KEY POINTS
- The Constitutional Court is expected to rule on the Tafelberg site soon.
- The case challenges Cape Town’s housing policies and spatial apartheid.
- The decision could set a major precedent for public land use in South Africa.
The fight over Cape Town’s Tafelberg site has been years in the making, and now, all eyes are on the Constitutional Court as activists and the Western Cape Government await its judgment.
The case, spearheaded by the housing advocacy group Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU) and Reclaim the City (RTC), challenges the government’s handling of public land and its role in addressing the city’s severe housing crisis.
At the heart of the matter is a piece of prime real estate in Sea Point, formerly home to the Tafelberg Remedial School. Back in 2015, the Western Cape Government sold the land for R135 million ($7.3 million) to the Phyllis Jowell Jewish Day School, despite calls for it to be used for affordable housing.
NU and RTC argue that this sale contradicts the government’s responsibility to reverse spatial apartheid, which continues to segregate low-income residents from well-located urban areas.
The legal fight has gone through multiple courts. Moreover, in 2020, the Western Cape High Court ruled in favor of the activists, setting aside the sale and declaring that the government failed to address spatial inequality.
The Supreme Court of Appeal reversed the previous ruling, thus prompting NU to pursue the matter at the Constitutional Court. The pending decision from the court will establish new guidelines for public land distribution in Cape Town.
Implications beyond the Tafelberg site
The matter extends past its surface value of one property possession. Through this ruling, South African cities may establish a standard practice for public land administration that tackles housing inequities in urban areas.
NU argues that Cape Town has a duty to provide affordable housing in well-located areas rather than pushing lower-income residents to the city’s outskirts.
A similar battle unfolded in Bromwell Street, Woodstock, where the Constitutional Court recently ruled that the City of Cape Town had unconstitutionally neglected its duty to provide alternative housing for evicted residents.
The court ordered the city to ensure transitional housing within the inner city, marking a major win for housing rights activists. The Tafelberg site case now carries similar weight, potentially influencing how municipal and provincial governments manage public land in the future.
Western Cape Infrastructure MEC Tertuis Simmers and Social Development MEC Jaco Londt have proposed redeveloping a portion of the site, citing an internal government review under the Government Immovable Asset Management Act (GIAMA).
However, activists remain skeptical. The public received insufficient consultation, according to their assessment and the plan shows insufficient measures to solve Cape Town’s ongoing housing crisis.
What’s next for the Tafelberg site?
Housing advocates maintain their optimism while the Constitutional Court waits to issue a decision.
Disha Govender, the head of NU’s law center, emphasizes the major importance of this case through his statement about its relevance to land use regulations, housing rights, and spatial justice issues.
“We are hoping the court will rule in our favor and push the government to develop a clear, coordinated plan for redressing spatial apartheid in Cape Town,” Govender said.
“Ultimately, we want to see working-class people gain access to well-located housing in a city that has long excluded them.”
The case has initiated important national dialogues despite whatever court resolution may be achieved.
An approval of NU’s stance by the court might compel municipal and provincial governments to transform their process for managing public land.
For now, the Constitutional Court holds the decision.
The court’s decision will establish either a new standard for public land management or strengthen housing affordability support in Cape Town.
Everyone involved in housing activism, legal expertise and public officials will observe the situation closely.
