Construction on 2 000 housing units in Bardale, Mfuleni have been fast tracked following a meeting between building contractors and officials from the Western Cape Provincial Department f Human settlements.

The 12 contractors, assigned by the Department of Human settlements, met with Provincial Human Settlements Head of Department, Thando Mguli on Friday 12 February in Mfuleni to iron out outstanding issues regarding the project.

Mguli sought to establish the readiness of the contractors who promised to complete the units by the 31 March 2016, which is two months earlier than the proposed deadline of June 2016. Most of the have already started and are at various stages.

Mguli stressed that any contractors who have a beneficiary younger than 40 years of age should alert the Department as it is part of their strategic goal to prioritise the elderly, most vulnerable, and those with special needs in the allocation of housing opportunities.  Mguli also raised the importance of working with the National Home Builders’ Registration Council (NHBRC) in this regard.

The meeting was attended by department officials who were invited to explain the process followed to appoint the contractors, along with providing clarity on some of the technical construction issues.

Councillor Themba Honono provided some background and history of the project and explained the reason for his passion linked to this project. While contractors were urged to pick up the pace of delivering services, Honono reminded contractors that “we need quality homes as opposed to rushing to make the deadline”.