Stellenbosch Residents Demand Housing Development on Municipal Golf Course Amid 26-Year Waiting List Backlog

Stellenbosch backyarders march to the mayor's office demanding houses be built on the municipal golf course to clear a 26-year housing backlog.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 25, 2026, 7:14 AM EDT

Source: The information in this article was sourced from GroundUp

The Human Cost of Housing Delays

The deepening housing crisis in Stellenbosch was highlighted this week by the story of Ella Davids, a local pensioner who has remained on the official government housing waiting list for 26 years. Currently residing in a leaking Wendy house in Cloeteville, Davids shares a cramped living space with her 83-year-old father, her son, and six other family members. Her situation reflects a broader systemic failure in the Boland region, where hundreds of residents living in informal backyards face rising rentals and deteriorating living conditions while awaiting state-assisted relocation to permanent structures.

A Strategic Demand for Prime Municipal Land

In a direct challenge to the town’s spatial planning, the Stellenbosch Backyard Dwellers Forum and the People’s Movement for Change (PMC) have formally demanded that the municipality repurpose the local golf course for residential use. Protesters argue that the continued use of expansive municipal land for leisure activities—which primarily benefit wealthy residents—is indefensible while thousands of citizens suffer in substandard housing. Lawrence Seals, chairperson of the Forum, characterized the golf course as a symbol of inequality, asserting that the land should be utilized to fulfill the constitutional right to housing rather than serving as a recreational space for a privileged minority.

Legislative and Administrative Demands

During the march on Tuesday, organizers presented a formal memorandum to the mayor’s office outlining several key requirements for administrative reform. The demands include a significant reduction in housing waiting times and the implementation of transparent measures to address the town’s historical housing backlog. Zandre Allen, secretary-general of the PMC, stated that for many, the waiting list has become a "symbol of broken promises," arguing that access to land is a fundamental right that the municipality is obligated to uphold.