eThekwini Municipality Mayor, Mxolisi Kaunda, believes constructing flats or apartment blocks could alleviate the City's housing issue.
"With land being a scarce resource in Durban, if we aim to address informal settlements effectively, we may need to consider alternative housing options such as high-rise buildings to accommodate a larger number of people," the mayor said.
Kaunda has now tasked the municipality's human settlements unit to explore potentially constructing high rise buildings as opposed to single-storey structures.
He further directed the unit to to explore the feasibility of constructing high-rise social housing where suitable based on the land's geo-technical assessments.
Speaking during Operation Siyahlola at the Kennedy-Barton Place Phase 2 Housing Project on Wednesday, Kaunda said he was impressed with the progress of this clearance project, which will be handed over to residents living at the Kennedy Road informal settlement.
Kaunda said he was pleased that phase 1 had been successfully completed, with residents already settled in.
"The progress towards phase 3 demonstrates our unconventional approach, which will help us clear the backlog of informal settlements sooner than anticipated," Kaunda said.
IOL