The City of Cape Town has appealed to residents to report potential problem buildings to Law Enforcement.
This comes as the Metro’s Problem Building Unit (PBU) has more than doubled the number of cases closed year on year. During the last financial year, the Unit closed 425 cases of problem buildings, compared to 207 the previous year.
In addition, the PBU has had 27 new problem buildings declared. It currently has 291 active cases in various stages of investigation, and initiated legal proceedings against 55 property owners.
The City’s Problem Building Unit enforces the Problem Property By-law 2020 to identify, react to complaints and manage dilapidated and potential problem buildings.
The 13-staff strong unit is guided by the by-law on how to deal with potential problem buildings.
The MMC for Safety and Security JP Smith says the issue is on the rise across the country:
‘The phenomena of problem buildings are on the rise across the country, and indeed the world, as owners face hardships or simply abandon their properties due to the dysfunctional provisions in the PIE Act that make it impossible for private or public land owners to effectively protect their property. However, this creates a problem for the city as these properties become a home for squatters and criminals, and are generally left to decay abysmally impacting the residents around it. These buildings can become dangerous as they are used as dump sites and are health and fire hazards. Then there is the environmental impact and the associated costs to contend with.’
Other challenges include properties that have been abandoned by the owners, deceased estates and buildings that have become subject to illegal occupation.
Smith says the unit is making great strides in addressing the problem, but they would like to encourage residents to report issues to Law Enforcement, as the sooner it gets reported, the sooner staff can act to limit the impact on the neighbourhood.
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He says Law Enforcement officers can only act and follow the process as regulated by the Problem Property By-law once a neighbour or affected parties have officially lodged a complaint against the owner.
Complaints can be reported to the City’s 24-hour emergency control room on 021 4807700 from a cell phone or 107 from a landline.
