The city of Cape Town is in the process of formulating a policy that deals with applications for the closure of existing public roads in order to create gated communities, the city announced on Monday.
In a statement by council spokesperson Lisle Brown, it noted that there was an increasing demand for the establishment of gated communities in South African cities.
Brown said: ”Gated communities are securitised precincts, consisting of both private property and public roadways that are closed-off from the general public through fencing and walling and the erection of security gates or booms.
”Several cities in Gauteng province, such as the city of Johannesburg and the city of Tshwane, have policies in place to deal with such applications while other cities are considering the introduction of such policy.”
Brown said the policy ”will focus on the closure of public roads and will thus not affect security developments that are entirely privately owned”.
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) is currently investigating how gated communities have an impact upon fundamental human rights and will soon release a report on its findings.
Brown said once the report was available, Cape Town would be guided by it and would ensure that the gated communities policy was aligned with the findings and recommendations of the SAHRC. – I-Net Bridge