Cape Town’s New Urban Design Policy – Liveable, Inclusive, and Resilient
Cape Town is inviting comments on its Local Spatial Development Framework, which could enhance both residential and commercial property values and attract more businesses.
The Cape Town CBD has developed tremendously over the past two decades, and now the city has a new proposal to accelerate this positive trend. The new urban design, the Local Spatial Development Framework, heralds a new era in urban planning, harnessing green spaces, fully integrated public transportation, commercial property development, and the pressing need for affordable housing into a single comprehensive policy.
As the local government calls for comments on this extensive proposal, it’s in the best interest of businesses and residents based in Cape Town to fully comprehend the heart of the Spatial Development Framework and understand exactly what type of urban environment the city seeks to create in the coming decades.
In this article, we take a deep dive into the city’s numerous proposals and analyse each one in terms of the precise policy suggestions being made, and the possible impact that they could have on the city’s economic future, as well as its liveability going forward.
Post-pandemic recovery creates an opportunity for comprehensive urban renewal
Despite the impressive improvements that took place in the CBD in the years leading up to 2020, the effect of prolonged lockdowns and the shift to working from home could not be ignored by the City of Cape Town.
As soon as the pandemic’s scope became apparent, local government scrambled to create a pandemic recovery programme to help support businesses in the CBD during one of the country’s most difficult periods in recent memory at a time when elevated office vacancies suppressed rentals resulting in a gradual reduction in corporate footprints.
Four years later, like many urban environments around the world, Cape Town is enjoying a firm recovery, with commercial space at a premium for potential tenants. Within the CBD a higher density of smaller businesses, increasing numbers of coworking spaces and the introduction of serviced sectional title offices with managed common facilities such as Wale Street Chambers are all noteworthy trends contributing to the mixed-use recovery of the city.
This backdrop sets the stage for the next phase of renewal: a total reimagining of the CBD with the intention of creating a vibrant city centre that could be home to 50 000 more people over the next few decades.
After years of comprehensive and extensive planning, the city’s Local Spatial Development Framework has finally been completed. The plan, which spans several hundred pages of a comprehensive policy document, outlines several priorities that the city will pursue once the plan is approved.
At its core, the plan is focused on two broad objectives: the continued economic prosperity of the CBD as the heart of Cape Town’s business community, and the provision of desirable residential units to welcome tens of thousands of workers who currently endure long commutes every day to reach their downtown offices.
To achieve these goals, the city has divided the CBD into several precincts and assigned development priorities to each one.
Defining the CBD development zones
The City of Cape Town has demarcated a variety of development areas, which will be familiar to regular residents or users of the CBD. Within each of these regions, a number of improvement projects are planned, including enhanced road maintenance, the provision of fresh and clean drinking water, green spaces, and increased collaboration with the CCID to provide cleaning and security to meet the specific needs of each area.
The following areas have been earmarked for development by the city:
Image: CBD character precincts (CCDS, 2011) City of Cape Town CBD Transition Plan
- De Waterkant (#5)
- Convention District (#6)
- Mid City (#7)
- Company Gardens-Government Precinct (#8)
- East Foreshore (#9)
- East City (#11)
- Lower Gardens (#17)
In addition, District Six and Bo-Kaap will each receive their own dedicated development zones.
The CBD by the numbers
Cape Town plans to continue the expansion and development of its inner-city area. The local municipality has undertaken a variety of data-gathering and statistical analysis exercises. Here are some insights provided by the City of Cape Town that offer important context for the proposals currently on the table.
The CBD population (being the Cape Town City Centre and the Foreshore) has been growing in recent years and currently stands at 6 718 out of a total population of 4 746 480 for the city. A secondary study area made up of Central City Areas currently stands at 68 202.
While the CBD numbers may not represent a huge proportion of the total population, it certainly shows the growth potential that the inner city has, and this is precisely what the Spatial Development Framework seeks to harness in the years to come.
As a primarily commercial district home to professional workers, the CBD features impressive income and employment statistics.
In terms of age demographics, 37% of CBD residents are between the ages of 20-34, while 20% are aged between 35-49.
Cumulatively, this equates to 57% of the population being of working age, which bodes well for development initiatives. The potential for commercial and residential developments is strong, with the city’s young professional population set to increase over the next few decades.
While the CBD has not traditionally been aimed at families, the surrounding areas of Gardens and Oranjezicht have attracted their fair share of multiple-person households and continue to do so.
The city’s economic statistics reflect a diverse population across different income categories.
- The middle class, earning between R22 300 and R44 598, makes up the largest segment at 21%
- The upper-middle class, which accounts for 18% of the population, is slightly smaller, with incomes ranging from R44 500 to R89 000.
These two categories are largely composed of upwardly mobile single people and couples.
- The working class, earning between R11,150 and R22,299, represents 17% of residents.
The CBD’s income distribution could be great news for both the residential and commercial property markets in the inner city. With 39% of the population in the middle and upper-middle classes, there will likely be strong demand for higher-end residential developments, including modern apartments.
These up-and-coming residents may also drive demand for premium retail and dining spaces, boosting the commercial property market. Meanwhile, the working class, comprising 17%, will be prime candidates for affordable housing options, creating a need for mixed-use developments that cater to various income levels in the future.
Going green, one park at a time
Cape Town is known for its natural beauty, and it’s not only the vistas of the Atlantic Ocean and beautiful mountain views that make the city pleasant to look at. The number of green spaces in the city and the variety of amenities they offer has been improving over the past few years. Now, the city council is determined to take these urban oases to the next level.
In terms of the CBD, the city has identified six main green spaces and marked them for further development. Initiatives will include the expansion of existing parks, the improvement of leisure facilities, enhancements to security and accessibility, and marketing efforts to ensure that all Capetonians enjoy the use of these facilities.
The following parks fall under the city’s improvement mandate in terms of the Spatial Development Plan:
- Molteno Reservoir
- De Waal Park
- Company Gardens
- St. George’s Mall
- Adderley Street
- The Heerengracht
With an ever-improving network of parks, city residents will not need to go far to find rejuvenating green areas, even in the heart of the CBD.
Improving transportation access for day workers
Like many cities across the country, Cape Town is fighting a constant battle against the legacy of apartheid-era spatial planning. Residential areas housing workers are located far from the CBD, with insufficient public transport access. The latest plan from the city aims to address these issues once and for all, building on recent efforts including the MyCiti bus network and a rejuvenated rail system.
According to data from the city’s report, the lion’s share of commuters still make their way to the CBD by minibus taxi every day. This presents an ongoing challenge to the city due to the relatively unregulated nature of this industry and the government’s inability to ensure passenger safety, despite several attempts to inspect taxis for roadworthiness and crack down on dangerous driving by drivers and operators.
As part of the spatial development plan, the expansion of the MyCiti bus network has been proposed, as well as an ambitious plan to extend the city’s train network to provide mass transit solutions for travellers coming to the CBD from Mitchell’s Plain, Khayelitsha, the southern suburbs, and beyond.
These measures should make the city more accessible to day workers.
Providing enticing housing solutions near the CBD
Despite 30 years of ongoing urban planning and housing provision for lower-income families, the issue of affordable accommodation in close proximity to the CBD remains a top priority for the city to address.
Recognising that the traditional RDP housing approach failed to provide sufficient accommodation and resolve the issue of access to affordable and desirable residential units, the city is proposing to take a different approach.
The focus will now be on providing opportunities for stylish and modern residential units to be built with rentals that make them accessible to lower- to mid-income workers employed in the CBD.
By locating these residential units within a short bus or bicycle ride from the historic centre, the city hopes to provide opportunities for affordable housing to be developed, rather than building stocks of houses that may or may not appeal to a new generation of urban dwellers.
A Framework In summary
The City of Cape Town’s Local Spatial Development Framework is both comprehensive and detailed, giving city residents plenty of food for thought.
The plan outlines a variety of measures designed to address its main objectives of economic recovery, accessibility, and the provision of affordable and desirable housing throughout the CBD.
According to the City’s Deputy Mayor and Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews, the main objective of the policy is to design streets and open spaces that are both multi-functional and people-centred; “The quality of our cities, towns, neighbourhoods, streets and public spaces has a significant impact on our lives. We have all experienced it before when you arrive in a place – it could be any city or neighbourhood, or even a street – and it just feels good to be there, works well, and makes you want to stay longer”.
It remains to be seen what shape the final plan will take and how its implementation will be realised. Our initial impression is that the city’s vision for the future is a positive one overall.
Capetonians who would like to comment on the proposed development plan have until the end of October to do so. Submissions can be made on the city’s website.
With the future of Cape Town’s CBD looking bright, both from the perspective of local government initiatives and the uptick in interest from tenants and building investors, now could be the ideal time to secure commercial property in the downtown area.
Our team has decades of collective experience in the commercial property industry covering the Cape Peninsula. Schedule an appointment and let us know more about your specific office space needs — we’d love you to contact us today.
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