The approval of the old Woodstock Hospital in Cape Town for heritage status is a significant achievement for the city’s largest inner-city social housing project. While this marks a milestone for affordable housing in Cape Town, progress has been slow and fraught with challenges.
The Current State of Woodstock Hospital
The old Woodstock Hospital is home to around 700 units, occupied by members of Reclaim the City, a housing activist movement. They have been critical of the slow progress in providing affordable housing in the city, with some sites identified for development as early as 2008 still lacking any affordable homes.
Reasons for Delay
One of the reasons for delays in building inner-city housing is land occupations. Ndifuna Ukwazi’s Reclaim the City campaign reportedly hijacked the Woodstock Hospital and the provincially-owned Helen Bowden Nurses Home properties in 2017, after the government announced plans for social housing development in the area. Eviction proceedings are currently pending, but the City remains committed to planning and development, as well as engaging with unlawful occupants to unlock social-housing development.
Response to Delay
Ndifuna Ukwazi argues that the occupation is a result of dire need and a lack of faith in the government’s ability to develop affordable housing. They assert that activist pressure has played a significant role in recent progress.
Movement for Affordable Housing
Reclaim the City leaders Bevil Lucas and Karen Hendricks emphasize that their movement focuses on campaigning for affordable, well-located housing and fighting against the displacement of poor people from the inner city. The occupation of the Woodstock Hospital has provided a home for poor and working-class families who would otherwise have been homeless.
City’s Progress
Despite the challenges, the City has made some strides in providing affordable housing opportunities. Mayor Hill-Lewis notes that the first year of the mayoral priority programme for affordable housing land release saw several sites receive crucial City council land-release approvals. The City has enabled 130 social housing units in the inner-city suburb of Pinelands for Phase One of the provincial government’s Conradie Park development and is providing support to the province’s Founder’s Garden precinct in the CBD.
Providing well-located affordable housing is a complex issue, but the heritage approval of the old Woodstock Hospital marks a significant step forward. While progress has been slow and marred by disputes, the City’s commitment to moving forward with planning and development may signal a new chapter in the quest for accessible housing solutions.
