With just 928 subsidized homes delivered in the past year against a backlog of 60,000 units, Cape Town’s housing crisis has reached a critical tipping point, according to GOOD Party mayoral candidate Brett Herron. The party is urging immediate action to repurpose publicly owned land and halt its sale to private developers as a central strategy to address systemic inequality.
Herron highlighted stark disparities within the city: while Cape Town garners global awards for tourism and lifestyle, more than two million residents on the Cape Flats contend with failing infrastructure, severe overcrowding, and prolonged municipal neglect. Data cited by the GOOD Party indicates 270,000 informal shacks are scattered across 800 settlements, underscoring the scale of the challenge.
“We cannot accept that apartheid-era spatial planning continues to dictate where people live and what opportunities they can access,” Herron stated. He described the current urban layout as a direct consequence of forced removals and land dispossession, emphasizing that solutions must work within existing communities rather than attempting large-scale relocation.
The proposed approach focuses on dual priorities. First, targeted infrastructure upgrades in neighborhoods experiencing the most acute deterioration—areas plagued by sewage overflows, burst water mains, and inadequate stormwater systems that lead to flooding. Herron referenced a diagnostic study originally commissioned under former mayor Patricia de Lille that mapped communities most affected by poverty and infrastructure gaps, suggesting officials revisit and modernize that assessment to guide phased interventions.
Second, the party advocates leveraging city-owned land and vacant buildings in well-located areas to expand affordable housing stock. This would enable young professionals and working families to reside nearer to employment hubs, reducing transport costs and spatial exclusion. Herron stressed that publicly held land is a finite resource managed on behalf of residents, making its sale for private development difficult to justify amid urgent social needs.
Addressing common concerns about real estate impacts, Herron pointed to international evidence showing that well-designed affordable housing does not depress surrounding property values. “In fact, activating derelict public sites often improves neighborhood conditions and can enhance local property markets,” he noted. He also drew attention to historical precedent: apartheid-era municipalities successfully built and managed rent-stabilized public housing in prime locations—though restricted to white residents—demonstrating that the financial and operational models are feasible when political commitment exists.
Funding, Herron argued, should be structured through long-term municipal bonds, treating housing as essential infrastructure. Under this framework, tenants would pay affordable, regulated rents that include a dedicated portion for ongoing maintenance, ensuring buildings remain viable and debt obligations are met. “The mechanism works,” he said. “What’s missing is the political will to deploy it at scale.”
The GOOD Party also called for an end to the municipal practice of selling commercial and industrial land to private developers while simultaneously restricting home-based enterprises. Herron suggested that retaining such publicly owned spaces could support informal businesses currently operating from residential properties, fostering local economic growth alongside housing delivery.
Geographically, the Cape Flats spans a vast area from Atlantis in the north to Mitchell’s Plain and Kyle in the south. Herron emphasized that intervention must begin where conditions are most dire—communities where basic services have collapsed and families live without dignity. “We can see the need with our own eyes when we leave the highways and enter these neighborhoods,” he said.
Looking toward potential post-election coalition scenarios, Herron acknowledged that governance partnerships would require negotiation but affirmed certain non-negotiables: any alliance must prioritize resolving the housing and affordability crises, improving public safety, and ensuring meaningful community participation in planning decisions. “Government cannot be conducted solely through virtual meetings while decisions about people’s lives are made without their input,” he added.
As local elections approach, the GOOD Party’s platform centers on the principle that location should not determine destiny. Herron concluded that dismantling inherited spatial injustice demands both immediate investment in neglected areas and strategic use of public assets to create inclusive, well-connected communities for all Cape Town residents.