Joburg in development dispute

Johannesburg - City of Johannesburg and the Gauteng Development Tribunal are awaiting a Constitutional Court decision as to whether the two bodies can independently approve new property developments in and around the city.

This follows after the City of Johannesburg asked the South Gauteng High Court to terminate the development tribunal's right to make such approvals. After the court rejected the request, the council took the issue to the Court of Appeal, which directed the matter to the Constitutional Court.

The Constitutional Court reserved judgment on the matter on Thursday.

According to the City of Johannesburg, development tribunals' right to approve property developments, as per the Development Facilitation Act (DFA), is unconstitutional.

The DFA provides for the Gauteng Development Tribunal, which was established by the provincial government, to hear applications on matters including disputes between landlords and tenants and the rezoning of land.

The City of Johannesburg alleged that the Gauteng Development Tribunal was making decisions in contradiction with council policies, said Brian Kew, head of property practice at law firm Werksmans.

According to Kew, the City of Johannesburg is trying to impose limits on the city's spread to encourage densification. However, development tribunals are approving developments outside the demarcated areas. The city lost the first round of its court battle, appealed and is waiting for the Constitutional Court to issue a verdict.

It takes two years for approval from the council, whereas tribunals can grant permission within one year of application.

The council has also made it clear that if a development tribunal makes a decision contrary to its policies, it will not be implemented. "This means services like water, power and sewerage management won't be provided," said Kew.

The city's stance means some property developers can't start building and will miss the opportunity to take advantage of a recovery in the housing market, according to Kew.

"There's no new stock coming into the market, which is not so bad at this time [of the recession] but we've seen a turn and now is the time to start developing," said Kew.

According to Kew, a judgment could take months.

- Fin24.com