2017-05-05Staff Report 2 Nuusita Ashipala Oniipa The Oniipa Town Council a week ago started marking all illegal structures which were constructed after the council warned against further property development until it finalises its town planning scheme. The marking will subsequently lead to demolitions should owners not comply with the council’s order to remove the structures promptly. The exercise is geared towards ensuring that new structures conform with the town’s future building plans, which are currently being drawn up. “The town is undergoing transition so we need to control development, which means everybody should build with an approved building plan and that is why we have stopped all construction at the town [for the time being],” said chief executive officer at Oniipa, Junias Jacob. The exercise is challenging because some residents continue to defy the council’s orders while at the same time covering up the “illegal remove” marking on their structures. Jacob said the current situation is jeopardising the council’s planning, which may force the council to take the legal route to solve the matter. He said the council is ready to enter preliminary arrangements with residents who currently want to construct while waiting to purchase their plot from the council. The council will in the next two weeks allocate temporary numbers to properties. In the meantime the council has put up a notice advising residents with existing structures to buy the plot from the council. Residential plots will be sold at N$35 per square metre, while business plots will go for N$80 per square metre. The CEO has appealed for cooperation from residents to ensure a speedy formulation of the town’s master plan. Although construction at the town is temporarily forbidden, the council has noted with concern that residents are building structures within road reserves. 2017-05-05Staff Report 2
