Human Settlements Dept taking legal action against contractor over unfinished R11bn project

JOHANNESBURG - The Department of Human Settlements in Gauteng says it is taking legal action against a contractor who abandoned an R11 billion project.

Construction of the Montrose Mega City in Randfontein kicked off in 2017, but was abandoned in November 2023.

Members of Parliament (MP)'s National Council of Provinces (NCOP) conducted an oversight visit to the site on Wednesday.

The project was spearheaded by SCM Development in 2017 to build a mixture of stand-alone RDP houses and multi-storey flats.

Since the construction was abandoned, the unfinished units have been vandalised.

The department said performance issues with SCM Developments started in 2021.

Director-General Phumzile Maseko-Seipobi said they terminated the contract in July this year.

"In terms of opening a criminal case (against the developer) our contracts stipulate the steps you must go through when there is poor performance, non-performance and all kinds of things and that’s what we are following now."

The department said it was close to appointing a security company to guard the site against vandalism, while they attempt to finish it.