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Joburg Executive Mayor, Mpho Phalatse says the implosion of the Kaserne Building is a major milestone in addressing the housing backlog in the City of Joburg.

There are currently close to 480 000 people on the waiting list for houses in the City of Joburg.

The 4-second implosion of the historic building was undertaken on Sunday morning 15 May 2022 and was attended by various members of the Joburg Mayoral Committee, Department of Housing officials, Joscho officials and leadership and various stakeholders.

The Kaserne Building was condemned by the court after it caught fire following illegal electricity connection and sadly lives were lost. 

Cllr Mabaso expanded that the demolition of this building will also make way for the public private partnership which can assist to fast track the pace of delivery of housing.   

This area will be a site for the development of mixed housing units such as RDP homes and rental houses. The residents of the nearby informal settlement will be prioritized during the development of the new housing units. 

The mixed development is aimed at addressing the housing need for RDP beneficiaries, subsidized homes which come at lower cost as well as social housing for rentals. This means that this development will cater for different income groups in an effort to cover the different housing needs need in the City of Johannesburg. 

In the meanwhile, “we are going to electrify the informal settlement here to ensure we mitigate against fires, previously experienced in the Kaserne Building,” says Mabaso who explained that the fires in the Kaserne building were caused by illegal connections.

An estimated one thousand five hundred units will be built in the area in an effort to address the housing backlog in the City of Joburg. The area will be developed into a township with all amenities including a health facility and early childhood development centre.

Issued by City of Johannesburg