Cape Town - Bromwell Street residents facing eviction have been given a final reprieve which will see them staying put at least until after the festive season.
But Western Cape High Court Judge Leslie Weinkove warned on Wednesday that he would not tolerate any further delays in the drawn-out legal wrangle between the defiant families, the private property owner and the city council.
The matter, which had been scheduled to start on Wednesday, was postponed until January 30 to give the families enough time to seek alternative accommodation.
Legal representative for the families, advocate Sheldon Magardie, who had initially sought a three-week postponement, said the reason for the deferment was to ensure they come back to court having exhausted all avenues available to them.
“We want to get to where the applicants can say: We have done everything in our power to get alternative housing’,” Magardie told the court on Wednesday.
The attorney said eight of the nine families he represented had approached Communicare, a non-profit social housing organisation, which would help his clients in their search for state-assisted accommodation.
The Woodstock Hub, which owns No 120 to No 128 Bromwell Street, where the families live, had originally given the group until September 26 to vacate the premises after it had obtained a court order against them earlier this year.
The company’s lawyer Ross Randall raised concerns about the time and money the matter had cost his clients, but the judge said another couple of weeks “would not break the camel’s back”.
“Our constitution and the law do, to some extent, protect the homeless and I can’t override that,” Weinkove said.
Weinkove said the Woodstock Hub had been “very generous, and that spirit should remain”.
Weinkove also lauded the city council, the second respondent in the matter, for “bending over backwards” to assist the Bromwell Street residents.
Counsel for the city council, Karisha Pillay, said the applicants had to apply for all social housing opportunities available to them, including gap housing, which caters for people earning between R3 500 and R15 000 per month.
Another possible move - which had been rejected by residents - was to Wolverivier, a temporary relocation area (TRA) along the West Coast.
“It is not an option for us because there is no future in that place. It is on a deserted farm and we are used to the city,” Graham Beukes, a Bromwell Street resident protested.
Another resident, Chanelle Commando added: “We really do not know as yet who qualifies and who does not qualify (for social housing) because it would mean those who do not qualify would have to go to Wolwerivier and that would be terrible because there are no amenities, no shops, no schools and no transport to get to the city. There’s nothing there.”
Spokeswoman for the City of Cape Town, Pierrine Leukes, said: “The city [council] has stated that the process for applying for social and gap housing must follow its full process as those who qualify for those forms of housing are not eligible for emergency housing because they are able to afford the alternative housing options.”
Cape Argus