The Tafelberg property previously housed a remedial school and a block of rental housing units.
The Constitutional Court has ruled that South Africa’s constitutional right to adequate housing is about more than simply putting a roof over people’s heads – finding that where affordable housing is built is central to giving effect to the rights contained in the Bill of Rights.
In a unanimous judgment in the long-running Tafelberg matter, the country’s highest court ruled that the Western Cape government and the City of Cape Town failed to meet their constitutional obligations when they disposed of the former Tafelberg School site in Sea Point.
The court found they did this without properly considering whether it could be used for affordable housing in a well-located part of the city.
The Tafelberg property – two adjacent erven in Sea Point, a seaside suburb close to education and health facilities, transport nodes and social amenities – previously housed a remedial school and a block of rental housing units.
