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Business Editor
THE property sector continues to attract investment in Bulawayo with the local authority approving 292 building plans valued at more than $5 million for the month of April alone.
Residential housing development dominates construction activities given the escalating demand for accommodation in the country’s second largest city where the housing waiting list exceeds 100,000.
A latest council report indicates 282 of the approved building plans were residential with a combined value of $4,722,777 covering an area of 34,066 square metres.
The plans were drawn from fragmented housing projects across the city’s 29 wards.
Residents’ associations have piled pressure on council to avail more land for housing to curb accommodation shortages and sprouting of illegal settlements.
“We’ve tended to celebrate small things just because we’ve a problem. As residents we desire a situation where council rolls out a massive housing project offering up to 10,000 to 20,000 stands at one go,” said Winos Dube, who chairs the Bulawayo United Residents Association (Bura).
“The government should avail land and council should fully service land under its capital projects and put roads, sewer and water. Residents are determined to build but they’re being failed by authorities.”
Dube noted that the bulk of the projects were funded by residents who pay servicing fees to private contractors due to capacity limitations on the part of council.
According to the council report, major housing projects are underway in areas such as Pelandaba West, Pumula South, and part of Emganwini, Mahatshula North and Parklands East.
With residential housing being dominated by private players, the dream of owning a house is now a preserve for the rich as low income earners cannot afford the exorbitant costs.
On average a 200 square metre stand costs not less than $3,000. Last month, the city council reported that it had run out of space for high density housing development for low income earners. Desperate home seekers now find solace in neighbouring Umguza Rural District Council, which is taking advantage of increasing demand to avail stands. This has seen the creation of new suburbs such as Mbundane, Reigate, Emganwini West, Lovendale and others, which are not managed by the Bulawayo City Council.
Provision of adequate housing is at the heart of the government’s economic blue-print, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Development (Zim-Asset).
Not much activity has been registered in commercial property development with only six building plans valued at $215,200 being approved in April. These cover an area of 1,293 square metres. Instead there has been a notable decline in occupancy of office space in the city centre due to failure to sustain high rentals.
Analysts have attributed the trend to low business that is linked to the collapse of the city’s industries in the last decade. A similar scenario has been observed in industrial expansion.
According to council, only two industrial and public facilities’ plans were approved in the same month with a total value of $49,750 and $69,542 each.
An additional 272 plans valued at $526,270 have been submitted to council for approval.
Meanwhile, in the same month the local authority conducted 1,709 building inspections across the city. Of these 222 were foundation inspections, 97 open drain tests, 1,208 routine inspections and 82 occupation certification.
Online Reporter