Councillors of the Walvis Bay Municipality were divided over a decision to sell residential erven in Kuisebmond to Tunacor during a council meeting in the council chambers on Wednesday.
Tunacor Limited applied for the acquisition of unsurveyed and unserviced single residential erven to build affordable housing for their employees. The matter was tabled in March 2023.
Although, according to the council’s agenda, the company did not apply for a specific location, consultations between the municipality and Tunacor yielded a mutual agreement that Erf 8635 Kuisebmond would best suit the applicant’s needs.
Some of the councillors during a council meeting in the council chambers on Wednesday however strongly felt that it would be more beneficial to the municipality if Tunacor instead bought a piece of land at Farm 37 instead.
The chairperson of the council’s Management Committee, Richard Hoaeb, said big companies such as Tunacor should contribute to Walvis Bay’s development one way or another.
‘Let them buy
land from Farm 37 and in this way, they can service this land and this will even assist the council where they are struggling financially,’ he said.
However, Councillor Leroy Victor disagreed with the chairperson, noting that this would deter investors from investing in the town.
‘If these are the kinds of conditions we are giving to companies who genuinely want to provide housing for their employees, then we might as well tell them not to come to us for their land needs anymore,’ he said.
Others felt that the proposal is a unique development proposition that would significantly contribute to the growth and development of Walvis Bay.
Councillor Olivia Andrews said the development would uplift the area and contribute to the social well-being of the town through adequate housing provision.
The debate concluded with a vote that resulted in the majority opting to maintain the previous recommendations.
The council thus recommended that unsurveyed and unserviced single residential erven at Erf 8635 Kuisebmond
measuring approximately 36 238 square metres, be sold to Tunacor by private transaction at N.dollars 50.06 per square metre.
It was further recommended that development be completed within 36 months from the date of transfer.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency