Housing delivery and issues relating to housing delivery have long been a complicated subject for most SA municipalities and government departments tasked with these responsibilities. The aforementioned complications stem from our inherited apartheid planning that was mainly focused on inequality, racial segregation and spatial fragmentation of land use. Corruption, lack of skills, financial constraints and lack of resources are issues further considered to be contributors to the complications related to housing delivery. The study to be conducted seeks to play a part in dealing with the complicated nature of housing delivery through being a toolof assessment. The study is in the form of an evaluation as it mainly deals with obtaining answers relating to the views of the respondents on the sustainable human settlement program implemented as part of the DVRI in the BCMM. In doing so it, seeks to provide answers to some of the challenges faced by municipalities and other government departments so as to ensure that going forward, best practices are adopted in the housing delivery process. The findings from the study revealed primarily that, what is planned on paper is not often what is implemented on the ground. In evaluating the aims and objectives of the two sustainable human settlement pilot projects implemented as the BNG pilot projects through the DVRI, a considerable number of the objectives of the projects have not been met according to the beneficiaries. The reasons for the lack of satisfaction relating to the two projects as cited by the respondents included, amongst other things; dissatisfaction with the quality of the structure, lack of adequate services, lack of employment opportunities, lack of recreational facilities, lack of social facilities, lack of safe and reliable transportation and the general maintenance of the settlement. Solutions to the identified issues include; improved and meaningful participation between government, planners and the beneficiaries of such housing projects, so as to ensure that the views of the beneficiaries are considered and that they have a considerable influence on the decisions taken, thus promoting a bottom-up approach to the housing delivery process. The provision of key recreational and social amenities and the improved maintenance of the general settlement were also identified by the respondents as solutions.

The aim of this study was to investigate the socio-economic perceptions of the beneficiaries of the low income housing scheme in Unit P, of Mdantsane Township, under Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were utilised in this study. For instance, questionnaires on the perceptions were administered amongst twenty (20) beneficiaries of this low housing scheme. Semi structured interviews were conducted amongst five (5) respondents who participated in the survey design. The study found that the intervention of providing poor people with houses was not appropriately done as these houses are too small and therefore fail to consider the families of the beneficiaries although the South African government seems to have succeeded to some extent in providing low income housing for the unemployed and those that belong to the low income category. The study also found that the location of Unit P poses a threat because it is located away from all the amenities compelling the beneficiaries to travel more than 5km to the amenities and essential services. The study therefore recommends that the government employs competent contractors that would do a proper job. State officials, tasked with overseeing the various state funded housing projects, have to ascertain the success of these projects by making sure that the contractors do not lack skills such as the ability to facilitate projects of a high magnitude as that could lead to flawed projects. They should be constantly monitored and post evaluated. This will help to minimize the wasting of state resources.

The purpose of this study was to critically investigate challenges in the provision of low-income housing in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM). In order to reach this goal, it was necessary to study the literature on the housing sector, especially as regards the impact between the external factors and the provision of low-income housing. A further supporting objective was to investigate and analyse the challenges in order to develop techniques and strategies for solving the challenges facing the NMBM in the provision of low-income housing. In order to address the reach problem and to fulfil the research objectives, an in-depth literature study was done. Empirical studies were also performed by means of face-to-face interviews and a questionnaire with the target group in the Housing Department of the NMBM. The literature and empirical study made it possible to identify underperformance and to recommend possible solutions for the challenges in the provision of low-income housing in the NMBM. These recommendations should be of value to all participants in the housing sector. From the investigation into the NMBM in the provision of low-income housing, the findings indicate that the constraints and challenges such as the housing backlog also exist in other parts of South Africa. Challenges such as availability of land in the NMBM can be considered to exist principally in the NMBM area. The new national policies and local government housing strategies should concur with the internationally accepted developmental approach. Recommendations were made with regard to sustainable development strategies, housing policies, finance and housing provision. Essential proposals were made, such as efficient financial support, and to train and improve certain unskilled staff in the NMBM. The study concludes with recommended techniques and strategies for the improvement of low-income housing in the NMBM, in order to overcome its challenges and to empower it on a sustainable basis.

D.Litt et Phil. / The number of slums and squatter settlements is rising globally; this is recognised as a significant problem as many of the urban poor find housing in these settlements. With the expanding slum settlements comes a serious problem for many developing nations, that of finding a mechanism to improve these informal developments. These settlements are a symptom of poor urban governance and lack of financial resources causing the urban poor to be pushed into these dwellings and find themselves on the periphery of urban society, not only geographically but socially, economically and legally. Upgrading, integration and legalisation of these housing types is necessary if these peripheral suburbs are to be developed formally. Although many governments have tried top-down approaches of upgrade, these approachs have often failed to produce results as slum upgrades often lead to displacement of the original inhabitants who are ousted into areas even further to the periphery of urban centres. This thesis looks at alternatives to viewing settlements on the urban fringe as a quandary, by using a neoliberal theoretical framework (despite its many flaws), informal property markets in townships in Johannesburg, South Africa can be seen as a catalyst for wealth creation and local economic development. This is particularly important given the historical context of apartheid in South Africa and the segregation of the majority of the population into racially exclusive slums. The post-apartheid government has rallied to improve the lives of this group of poor and dispossessed people with the provision of decent housing a key aspect of this process. A neoliberal framework for economic development was embarked upon in South Africa, with the introduction of neoliberal economic policy (namely GEAR) in 1998, South Africa embarked on a process of reform to encourage market growth. This manifest itself in the ‘Breaking New Ground’ housing policy which adopted a neoliberal stance on Housing provision, and although not removing the role of government in providing low-cost housing, it strives for a market driven housing solution. With a shortage of over 1 million houses in the city, there should be every potential market orientated low-cost housing sector, yet capital within this property sector is often referred to as dead capital with no intrinsic value. This thesis challenges that view by determining the existence of Crisylida capital in township property assets. Crisylida capital is virgining capital in the low-cost property market that could lead to the accumulation of asset capital within this property group, estimated value of Crisylida capital in Johannesburg alone is R6.3 billion. Residents in low-cost housing in Township suburbs in Johannesburg recognise economic value in their dwelling, with only 21% of participants valuing their property at less than R10 000. Further, real estate agents working the township real estate market estimate that just over 50% of properties in these areas are valued at over R200 000. Within this property environment, security of tenure plays an important role in creating not only wealth creation but equally a sense of community ownership. Houses with tenure saw 37% of respondents interested or actively participating in community projects, this compared to 13% of respondents without tenure. This thesis points to a new understanding of low-cost property in Johannesburg, South Africa as a potential market worth billions of Rands that could inject wealth into the hands of marginalised communities. This in turn could assist in fostering sustainable socio-economic urban community within disenfranchised township suburbs.

Rooms’ and ‘spaces’ are two closely linked forms of accommodation where the unit of occupation and exchange is a portion of a larger building or property, within which services and facilities are shared. ‘Rooms’ and ‘spaces’ in the inner city represented two of very few typologies research participants were aware of that allowed them access to the livelihood opportunities Johannesburg had to offer. Through participant observation and qualitative interviews this study explores two buildings featuring informal rooms and spaces and one building featuring formal rooms and spaces in Johannesburg’s inner city. While formal rooms represented the most stable support to those specific occupants, there were several ‘barriers to entry’ including the prerequisite of a stable income. There was much to be learnt from the flexibility and diversity of rooms and spaces on the informal market, which enabled occupants to cope with insecure livelihood opportunities. The research demonstrated the incredible resilience of occupants in the face of an extreme shortage of affordable accommodation in Johannesburg’s inner city (Tissington, 2013). However, the findings suggested an adverse relationship between accommodation and livelihoods demonstrated by the three ‘forms’ of rooms and spaces, where the only form available to people with the least secure livelihoods is that which, in turn, subjects them to the greatest insecurity.

Thesis is submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2016 / Keywords/key concepts: Dolomite, Dolomitic ground, Disaster Risk Management, Physical Vulnerability, Low-income settlements, Housing Policy, Services delivery, Responsibility, Living with risk, Human Behaviour, Basic Human Rights Ground underlain by dolomite may be hazardous to development due to the potential occurrence of subsidence and sinkholes. These potentially disastrous occurrences are in many instances caused by human interaction with the soil through the ponding of water or leaking of wet infrastructure such as water and sanitation services. Construction materials and techniques, as well as effective maintenance of waterborne services have traditionally been acknowledged as having a significant bearing on the level of risk that communities face when living on such potentially dangerous land. The spatial distribution of settlements on dolomite in the Gauteng City Region (GCR) is already widespread and expected to increase as urbanisation intensifies. Similarly, the challenge of considering the physical vulnerability of low-income settlements is expected to intensify. Welldefined procedures and guidelines govern the development of human settlements on dolomitic ground. However, the classification and characterisation of low-income and informal settlements are not as advanced as that of formal residential developments. In addition, the guidelines regarding management of settlements on dolomite focus significantly on geotechnical interventions, leaving a gap in the influence that human behaviour can play in possible disaster risk reduction on such ground. The thesis considers the significance of different low-income settlement types on dolomite, relative to perceived human behaviour in association with principles of disaster risk reduction. It hypothesizes that an understanding of settlement type in relation to human behaviour and a stronger emphasis on monitoring via official channels could address some of the conflicts in the development-on-dolomite debate and thereby reduces settlement vulnerability. The research methods included quantitative and qualitative components, commencing with a literature review that spanned multiple disciplines and sectors. Fieldwork included spatial investigation and consideration of low-income settlement types with regard to, for example building material use, dwelling size and dwelling layout, and wet services infrastructure provision and location. The thesis subsequently identify and explore low-income settlement types in the study area. The research explores a number of sample settlements to consider the physical vulnerability and potential key areas of intervention and risk reduction, outside of the traditional geotechnical arena. The evaluation then applies the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), a form of Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA), to identify important variables and indicators related to human behaviour and the physical vulnerability of settlements on dolomite that can be harnessed to intervene in the debate, and possible improve the safety of communities living with this risk. Although not affecting the research outcome directly, a specific observation during the course of engagement with specialists across disciplines was that experts in even closely related practice areas view low-income settlement development and upgrading on dolomite differently. The differences in viewpoints result in contradictions in approaches between housing officials, disaster managers, socio-environmental practitioners, engineers and geologists. Even small differences in approach have been shown to have significant effects on the practicalities surrounding decision making related to low-income settlements and especially informal settlement relocation or upgrading. The outcome is a set of prioritised indicators that could enable specialists, officials and the public to consider different elements of low-income settlements based on its physical vulnerability. By focussing on the indicators most likely to result in reduced vulnerability, actions that drive settlement development, upgrade and resettlement could be prioritised. Interestingly, one of the findings of the research is that it is not so much the settlement type based on informality that makes a difference in the exposure to risk – physical vulnerability is deemed to be significantly affected by official (municipal-sphere) actions, monitoring and awareness. Finally, the research enables the integration of technical knowledge with behavioural considerations when living on dolomite, thus highlighting opportunities to bring technical and non-technically skilled stakeholders in the debate closer together. / MT2017

Since the mid-century proliferation of public housing, policy makers and environmental justice advocates have exposed the fact that geographically and economically isolated public housing sites are ultimately detrimental to residents and communities. In recent years, more progressive housing policies have emphasized the importance of site location in the success of housing programs. This study explores the intersection of affordable housing policy and “food desert” research, by assessing the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program in California, with specific attention to the grocery store category within the Site Amenities section. Since the inception of the LIHTC program in 1986, the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee (CTCAC) has made multiple revisions to its application process. The study evaluates the current accessibility of grocery stores from LIHTC sites in Alameda and Santa Clara Counties in Northern California. It also critiques the changes in application scoring, criteria, and the indicators of food facility proximity and quality, identifying weaknesses, recommendations, and areas for further research. It finds that despite CTCAC’s efforts to improve the effectiveness of the application, there does not seem to improvement in grocery store access over time. Further research is needed to determine whether this condition is a result of a failure on the part of the application process, or of high land costs and limited availability of developable land.

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act contained the largest federal initiative for place-based investment in over half a century. Opportunity Zones (“OZs”) are expected to cost the US government over $15 billion in forgone tax revenue through 2026, exceeding both the Clinton Era Empowerment Zones and the Great Society programs of Lyndon Johnson. Have OZs increased neighborhood investment and, if so, what types of projects and neighborhoods have benefitted? This dissertation presents three baseline evaluations of OZ. The first essay discusses the findings from 76 interviews with community and government officials, program managers, developers, businesses, and fund managers about OZ outcomes in West Baltimore. The second essay uses a difference-in-differences (DID) event study framework, an adjusted interrupted time series analysis, and census tract matching techniques to compare small business and residential lending outcomes in OZs with areas that were eligible but not designated. The final essay combines an online search for OZ supported affordable housing projects, a DID design that examines Low-Income Housing Tax Credit outcomes, and 16 interviews with community development experts to evaluate whether and how OZ is having an impact on affordable housing production. These three analyses show that OZ is a missed opportunity. OZ is stimulating investment conversations and local government capacity, but it is failing at oversight and community engagement and not changing outcomes for distressed community development or affordable housing. OZ is failing because it provides weak incentives for capital gains investors seeking market rate returns, because it does not support investors and developers already active in distressed neighborhoods, and because of several related design flaws that inhibit mission driven development. The essays propose specific policy changes necessary for OZ to encourage investment in highly distressed neighborhoods and to support affordable housing production.

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