City Extends Deadline For Proposals For The Development Of The Foreshore Freeway Precinct

‘The City’s Bid Specification Committee (BSC) received requests from interested parties for an extension of the submission date for proposals for the development of the Foreshore Freeway Precinct. The BSC considered the requests and has subsequently agreed to extend the submission date for all proposals from 8 December 2016 to 9 February 2017,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member: Transport for Cape Town, Councillor Brett Herron.

 

The City issued the prospectus for the development of the Foreshore Freeway Precinct in the Cape Town central business district on 8 July 2016.

 

The prospectus provides investors and developers with all of the information they need for devising a development proposal for this precinct – a strip of City-owned land that is located under and between the existing and unfinished highways between the city’s northern edge and the Cape Town Harbour.

 

‘There has been great interest in this project since we have made the prospectus available to the public. Over 100 interested parties attended the non-compulsory briefing session at the Civic Centre and the subsequent site visit on 12 August 2016, confirming that the private sector has an appetite for getting involved in this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to address the city’s traffic woes and affordable housing needs. I am confident that the new deadline will provide those interested in bidding for this project with much-needed time to come up with innovative proposals and solutions,’ said Councillor Herron.

 

Prospective bidders and interested parties can access the prospectus and the video as follows: 

The Foreshore Freeway Precinct consists of a strip of land 6 ha in size and 140 m wide. It is situated in a prime location and has the potential to provide developers with a significant return on investment.

 

The City will make this prime land available to the successful bidder for development in return for the provision of road infrastructure that will resolve the future of the unfinished highways, address current and future traffic congestion, and address the lack of access to and from the central business district.

 

‘A pivotal requirement for prospective bidders is that their development proposal must provide housing opportunities for a diverse cross-section of income groups. A percentage of this development must be earmarked for affordable housing opportunities – either within the Foreshore Freeway Precinct itself, or on other sites supplementary to the core development area in the CBD,’ said Councillor Herron.

Proposals omitting this component will be disqualified.

 

‘The prospectus does not prescribe to potential bidders whether their proposals should include finishing the highways as a whole or in part, or dismantling them altogether or not. This is up to the bidders to propose. However, their proposals must elaborate on how all three of the unfinished highways will be addressed in terms of transport, access and the alleviation of current and future congestion,’ said Councillor Herron.

 

Registered bidders now have an additional two months to compile their proposals.

 

‘We are looking forward to working together with a partner from the private sector who will be able to provide us with an imaginative and creative proposal and development solution that will be to the benefit of all of us living in Cape Town,’ said Councillor Herron.