Cissie Gool House residents to be included in next phase of public participation hearings - CoCT

CAPE TOWN - The City of Cape Town said that the next phase of public participation hearings on the upcoming development of Cissie Gool House will include its residents. 
 
The city’s statement comes after the residents demonstrated outside the civic centre on Friday.
 
Residents said the city had threatened them with evictions and ignored their grievances.

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The City of Cape Town said that the first phase of public hearings in the development of the former Old Woodstock Hospital, now named Cissie Gool House, had ended.
 
But it said that the next phase starts in February and would consist of hearings from Woodstock residents.
 
According to people from the area, the city aims to redevelop Cissie Gool House into social housing units which will accommodate less than the 850 people currently living there.
 
The metro's Human Settlement MMC, Carl Pophaim, said he would meet with the aggrieved Cissie Gool House occupiers.
 
"We have been clear about our intention to garner meaningful, feasible and constructive input on the proposed vision for the site, which includes the development of affordable housing opportunities for qualifying beneficiaries."
 
The metro, however, has not responded to queries about what will happen to residents who don’t qualify to stay in the redeveloped space.