Minister Simmers delivers Metro Ground Development houses in less than 9 months

On Thursday, the provincial Minister of Infrastructure, Tertuis Simmers, handed over 24 brand new houses to qualifying beneficiaries at the Metro Grounds Development in George. The handover comes just under 9 months since the sod turning was conducted. 
 
Four of the beneficiaries received what is a first-of-its-kind receipt of a title deed with their house keys. The Department wants to replicate this in other projects where handovers take place not only of keys but also of the title deed.
 
Many of the beneficiaries had for many years been waiting for a housing opportunity and were rightly emotional yesterday. Mr. Jacob Loggenberg (84), “I am eternally grateful for this gift from the Lord and our Western Cape Government (WCG). I think I will need a day or two, for now, it is just unbelievable, thank you, Minister”.
 
The Metro Ground Development project is envisaged to create 436 housing opportunities upon completion of the project. The project has progressed at a rapid pace, and it is uniquely led by one of the young site managers, Ms. Thandeka Vabaza (34), who has nearly a decade of industry experience. She is an example of the WCG’s efforts of creating opportunities and building hope for the youth. To date, 156 employment opportunities have been created and 20 Small, Micro, and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) have benefitted from the development since October 2022.
 
Reflecting on the milestones achieved in this project Minister Simmers said: “When I tabled my budget vote for 2023/24, I made a commitment to accelerate the security of tenure. Today, we have shown that it is possible to deliver title deeds and the house keys for our beneficiaries so that they are truly empowered. We have also proven that in under 9 months, we can build and deliver houses with the right partnerships. That has been the case with the partnership of the Garden District Municipality, George Municipality, and our provincial government.”
 
The project is scheduled to be completed in the 2nd quarter of 2024. “We expect to create more economic and job opportunities in the upcoming phases of the project. I am proud that a young project manager has shown that we can accelerate housing development under the right circumstances,” added Minister Simmers.