Durban - Homeowners have banded together for a court battle against a rezoning and resultant “abomination” multistorey development in Durban’s Currie Road. They say if it is not stopped, it will affect town planning in the city for years to come.
The residents say the city has rezoned the site to GR5 (general residential 5) zoning – apparently the first on the Berea. It is a zone created for high-density areas, such as the beachfront and the Victoria Embankment and does away with side space restrictions and allows for coverage of the site with “boundary to boundary” development.
They say that “at a stroke of a pen” the rezoning has added R25 million to the price of the land and upped potential gross sales for the developers of 317 Currie Road, Serengeti Rise Industries, from R32m (under the original GR1 zoning) to between R120m and R136m.
Serengeti Rise had previously stated that development was being done in accordance with approved zoning and plans and that the neighbours were aware of these.
In the meantime, neighbours’ properties have collectively lost R26m in value.
Their application was launched in the Durban High Court last week and an urgent date will be set on Monday for argument.
It has been brought by residents who live in the surrounding complexes and blocks, Cadogan Gardens, 311 Currie Road, Surrey Mansions and 8 Winter Avenue, and who want a judge to review the city’s decisions to approve plans in August 2010, which were for a four-storey development, the rezoning in December 2011 and then the approval of “deviation plans” for a nine-storey development in March.
In his affidavit, Tayob Aboobaker – an advocate and owner of the penthouse in the 311 Currie Road complex – says the development is a “monstrosity”, too bulky, and protrudes too far to the front, to the back and to the sides.
“It intrudes on the privacy of all the buildings surrounding it. It is simply inappropriate,” he said.
“It does not conform to the area or to the other buildings, which are designed to minimise their impact upon the views.”
He said, in particular, 8 Winter Gardens, “an ultra luxurious block of apartments”, had been engulfed by the development and now had no views, simply looking on to the “soulless concrete structure”.
Aboobaker said the property had been bought in 2009 and Serengeti had demolished the house on it.
Building work only began in 2010/2011 and then only on a “stop-start” basis.
This year there was a flurry of activity and residents began to worry about the scale of the development.
Access to the plans and rezoning details were blocked by the municipality, but a surveyor was hired and he confirmed the rezoning.
Aboobaker said the residents believed there had been “material illegalities” in the municipal approval processes.
He and many of the other residents claimed not to have received any notice of the rezoning.
John Lang, a town planner hired by the residents, said the rezoning was contrary to the city’s policy and guidelines for the Berea/Musgrave area, which advocates a maximum zoning of General Residential 2.
Lang also confirmed there were no other properties in the area with the GR 5 zoning, which was for “high-rise, high-density” developments.
Similarly, Aboobaker said, no one had been informed about the deviation plan, “when it should have been obvious that the implications for neighbours and the impact of values would be great”.
In his report, valuer Kevin Dunkley said he had never before seen such a situation in which a site, smaller than its neighbour, had a development five times bulkier.
He said if the site had been bought for R5.8m with its GR 1 zoning, the rezoning had instantly added R25m to its value.
Going on prices recently achieved at 311 Currie Road, he estimated that with 11 units (under GR1), the development would have grossed R32m, while now, with an estimated 46 units, it could gross up to R136m.
Attorney Chris de Beer said the applicants were expected to file further affidavits after being given the record of decision by the municipality and only then would the city and his clients file answering papers.
In a letter to The Mercury, attorney K Naidoo of the firm Livingston Leandy, which is acting for the municipality, said it had adhered to the law when it had approved of the rezoning of the site.
“The applicants failed to take the rezoning decision on appeal to the relevant tribunal. The approval of the building plan is consistent with the site’s current zoning.”
Naidoo said the “facts” related to the decisions the municipality had made would become available during the court proceedings.
The Mercury