Housing in Southern Africa April 2015

Housing

T he R10 million project is well located on the Rea Vaya Rapid Transit node, as well as the Johannesburg train station. Europa now offers communal living for fami- lies as well as individuals. Room sizes vary from 12m² to 22m² and rentals range fromR840 to R1 540 per month depending on the size of the unit. Each floor provides separate ablution facilities and a communal kitchen. The residential building has biomet- ric access, 24 hour security and an energy efficient generator. “Refurbishment of Europa House is a great step in enhancing the image of the inner city since the surrounding buildings are dilapidated and con- tribute to the current state of urban decay. JOSHCO’s primary objective is to transform the lives of their tenants by providing quality accommodation that is sustainable and energy effi- cient. It further contributes through its repossession and refurbishment of ‘bad buildings’ in the city,” said the MMC of Housing, Dan Bovu. Tenants are screened and vetted through the social housing provider’s application process and according to a set criteria. First time tenants are required to attend compulsory workshops on the tenants’ rights, obligations and responsibilities. JOSHCO offers affordable and secure home rentals for citizens who earn between R3 500 and R7 500 per month. Those in this income bracket do not qualify for fully subsidised gov- ernment housing nor do they qualify for mortgage bonds. As part of the inner city regen- eration Better Buildings Programme, JOSHCO has taken over the manage- Johannesburg Social Housing C omp a n y ( J OS HCO ) h a s converted Europa House at 32 Plein Street, Johannesburg, from a 10-storey commercial block into 168 communal rooms with shared bathrooms and kitchens. New social rental stock

making Johannesburg a more live- able city. It has a portfolio of over 7 500 social housing units, with plans to increase this number to 13 600 by June 2017. The Europa project team included: Project managers: Hoboyi & Associ- ates; Architects: Activate Architects; Quantity surveyors: Enumerate Con- sulting; Mechanical and electrical engineer: Lebone Consulting En- gineers; Structural engineer: Allan Sutton Consulting; Safety consultant: Empowerisk Safety Consultants; Fire consultants: Specialised Fire Technology; and Contractor: LeMay Construction. ■

ment of several buildings in the in- ner city of Johannesburg in the past eight years. The buildings have been refurbished into quality communal rental accommodation suitable for the lower income group. Communal rental housing provides cost effective accommodation, where the costs of development are minimised by providing rental rooms with shared bathrooms, laundries and kitchens. JOSHCO, a City of Johannesburg owned entity, has received an un- qualified audit over the past eight years (and a clean audit over the last six years). The social housing provider has invested over R1,8 billion towards

April 2015