Cape Town’s iconic unfinished freeways – an eyesore to many observers - may finally become more than just roads to nowhere on the city’s Foreshore.
City of Cape Town mayor‚ Patricia De Lille‚ said on Tuesday that there would be a formal call for proposals from developers to find a “solution” to the unfinished‚ skeleton-like structures that have graced the skyline for about five decades.
They have become an iconic feature of the city and have been used in many movie and commercial shoots.
But De Lille called them “useless”.
“They are also preventing development of prime city-owned land... that is locked in under and between the existing highways and the harbour‚” she said.
She said the city wanted proposals to alleviate congestion experienced in the area.
But one of the requirements for a winning bidder will be to build housing around the structures “for a diverse cross section of income groups” as part of the project.
“By this I mean that a percentage of this development must be earmarked for affordable housing opportunities to those beneficiaries and applicants who qualify for these opportunities in terms of the city’s policies‚” said De Lille.
The city previously partnered with the University of Cape Town and asked its students to “explore and find innovative proposals” for the future of the unfinished highways.
A number of their proposals were later showcased at an exhibition during the city’s tenure as the World Design Capital.
TMG Digital
