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The Citizen
07-07-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
City of Tshwane clamps down on illegal land use
More than 713 property owners to be slammed with penalty rates. Ensuring compliance is 'crucial for maintaining the integrity of the city's development plans and ensuring sustainable growth'. Picture: Supplied The Tshwane city council has approved the implementation of penalty rates on 713 property owners identified by the administration for illegal land use and failure to take remedial action. This includes some illegal developments as well as individual properties spread all over the city that are being used for purposes in contravention of the current zoning. These properties will now be recategorised for rates purposes as 'unpermitted use' and the owners compelled to pay penalty rates. Ben Espach, director at Rates Watch, previously said the rates for a residential property valued at R1 million amount to R1 016 per month, before applying any rebates. If the same property is classified as non-permitted use, this would increase to R7 628 per month (based on 2023/24 tariffs). ALSO READ: Tshwane to consider demolishing houses in illegal developments Missing out on billions in property rates Republican Conference of Tshwane councillor Lex Middelberg calculated that the cash-strapped metro is missing out on more than R3 billion in property rates by failing to impose penalty rates on around 20 identified illegal developments comprising almost 20 000 'erven'. The current Tshwane administration has seemingly taken this to heart and has resolved to act. Executive mayor Dr Nasipho Moya recently appointed a sub-committee to develop a response to the increasing illegal developments. A report by the sub-committee that Moneyweb has seen, which is expected to serve before council later this month, acknowledges penalty rates as one option, but seems hesitant in this regard. One of the other options it proposes is to demolish illegal structures, which may affect more than 10 000 houses. Member of the mayoral committee for economic development and spatial planning Sarah Mabotsa has in the meantime taken action and obtained council approval for imposing penalty rates on 713 non-compliant property owners. ALSO READ: Kleinfontein is not an illegal township, maintains CEO Severe implications 'The non-permitted land use activities range from unauthorised commercial activities in residential zones, through to illegal construction and land encroachments,' says Mabotsa in a statement. 'The implications of these violations on the city and its residents are significant, as they can lead to loss of revenue, inability to access critical servitudes, offer unfair land use activity and commercial advantages to transgressors, increase the costs of policing for the city, and can have potential safety and legal liabilities. 'The suburbs where these illegal land use activities have been identified are literally an 'A to Z' – Arcadia to Zwavelpoort – of the City of Tshwane,' she adds. The areas or farms include Alphenpark, Annlin, Arcadia, Ashlea Gardens, Atteridgeville, Bon Accord, Booysens, Brooklyn, Capital Park, De Onderstepoort, Derdepoort, Die Wilgers, Eersterust, Elandsfontein, Eldoraigne, Ga-Rankuwa, Garsfontein, Haakdoornboom, Hartebeesfontein, Hazelwood, Kameeldrift, Kleinfontein, Kudube, Laudium, Magalieskruin, Montana, Moreleta Park, Olievenhoutbosch, Onderstepoort, Pretoria Central, Pretoria North, Silverton, Sinoville, Soshanguve, Sunnyside, The Reeds, The Willows, Waterkloof, Witfontein and Zwavelpoort. While several large illegal township developments are included in this list – for example those occurring on one or two large properties at Elandsfontein, Haakdoornboom, Kleinfontein, Kudube, and Onderstepoort – non-permitted land use activities have also been identified several individual smaller properties in Pretoria Central, Pretoria North, Sunnyside, Sinoville, Witfontein and Silverton. Mabotsa says the 713 properties have a combined municipal value of R1.3 billion, with the average property value being R1.9 million. She notes that the city's department of economic development and spatial planning receives numerous complaints related to contraventions of zoning, national building regulations and its outdoor advertising by-law. ALSO READ: Opposition in Tshwane offers 'solution' for Kleinfontein rates problem Proactive and reactive measures 'The recommendation to implement non-permitted land use rates is one mechanism we use to encourage landowners engaged in non-[compliant] land use activities to correct their actions,' says Mabotsa. 'To identify illegal land use activities, law enforcement officials in Tshwane utilise a combination of proactive and reactive measures. 'Proactive measures include regular inspections and patrolling, as well as satellite imagery to detect unauthorised activities. Reactive measures involve responding to complaints and reports from the public.' Once an illegal activity is confirmed, contravention notices are served to the owners of the property to rectify the contraventions. If the contraventions are not rectified, the matter may be referred to the courts for criminal prosecution. ALSO READ: 'Obvious sore point'- EFF to march to exclusive Afrikaner township Kleinfontein Land use contraventions, if not corrected, are referred to city's finance department to implement rates and taxes for non-permitted land use. After the landowner has addressed the illegal activity, the economic development and spatial planning department informs the city's property valuation section so that the finance department can reverse or terminate the tariff for that owner, Mabotsa explains. 'Ensuring more compliant land use activities is crucial for maintaining the integrity of the City of Tshwane's development plans and ensuring sustainable growth,' she adds. 'By implementing the non-permitted land use policies, the city can better manage land use violations, protect its financial interests, and promote a more orderly and compliant, equitable development environment for all its residents.' ALSO READ: WATCH: 'Apartheid and Kleinfontein can't be mentioned in the same sentence' says Afrikaner community after MK party visit Preventing chaotic urban sprawl The economic development and spatial planning department has indicated that the implementation of the non-permitted land use rates and taxes, in terms of the Municipal Property Rates Act and bylaws, is currently by far the most powerful and successful manner used to force the discontinuation of illegal land uses, according to Matsopa. 'Township establishment laws are designed to prevent chaotic urban sprawl and ensure that city infrastructure keeps pace with development. 'For example, when an estate is established legally, the developers contribute to the cost of expanding roads, water, sewage and electricity services. Those costs that are then passed on to property purchasers.' When a development happens illegally, developer contributions could unfairly be expected to be paid for by all other ratepayers. ALSO READ: Tshwane municipality issues warning to landlords illegally subdividing apartments 'Illegal developments can also place too much strain on available electricity or other services in an area,' says Mabotsa. 'Legal development processes also protect homeowners and residents. The processes ensure that homes are built on stable land and not in environmentally vulnerable areas. 'In some illegal estates, there has also been no formal subdivision of the land. 'This means that purchasers in illegal estates may not actually own the land that they live on,' she points out. 'From a broader sustainability perspective, allowing illegal developments to flourish risks destroying prime agricultural land or biodiversity hotspots, weakening both food security and ecological resilience.' This article was republished from Moneyweb. Read the original here.
The Citizen
30-04-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
Opposition in Tshwane offers ‘solution' for Kleinfontein rates problem
But the law 'doesn't provide for it'. A local authority does not have to wait for the 'opportunity' presented by a review of the valuation roll to adjust the valuation or categorisation of illegal developments. Picture: Kleinfontein Facebook page The Democratic Alliance (DA) has entered the ring in the dispute about the punitive rates the City of Tshwane imposed on the illegal 'Boere-Afrikaner' settlement of Kleinfontein in September last year and underrecovery on other illegal developments in the metro. Moneyweb earlier reported that the property rates of the settlement, which was developed on agricultural land in contravention of town planning laws, were recategorised by the city from 'agriculture' to 'non-permitted use'. The recategorisation means that punitive rates of 7.5 times the residential rate apply, instead of the discounted rates for land used for agricultural purposes that previously applied. In addition, the property valuation has drastically increased in the recently published general valuation roll, which is currently open for objections. The local residents' association has estimated that Kleinfontein's property rates bill on the section of the settlement where the 600-odd houses have been built will increase from R5 230 per month to R126 148 per month. The management of Kleinfontein refers to a 6 000% increase and has lodged a dispute. It has vowed to go to court if unsuccessful. ALSO READ: Tshwane hits Afrikanerdorp Kleinfontein with stiff rates bill Multiple illegal developments Lex Middelberg, member of the city council for the Republican Congress of Tshwane, pointed out in a letter to city manager Johann Mettler that Kleinfontein is but one of at least 19 illegal developments. These are large pieces of agricultural land where luxury houses are being built for profit, without any township establishment or formal subdivision into separate erven. According to an internal council document that Middelberg obtained access to, there are at least 19 500 erven in these 'developments'. The undivided properties are, unlike Kleinfontein, still classified as 'agricultural' and are being billed at discounted rates. ALSO READ: Kleinfontein can't escape the law any longer The DA's solution … Jacqui Uys, DA spokesperson for finance in Tshwane, criticises 'the ANC government' in the city, which she says rejected 'the opportunity to create fair property rates for Kleinfontein and others'. She refers to the council meeting on 24 April, when council failed to deal with a DA motion proposing how to deal with these illegal developments. 'The process of legalising the zoning of these properties is a long road, during which the city has two choices; 1) forfeit rates and taxes from these properties, or 2) charge punitive rates. 'Seemingly, the city has chosen to forfeit rates on some of these developments and to charge punitive rates on others,' says Uys. 'The DA's motion proposed that the city utilise the opportunity presented by the current review of the city's valuation roll to put a value to each of the erven,' she adds. 'The act allows the municipality to put a value to a property even in the absence of correct zoning rights and this approach would have allowed these 19 500 properties to fairly and equally contribute to the city's rates and taxes. 'By not dealing with this motion correctly the ANC forfeited the opportunity to fair payment of rates and taxes by all Tshwane residents.' ALSO READ: Exclusive Afrikaner township defends legality after court orders Tshwane to enforce bylaws DA proposal 'unimplementable' André Zybrands, a professional valuer in private practice, says however that the DA's proposal is unimplementable. The issue is not only that the properties are not used in compliance with their zoning, but that no subdivision has taken place. The Local Government: Municipal Property Rates Act authorises the valuation of 'immovable property' for rates purposes – and 'property' is defined as being registered in the deeds office. Because these 'erven' have not been subdivided and individually registered, they cannot be valued individually in terms of the act. Only the undivided property can be valued. Owners of the undivided properties, who are most probably also the developers, remain liable for the rates levied on the whole property – and if they choose to recover rates payments from individual homeowners, it has nothing to do with the council, Zybrands says. He says valuations are normally done on the basis of market value, and the non-compliance would detract from the value. 'Any buyer would incur substantial cost to comply and would take that into account when deciding what [they are] prepared to pay for the property.' ALSO READ: Broke City of Tshwane forfeits billions as illegal developers get free ride The act, however, specifies that property and improvements erected or used in contravention of the permitted use of the property must be valued as if compliant. The valuer has no discretion in this regard. Zybrands says there must be consequences for contravening the law, and that includes being levied on a punitive scale for property rates in this case. He adds that a local authority does not have to wait for the 'opportunity presented by the current review of the city's valuation roll' to adjust the valuation or categorisation of the illegal developments. Corrections to the general valuation roll can be made regularly by way of supplementary valuation rolls. The multi-party coalition under former mayor Cilliers Brink could therefore have done so at any time when they were governing the city, but largely failed to adjust the rates of illegal developments in the city. This article was republished from Moneyweb. Read the original here.
