A total of R68 million has been invested to refurbish an old Port Elizabeth building into a social housing project, says the Eastern Cape Human Settlements Department.
The project will be implemented by the Qhama Social Housing Institution and will have 220 units consisting of bachelor, one and two bedroom units.
The project, which is for rental purposes, will be opened to people that earn between R1 500 and R7 500 a month.
Eastern Cape MEC for Human Settlements Helen Sauls-August said the first phase of the project will focus on the social housing element of the building.
“This marks a defining moment for the people of the Eastern Cape Province as were are here to witness the fall of a painful past and the new beginning of a historic project,” MEC Sauls-August said at the handover of the site on Friday.
She also committed that the social housing project will preserve the rich history and heritage of the building and create a living memorial of the struggle for liberation.
“It is befitting that during the Year of Oliver Tambo, the work to convert this building into a living memorial of the struggle for freedom commences now,” MEC Sauls- August said.
Work to revamp the building will commence in June and will run for a period of 12 months.
Both the provincial and national government as well the Social Housing Regulatory Authority have invested money towards funding the project.
