The Sunday News
Vusumuzi Dube, Municipal Reporter
THE Bulawayo City Council has resolved to advertise with the intention to repossess and auction more than 2 000 properties including residential stands that have gone for between five to 50 years without any development, it has been learnt.
The properties, most of which are located in the low density suburbs were reportedly also not paying rates and rentals resulting in the local authority, in 2014, exposing them in the local Press calling on them to settle their debts or risk losing the properties.
The local authority had in 2014 initially identified 3 101 properties of which 1 080 were advertised resulting in 67 percent of the property owners responding by either paying their arrears or approaching council to make payment plans. The local authority then went on to seek court orders compelling them to auction off the remaining properties.
According to the latest council report, the local authority was still faced with the problem of property owners who abandon their obligations to develop and pay rates for their properties hence the matter had been brought for deliberation before councillors, with the remaining properties out of the initial 3 101 now also faced with public auction.
“Those property owners who re-surfaced after the properties had been advertised would have to justify why council should not conclude that the properties had been abandoned. The Town Clerk (Mr Christopher Dube) confirmed that as management, they had agreed that all properties whose rates had not been paid for five years and above should be advertised,” reads the council report.
The properties will be auctioned in accordance with the Titles registration and derelict lands Act (chapter 20:20). Derelict land is land whose rates had not been paid for a period of five years and above. The local authority has in the past expressed concern about the high number of residential and commercial stands that have remained underdeveloped for several years.
