Mitchells Plain families desperate for housing left in limbo
City of Cape Town blames Beacon Valley construction delays on extortion and crime
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Land identified for the Beacon Valley Housing Development. Mitchells Plain residents say years of delays have left many families waiting for much needed housing. Photo: Sikelelwa Sidinana.
- A City of Cape Town housing project meant to ease the housing crisis in Mitchells Plain’s Beacon Valley community was announced a decade ago but has been stalled for years.
- Beneficiaries of the project have waited years for their promised houses to be built on the vacant site.
- The City blames extortion and crime for the delays, but it says construction is anticipated to start in March 2027.
For two decades, Jessica Thompson has been waiting for the call she has spent years dreaming about – that she will at last receive the government house she applied for in 2001, when she registered on the City of Cape Town’s housing database.
“I’ve waited all these years,” she said. “I just want to know what’s happening.”
Thompson, like many other Mitchells Plain residents, had hoped to benefit from the Beacon Valley housing project, first announced in 2017/18. But over the years, the development has suffered several long delays and has not even started its first phase.
In line with the initial development plan, construction started in July 2020, but while the contractors were setting up the site, it was petrol bombed and workers were threatened. The contractors left due to safety concerns.
The City obtained an interim interdict against any further acts of violence at the site. The contractors returned, but soon after, in November 2020, a drive-by shooting injured two people. The contractor withdrew again but returned in 2021.
Then on 7 July 2021, a security guard stationed at the site was assaulted and shot in the legs. The contractors then indicated that they had no intention of returning.
Years later, the City rebranded the project and put out a new tender.
On 25 February 2025, the municipality invited the first 300 people from its database of nearly 4,000 Mitchells Plain applicants to an open day. About 128 people attended, 78 subsidy applications were completed and signed, and 22 beneficiaries with special-needs were identified, the City said.
According to the City, phase one will provide 354 housing opportunities, with construction expected to start in March 2027 “subject to procurement and statutory approvals”.
Mayoral committee member for human settlements Carl Pophaim said verifying qualified applicants was completed in June this year. Now, they are establishing a project engagement committee consisting of verified beneficiaries, he said.
Pophaim said those who did not attend were contacted where possible. He acknowledged that some contact information in the City’s historical records was outdated, making it difficult to reach certain beneficiaries.
Pophaim said housing developments were frequently delayed by factors beyond the City’s control, including criminality, extortion at construction sites, and lengthy legislative approval processes.
Mitchells Plain subcouncil chairperson Solomon Philander said beneficiary lists are currently on display at the police station, the library, housing offices and the ward councillors’ offices.
According to Philander, qualifying beneficiaries would not lose their opportunity simply because they had missed last year’s workshop.
Community desperate for housing
Michael Jacobs, chairperson of the Lentegeur community police forum, said the reported incidents when the project started do not justify the continued lack of housing delivery, which has left thousands of residents paying the price years later.
“We have discussed the issue and shared that the City should not use the incidents as an excuse because 1,800 families are now left in limbo,” he said.
He said Mitchells Plain families are tired of having to live in overcrowded backyard dwellings and informal settlements.
“The City needs to take responsibility to ensure proper housing delivery because, at the moment, people are being disadvantaged,” he said.
Meanwhile, after nearly a quarter of a century on the waiting list, Thompson says she is still hopeful she will one day have her own home. As a mother of three, she says, “My greatest concern is securing long-term, affordable housing so that my children and I can have a stable place to call home.”
Thompson had to leave the area six years ago because her aunt sold her grandmother’s house. With the little she earns as a domestic worker, she currently rents a property in Kuils River. However, her landlord intends to sell it. She also wants to return to Mitchells Plain to be closer to her family.
Pophaim encouraged anyone who believes they may have been overlooked to contact the human settlements directorate or their ward councillor.
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