The City of Cape Town is calling for comment on its draft local spatial development framework (LSDF) for Cape Town’s CBD to guide decisions on land use and development, and the public realm including streets and urban design.

The municipality says that comments received from the first round in September/October 2024 have been used to further refine the LSDF, including an Implementation plan which comprises programmes, projects, and actions to be implemented by various departments with support from the private sector and the inter-governmental stakeholders in various priority precincts within the CBD. A Mobility and Access Plan specifically designed for the CBD will be shared as an annexure to the draft LSDF for a first round of public comment.

It is estimated Cape Town’s CBD will have to provide residential opportunities to an additional 50 000 people by 2040 which needs to be managed through spatial and land use policy and regulation, says the City.

However, access to and from the CBD from the rest of Cape Town is poor and restoring the passenger rail as the backbone of public transport is key, says the municipality, with interventions required to create a more pedestrian-friendly environment as the CBD is still dominated by vehicles.

“Once approved, the LSDF will guide us towards the CBD of 2040, the City of Hope where land use and spatial planning facilitate sustainable economic growth,” comments the City’s Deputy Mayor and Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Eddie Andrews.

“The LSDF intends to transform the CBD into a more people-centred environment with urban design interventions to improve mobility and access for pedestrians, efforts to optimise heritage areas, a public land programme to inform land release in support of affordable housing opportunities, and an appropriately scaled urban form and interface to encourage mixed-use intensification. With mixed use we mean development that accommodates multiple uses such as business, retail, and residential opportunities for existing and new buildings.”

The study area is the core economic area of the CBD, bounded by Helen Suzman Drive/FW de Klerk Boulevard to the north; Nelson Mandela Drive and Sir Lowry Road to the east; Mill Street/Orange Street to the south; and Buitengracht Street to the west – all divided into eight precincts each with its own characteristics, constraints, and opportunities namely De Waterkant, Convention District, Mid-City, Company Gardens, East Foreshore, Cape Town Station, East City, and Lower Gardens.

Some of the proposed City-led short-term projects for the ‘priority precincts’ include improving the public realm from the Cape Town station to Dock Road/V&A Waterfront with interventions along Long, Loop, Bree Streets and Buitengracht; transforming Harrington Square to improve the public realm; developing a concept vision for the Grand Parade including uniform formal trading market structures, linkages to Darling and Harrington Streets, and the Castle, as well as a pedestrian link over Strand Street; the upgrading of the outdoor gym at Kamp Street, upgrading of Jutland Park and Long Street swimming pool, as well as the expansion of the Chapel Street Clinic.

The draft LSDF is informed by existing policies such as the Table Bay District Spatial Development Framework (DSDF) of 2023, the approved LSDFs for District Six and Bo-Kaap, the newly approved policy for Designing Quality Places, the City’s Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan, and the Tall Buildings Policy.

The City says that the Table Bay DSDF and Municipal Spatial Development Framework support higher residential densities and mixed-use land intensification for the CBD area, while the draft LSDF proposes appropriate building heights considering the view of key landmarks such as Table Mountain and Signal Hill, public spaces, and the interface with heritage buildings, cultural resources, and residential areas.

”As for the public realm, the LSDF proposes a pedestrian-friendly CBD that links Table Mountain with the Atlantic ocean through key public spaces, each with their own identity, and more green recreation spaces; the upgrade of squares such as the Grand Parade, Civic Square, Riebeeck Square, Greenmarket Square, and Harrington Square, which is currently the focus of a feasibility study,” notes Alderman Eddie Andrews.

“The LSDF investigates nodal character areas, or places which contribute to the unique sense of place and in some instances, include important heritage assets. To rationalise the heritage protection overlay zone, the LSDF identifies enclaves of existing historic building fabric to be retained and enhanced, and where detailed heritage management provisions are to be developed for inclusion in the Development Management Scheme.”