (1) of the TRA comprised of eight hundred and forty (840) units that are fully occupied, whereas Phase two's (2's) eight hundred and twenty seven (827) units are currently about ninety percent (90%) occupied.

Each Blikkiesdorp resident's site is forty nine square metres (49 m2) (7m x 7m), with an eighty square metre (18 m2) structure on it. The structures in Phase one (1) were built on site and consist of wooden frames clad with galvanised sheets, whilst those in Phase two (2) are prefabricated steel framed units complete with internal thermal insulation.

Four of these forty nine square metre (49 m2) sites are in a grid form with a communal washing unit, flush toilet, wash trough and tap in the centre of the grid for the four families to share. The toilets are at most three metres (3m) from each structure. This layout is much safer and more convenient than large communal bathing and toilet facilities. All of these services are provided at the City's costs.

As Blikkiesdorp falls within Eskom's electricity distribution area, the City is paying them to provide each of the structures with prepaid electricity meters. Street lights were also installed throughout the TRA.

The layout of Blikkiesdorp allows for sufficient clearance between the units and wider access for refuse trucks and emergency vehicles when required. This has reduced (if not eliminated) the fire hazard which exists in informal settlements where the shacks are too close together, allowing fires to rapidly sweep through the settlements.

Furthermore, the TRA is fenced-off and officers of the City's Informal Settlement Management Department regularly patrol the area to ensure a safe environment and to prevent an inflow of unauthorised occupiers. While still allowing free movement of the TRA residents, the fencing demarcates the TRA and stops any illegal invasions. The City has made sites available inside the TRA for places of worship and for a number of soup kitchens.

The City's Environmental Health Practitioners regularly visit the area to ensure that health standards are met. There is also a clinic, the Delft South City Clinic, within walking distance (1,5 km) from Blikkiesdorp, as well as a Provincial Health Community Health Centre within 1 km. Social Services are also planning an Early Childhood Development centre for the TRA. All of these services are provided free of charge to the residents of Blikkiesdorp.

Unfortunately Blikkiesdorp also has its problems. One of the issues which are of great concern to the City is the criminal activities that take place there. Vandalism of the top structures and the toilet facilities is an ongoing problem and in some instances the City has had to repair certain toilets up to four (4) times. Complete cisterns, and even toilet pots, have to be replaced regularly because of ongoing theft. To address the crime in Blikkiesdorp a satellite Law Enforcement station was built near one of the entrances to the TRA. Even this facility was vandalised before the Law Enforcement Officers could take occupation. The satellite station is being repaired and will be manned on a twenty four seven (24/7) basis.

The City asks all people who move to Blikkiesdorp to register on the Housing Database so they can be eligible to eventually receive houses.

Issued by:
Communication Department
City of Cape Town